If you’re desperate to grow your hair, you probably hate hearing other women moaning about how thick their hair is and how often they have to get it cut. You’d be happy if you could just get your hair past your shoulders!
Long, thick hair has always been seen as a sign of femininity – and though that’s an outdated viewpoint nowadays, thick hair still represents good health and youth. If your hair is long and grows quickly, it’s a good indication that you practice a healthy lifestyle and follow a good diet. Of course, hair thickness and length also comes down to genetics, and there’s not a lot that you can do about that.
Some people find that their hair can only grow to a certain length, before it just. Stops. Growing. Frustrating as this can be, it doesn’t mean you can never get your hair beyond that length. You don’t need to spend all your money on expensive haircare products, too – all that’s required is that you put in a bit of daily effort and maintain a consistent routine. Many aspects of a healthy hair routine can help you to enjoy a healthier life in general, so it’s not just your hair that will benefit from the changes you make.
If growing your hair thick and fast is important to you, take note of these easy tips, which will help you to achieve the results you’re after within a matter of months:
Love them or hate them, eggs are a hair growth enthusiast’s dietary staple. They’re packed full of protein and biotin, which, according to research, are both important for hair growth. Our hair follicles are largely made up of protein, so it makes sense that a diet that’s lacking in protein may result in slower hair growth or even hair loss.
You’ve probably seen biotin supplements in your local health store and wondered whether they’re worth the investment for hair growth. There’s not much point in paying for biotin when you can get plenty of this nutrient from eggs.
Biotin helps to facilitate keratin production. Keratin is a type of protein that promotes hair growth, and helps to overlap cells to create strands. The more keratin you have, the thicker, healthier and shinier your hair will be.
To most people, hair masks are a nice one-off treat, but they’re too much fuss to use all the time. If, however, you’re looking for thick, long hair, you’ll need to get into the habit of using hair masks on a regular basis.
Even if you’d much rather use the basic wash-in, wash-out shampoos and conditioners, having a bit more patience will give your hair the VIP treatment it doesn’t get right now. Hair masks are deeply conditioning and can target hair from the inside out. Conditioner, on the other hand, can’t actually penetrate into hair, and only moisturises the outer layer.
Typically, hair masks are applied in the same way that you’d apply conditioner. Depending on the product you opt for and the ingredients it contains, you may need to wait between five and 25 minutes before you wash it out.
The best hair masks contain butters and oils that offer an in-depth nourishment even with just a single use. The biggest benefit of using a hair mask is that it’ll restore strength and shine to your hair, promoting faster and thicker growth.
You don’t have to buy commercial hair mask (CLICK HERE FOR THE BEST HAIR MASK) products if you’re trying to save money, by the way. It’s fun and easy to make your own natural hair masks using ingredients like honey, eggs, avocado, coconut oil, and even mayonnaise.
Search on Google and you’ll find plenty of recipe inspiration to follow, and you probably have everything you need in your cupboards right now.
It might seem counterproductive, but limiting your hair washing is actually really good for it. Though many people believe that washing their hair frequently is essential, the constant use of shampoo and conditioner can hinder hair growth.
When you adopt a daily hair washing routing, your hair falls into an unhealthy cycle. The more often you strip it of its natural oils with a haircare product, the harder it feels like it has to work to replace these oils, which means your hair will be greasier more often.
Greasy hair isn’t just annoying – research suggests that it’s also a little-known sign of hair loss. When your hair produces excess oil, it may be trying to tell you that you have inflammation.
Inflamed hair follicles result in slower hair growth, because the hair that is produced tends to be much weaker in structure. If severe inflammation isn’t treated, you may end up blocking your hair follicles, which will stop your hair’s natural growth cycle entirely.
It couldn’t be easier to restore your scalp’s natural biome: just wash your hair less frequently. This will help reduce your sebum production to normal levels, so you won’t need to wash your hair every day, and inflammation should go down as a result.
Simply washing your hair once every three days instead of once every day should encourage your hair to grow at a faster rate – and you’re saving money on haircare while you’re at it.
Have you ever considered how the type of pillowcase you sleep on could be affecting the quality of your hair? Considering how long we spend asleep every night – hopefully around 7 or 8 hours – it makes sense that a bad pillowcase may be responsible for a lot of the hair breakage and damage that you’re noticing.
