The end of winter should, in theory, mark the end of dry hair season. The days are getting longer, and you don’t have to wear your huge puffer coats out to brave the cold… so why is your hair still so dry?
Maybe you’ve tried switching up your shampoos and conditioners, washing your hair every day, or have gone a few days between washes, but to no avail. Well, have no fear: we looked into the best products and techniques that are recommended by real people and experts, that won’t make you sacrifice styling.
The heat from your hair dryers, straighteners and curling irons does a lot of damage to the health of our hair. Yes, expensive products exist to combat dryness, but there are also natural ingredients and other remedies that will solve your hairdo woes. (Hint: you also cook with one of them!)
1. Try a deep conditioning routine
Alikay Natural’s Honey and Sage Deep Conditioner $15.99 for 8 oz
Deep conditioning isn’t just for trips to the hair salon. Hair naturally loses moisture from styling, being exposed to chlorine, or just based off of genetics. Daily regular conditioner treatments may be good for maintenance, but not for improving the quality of hair.
“Definitely do deep conditioning treatments. Get a deep conditioning mask, wash your hair then towel dry it. Put the mask all over and then put a shower cap on. You should sit under a dryer for 15 minutes to open the cuticles of the hair. Then cool the hair so the cuticles close and really lock the conditioner into the hair shaft. Rinse and style as you want,” says Elizabeth Coleman Meyfohrt, a hair stylist at Madison Taylor Salon on Long Island. “If you do this once a week for a month you will notice a difference and then you can do it once in a while as needed.”
2. Use coconut oil for split ends (and for an affordable way to add moisture)
Coconut oil has good fat that’s sure to condition your hair more deeply than the bottles in your shower. In addition to combating dryness, it also helps with split ends.
Isabella, a sophomore at the University of Michigan, has the steps to bring your hair back to its full glory with coconut oil.
“I wash my hair every three days, and at the end of those three days before I wash my hair at night, I’ll do a coconut deep conditioning,” says Isabella. “Here’s how you do it: You take a good amount coconut oil, and massage it into the ends of your hair and especially your scalp because it can get dry in the winter and that’s where your new hair is growing in. Leave it in for about twenty minutes and then wash your hair in the shower and it will feel really soft. Also don’t keep your hair in a ponytail all the time because that breaks it. Also going to bed with wet hair breaks it.”
3. Get regular haircuts
As much as you hate to part with your luscious locks, hair is revitalized when the dead ends are cut off. It allows hair to grow in better and healthier.
“As far as dry hair,” says Meyfohrt “you should get trims more often so this way you get the dry ends off.”
4. Take your vitamins, especially if you have a dry scalp
We bet that once you graduated from Flintstone gummies, you probably neglected to take supplements. Aside from helping with your organs, digestion, overall health and blah, blah, blah, certain vitamins are excellent for hair growth, health, and maintenance.
“For a dry scalp, the best is always taking something internal,” says Meyfohrt. “You can take vitamins B or E.”
Our bodies also don’t naturally make B12, a vitamin that helps aid in moisture, so it’s important to take it in general, even if your scalp isn’t super dry.
“Make sure you are getting enough vitamins,” said Hannah, a sophomore at the University of Michigan. “When I wasn’t taking B12 supplements, my scalp got so dry and itchy and I had so much dandruff, but within a week of taking supplements, it got better!”
While food products like milk and eggs also have B12 in them, we don’t recommend putting those in your hair, just eat them instead!
The next time your hair is facing that end-of-winter dryness, try one of these hacks. You may only need to go as far as your kitchen.