Summer, though a great time to be outdoors and have good time at swimming pools, you also need to protect yourself from hot sun by taking extra care. Hot sun damages your skin, it also damages your hair as well.
Excessive and longtime exposure to the sun, makes the hair weak, dry, brittle and also more susceptible to split ends. Sweat and dust contributed by summers increase hair problems like dandruff, split ends, fuzziness and increased hair fall.
Tips to keep your hair healthy in summers:
- Drink plenty of water. Your hair and your skin will benefit immensely from good hydration and extra fluids that you have. So, opt for cooling liquids that will help you keep your hair healthy and hydrated. Keep yourself hydrated by drinking at least 7-8 glasses of water. Also include lemon water, buttermilk and coconut water in your diet to regain the lost minerals. Eat fruits with high water content such as muskmelon, watermelon, cucumbers and tomatoes to include nutrients in your system.
- Eat a healthy diet for good health of your hair. Include omega-3 (fish, walnut, flax seeds, olive oil etc.),iron (e.g. dark green vegetables like spinach), Vitamin C ( citrus fruits like kiwi, orange, amla), proteins (lean chicken, fish, egg, curd, skimmed milk, sprouts ), zinc ( nuts) , vitamin A(carrots) in diet.
- It is essential you cover your hair with a cap or a scarf during summers. This protects it from the harmful UV rays and it also helps in retaining moisture. Also, you can get protection from dust too in traffics.
- Tight hairstyles can be damaging because they tend to pull and tear hair, especially if your hair is dry from the summer heat. Hence put your hair up in loose, comfortable styles.
- Use a wide-tooth comb instead of a brush. So that entangling will not damage your hair much.
- Use a mild shampoo prefer herbal based and always dilute the shampoo with an equal quantity of water and then apply to the slap.
- Hair scalp sweats more during summer and it may lead to dandruff. This might make you feel like you have a dirty scalp, making you want to wash your hair every day. But washing hair daily will strip your hair of its natural oils. Therefore, wash your hair on every 2 days or alternate days and not on every day. If you find dandruff do not hesitate to use any medicated anti dandruff shampoo.
- Split ends form in summer hence trim your hair.
- Oil your hair twice a week as it is a good way to get healthy and shiny hair. You can do oil massage and wash hair after some time for improving blood circulation of scalp.
- Exercise daily. Yoga or simple exercise like walking will helps in maintaining good health and proper blood circulation which will result in better hair.
- If you’re the type of person who loves swimming in summers then you should wet your hair before you enter the pool. This way it will absorb lesser chlorine.
- It is better to avoid heating tools such as that from blow dryers, flat irons, and curling irons as much as possible because additional heat can dry out your hair shafts. Also, use fewer hair products such as hairsprays and gels because they contain tons of chemicals that can cause damage by clogging the follicles mixed with sweat.
Follow the above tips and have a happy summer….
-Dr.Bhavani Sagar S
#Thinkhealth blog 