Silk pillowcases are considered the kindest-to-hair solution, as silk tends to be softer and smoother on hair strands. If you’re the sort of person who tosses and turns in the night, a silk pillowcase should help to keep your hair protected.
Cotton pillowcases, on the other hand, pose a number of problems that can result in reduced hair growth and even hair loss. They absorb your hair’s oils, resulting in dry ends and breakage.
Every time your hair snaps or splits, its ability to grow is hindered, so it’s important to keep your ends clean and strong as much as you can.
All of us are guilty for unhealthy snacking habits, whether it’s stopping by the office biscuit tin one too many times or opting for a sugary pick-me-up after dinner. Instead of chocolate and biscuits, stock up on your favourite nuts and seeds for hair-growth benefits.
Almonds, hazelnuts, chia seeds, sunflower seeds and flaxseeds are all great sources of vitamins and minerals for thick, long, shiny hair.
Let’s look at almonds, for instance. A single 28 gram serving of this popular nut contains nearly 40% of your daily vitamin E requirements.
We need vitamin E to maintain scalp health. Being an antioxidant, vitamin E also prevents free radical damage that can result in hair thinning. Seeds and nuts are also a fantastic source of omega 3 fatty acids, which stimulate thickening and strengthening of hair follicles, promoting healthy production of sebum at the scalp.
In particular, chia seeds are an essential food for anyone looking to grow their hair. They contain a mineral called phosphorous, which is important for hair growth, as well as nine essential amino acids that support keratin production. We already know the importance of keratin for giving hair strands their structure.
No, investing in haircare doesn’t mean spending hundreds on products that supposedly act as hair growth miracles. But you should still make sure you’re spending a little more on high-quality shampoos and conditioners as opposed to the cheapest products that are available.
If your aim is to grow your hair, you want to avoid the lower-priced shampoos and conditioners, as they likely contain a number of cheap, harmful chemical ingredients that can actually hinder hair growth. Ingredients like parabens, alcohol, ammonium and formaldehyde are drying and may irritate the scalp, resulting in inflammation and dry, brittle strands.
It’s reasonable to expect a more expensive haircare product to be the better choice for hair growth, but it’s still worth checking the ingredients when you’re browsing just to be sure. There are plenty of vegan, plant-derived products that use only natural ingredients, like coconut, argan oil and honey. Organic products tend to be best, too, and the fewer the ingredients, the better.
The majority of hair growth nutrients can be found in common foods that you can add to your daily diet. But for extra hair growth support, there’s nothing wrong with opting for a few choice vitamin supplements. Get into the habit of starting your day with a multivitamin and a hair supplement, washed down with a glass of water. This is the easiest way to make sure your hair is benefiting from all the vitamins, minerals and fatty acids it needs for healthy growth and follicle function.
Not all hair supplements are created equally. When you’re shopping online, make sure you opt for supplements that are a good source of omega 3.
This type of healthy fatty acid has been proven to increase the density of hair and prevent hair shedding, thanks to its anti-inflammatory properties. Keratin is another great supplement for hair growth – though, of course, you can get all the keratin you need from foods like eggs.
If your morning routine involves taking a shower, blow-drying your hair and getting ready for work, there’s a good chance that you’re damaging your strands from your actions. Brushing your hair when it’s wet is one of the worst things you can do if you’re trying to maintain healthy strands, as your hair is weaker and more fragile when it’s wet.
Try gently pulling down on a hair strand after showering and you’ll understand the meaning behind this – your hair will stretch like elastic. Brushing your hair, then, may pull your strands so much that it splits or snaps.
If you have to brush your hair when it’s wet, consider using a wide-tooth comb, which will slide through your hair without too much tugging or pulling. The best solution is to let your hair dry naturally before you brush it. If you’re not pulling out your hair strands every time you brush your hair, it stands to reason that your hair will be thicker and longer in the long run.
No matter why you might want to grow your hair, you should now feel confident that the impossible feat isn’t so impossible after all. It’s simple – just focus on improving your diet, giving your hair that extra-special treatment in the shower, and supplementing with the right vitamins, and you’ll see a huge improvement in the quality of your hair.
Test these tips before you resort to buying hair extensions, which are expensive to maintain and can be seen as a last resort if you can’t achieve your desired hair length and thickness yourself.
Remember, everyone is different when it comes to the techniques and products that work best for them, so not all of these tips may be best for you. Experiment with products and techniques, find what does work, and you’ll be on your way to thick, healthier hair in no time.
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