Hair care myths you really should be wary of
All over the internet there are many lists of dos and don’ts for your hair. These days everybody is an expert when it comes to looking after their and your hair. People sprout out of nowhere, create youtube videos and like sheep many people subscribe and hang on their every word.
How many of these people actually know what they are talking about? Have you ever asked yourself how many of them are actually qualified to dispense the sort of advice they do on a regular basis? Don’t get me wrong, not all claim to be experts. In fact most just share their personal experiences which we should be grateful. They’ve used their own hair to test out products and processes and in that sense are human guinea pigs. The idea is that we learn from their mistakes and take advantage of their triumphs.
However there are some who claim to be experts in their videos. You should be especially careful when taking advice about processes or products that could cause irreversible damage to your hair. Using a recommended shampoo really can’t hurt, however if you use a recommended product like a hair perming product, then know before hand that if anything goes wrong the damage you cause to your hair will be permanent.
It is these sort of videos and advice that deserve and warrant the most scrutiny and caution. Before taking this advice you should ask yourself if the person giving it is qualified. Are they are qualified hair dresser or hair stylist? Do they have any experience when it comes to chemical processes for hair?
Only people who have the right qualifications or experience should give out such advice. They need to understand the chemistry and chemicals involved in the process. Giving out advice without the right experience or qualifications is completely irresponsible. If you aren’t sure always ask about their experience and qualifications in the public comments and see whether they respond to your comment. If they don’t then run for the hills and get the process done by a professional.
One of the most irritating hair care myths online is the one about hair care products that contain silicones. The general consensus of this myth that is widely propagated online is that using products that contain silicones are bad for your hair. They claim hair products with silicones prevents moisture and moisturising ingredients from penetrating your hair which in turn will lead to dry hair that breaks off.
All this message does is add confusion. Silicones aren’t bad for your hair. They are added to hair products to seal the hair’s shaft and keep the rest of the goodness from the hair product in the hair. This myth came about when conditioner washing became a popular practice amongst women with dry hair. Conditioner washing is the practice of using only a hair conditioner to wash your hair and completely cutting out the shampooing. The claim is that some shampoos can be particularly harsh on the hair and strip the hair’s moisture completely. So people started skipping shampoo and washed their hair with conditioner only.
Using only conditioner to wash the hair all the time lead to a build up of silicones on the hair as the hair strands were perpetually sealed and since shampoo wasn’t being used then removing the buildup became an issue. Poor silicones got blamed and have had a bad reputation since. So silicones aren’t bad for your hair as long as you wash your hair with shampoos. If you wash your hair using a shampoo then it will remove any silicone build up and there will be no need to avoid hair products that contain silicones.
Another ridiculous myth perpetuated on youtube is that you can make your own hair masks and expect them to be as effective as commercially made hair masks. If one was to count the number of do it yourself hair mask recipes on the internet and was paid a penny for each and every one, then you’d be richer than you could ever possibly imagine before even counting most of these recipes.
One of the most irritating claims about these recipes is their effectiveness on damaged hair or hair with serious issues like thinning or balding problems. If your hair is thick and healthy then by all means using a homemade recipe that contains household edible ingredients won’t harm it. But if you have serious hair problems like damaged hair then using these home made formulations will not help your hair at all. The simple reason is that damaged hair needs products with small enough particles to actually be able to penetrate the hair. Anything with big particles will just sit on the hair and not be absorbed and therefore cannot repair any damage to the hair whatsoever.
There is a reason the hair care industry is such a big part of our everyday lives. Going back to the comments at the start of the article about taking advice from qualified individuals, this particularly applies to hair care companies. They employ qualified chemists, product specialists, pharmacists and anyone else that has been rigorously trained. They understand the chemistry and science behind the chemicals used in their products and how they pertain to the hair’s needs. They create products that work otherwise they quickly go out of business.
When they create products for the hair, one of the most important parts of the formulation is testing that it is fit for the purpose for which it has been designed. There wouldn’t be any point in creating a hair mask for damaged hair if the active ingredients are unable to enter the hair strands to repair damage. The same applies to hair products for thinning hair or balding hair. Whatever the active ingredient is in the product, they have to ensure it is present in sufficient quantities to make it work and be effective.
Another important thing to remember is that before a hair product is placed on the market, it has to be safety assessed. Products that don’t pass a safety assessment will not be made available to the public to buy. Can the same be said for all these homemade hair product recipes that appear on the internet, probably not.