Tress mess No stress, Dove is here

Hair, the crowning glory of any face, (I have purposely not said just a woman’s face, not wanting to rise a spate of male furry) and it is true, no man would be considered handsome if he were bald!

Hair, chemically is a dead part of our body, but brings life and vibrancy to a dead face also! Nothing dead has even been more important than Hair! Our hair can make or break our appearance; it is the defining point of one’s personality.

Since the days of Cleopatra, a lady’s beauty took an exponential leap if she possessed long thick healthy hair, in India we like it black, the darker the better.  

I personally believe clothes, makeup, posture and everything else takes a backseat in comparison to the hair! I mean just imagine, Sushmita Sen or Shilpa Shetty without their gorgeous manes, all dressed up and looking pretty, but would you have given them a second look had their hair been not so kind to them? But they didn’t get those gorgeous locks just like that, yes I agree they have been more lucky then some of us, but even they have to put in regular care and efforts to nourish and maintain their hair.

In India, I personally believe the South Indians and Bengalis have it easy. They are blessed with beautiful long lustrous dark hair. In the South, women usually wash their hair and apply plain and simple coconut oil on the wet scalp itself, no fancy olive or almond oils for them. And their diet also helps them. The use coconut oil and fish in their daily meals surely helps. Similarly Bengali babes also have it in their genes or their fishes! Look at Sridevi, Hema Malini, Moon Moon Sen and her daughters and you shall know what I am talking about.

But not all of us are so blessed, so we need to put in extra efforts and make the most of what we have.

First of all there are some ground rules that all of us should know, understand and remember.

1.       No matter what you can never change your hair type.

2.       Recognize your hair type then style and nourish it accordingly.

3.       Unclean hair translates into unhealthy hair.

4.       All expensive products need not be best products.

5.       Chemical treatments will definitely harm your hair.

6.       Natural remedies cause least damage, but are also more tedious.

7.       No substitute to eating fresh green veggies and fruits.

There are two ways in which you can better the quality of your hair. Internally and externally.

Internally, not only for hair these 5 things will help in many matters of the body.

1. Eat fresh green vegetables and fruits. Especially which provide vitamin A, B, proteins and folic acid. (Green Peas and Dals help). Once I was suggested to take Vit A and C for forty days every morning with my breakfast and then take a gap of 10 days; continue again for 40 days, to help me control my excessive haifall.
2. Drink around 3-4 liters of water every day. You should ideally drink 3-4 glasses of water first thing in the morning and another 3-4 glasses at bed time. The rest you can have in any other flavored fluids, less sugar and not chilled.
3. Exercise for atleast 30minutes in a day. Some yoga poses like Sarvangasan, Matsyasan, Poorna Halasan are very beneficial for your hair. They improve blood circulation to the head and also boost hair growth.
4. Live a stress-free tension-less life. Easy to say, meditation and deep breathing exercises help.
5. Avoid dirt and pollution as you can. You could use a cotton cloth to cover your hair, apply a good quality hair serum or leave on conditioner which acts like a protective layer on your hair. 

Externally, you can choose two types of products, one which make your hair look healthy and the other which actually make them healthy. I prefer the later one, because if my hair is healthy they will even look healthy in some time. It’s just that products that make my hair look pretty show instant results, while the other tries my patience.

Like for example, if I were to shampoo my hair (using any shampoo available)and give it a good blow dry it will shine and look nice instantly, but instead if I use a good nourishing shampoo specifically  suitable for my hair type and let it dry on its own, my hair would not look so great initially, but in the long run, my hair won’t be damaged either.

Aloe Vera is one ingredient that can help your hair (and even your skin for that matter) both ways. Drinking Aloe Vera juice (from people who have tried it, eeekkkss!), helps makes hair soft and healthy, and by applying it on the scalp helps to­­­­­­­­­­­­ control hair fall and make the scalp germ free.  

Consuming vitamin supplements of A and B, Evening Primrose oil and Triphla (an Ayurvedic mix of amla, harar and bahera) are said to make our hair healthy.

If we were to notice simple hair damage signals early enough then we can take corrective steps to curb or reverse the damage.  Here’s a list of some hair damage signs, which can be controlled with proper care.

Signs of Hair damage

• Rough or dry hair – sufficient moisturizing and use hair serums
• Excessive Hair fall – eat healthy and stay stress free
• Dandruff - yoghurt, lemon, and a clean scalp helps
• Split ends –regular  haircuts and hot oil treatment
• Greying of hair – needs special professional help

In all the above cases, we need to delve into the root cause and them find the right solution. 

Here's my cleansing routine. 

                                                                                            

Shampoo Use a shampoo which suits your hair type, your quality and your daily routine.Shampoo twice so as to clean it thoroughly.  

Condition Always condition your hair after washing it and towel drying it. But make sure your dont let the conditioner penetrate into your scalp. Rinse throughly.

Serum A serum acts like an outer coat for your hair, shielding it from the sun, pollution and dirt. 

Mask Use it once a week to help you deep condition your hair. Use this from the middle of your hair to the ends, not to be used on the scalp.Leave it on for 5-7 minutes and then wash it off with lukewarm water.

Enjoy the difference.

I'm not at all a know-it-all person, nor any professional, these advices are received from various sources, including my granny, mom, friends or my beauticians. Some of it is also accumulated from reading various magazines or articles on beauty and hair. So please excuse my ignorance or any mistakes and before taking any medications or supplements do consult a specialists, like I've  said earlier, each one is different  and so is our hair. Please also feel free and do correct me.

Here gals and guys help me put together a list of real, fun, absurd things, ingredients, methods that you have heard, tried or been advised/suggested to try to help better your hair! Sounds fun? Then jot down yours as  comments under this post!  (Multiple entries allowed the more the merrier!!)

All images used in this post are taken from various Dove advertisements on the net. This post is for the Dove competition on Indiblogger.