Blog

In continuation of our series Tending to your tresses, The indispensable guide

Myths, Oil wives’ tales and in more dubious of terms, absolute Hogwash! Are in their obvious tone are quite often very exaggerated and fictitious. We have heard them since we can remember, and many a times they are related to origins of a cultural practice or even a natural phenomenon. Old wives’ tales and myths also work against our better judgement and to comprehend the bizarreness behind them are absolutely senseless. So quite expectedly there are many that float around this physical dimension with much absurdity. One also hears many regarding our most prized possession, our hair. Mundanely enough, numerous men and woman blindly are following a regime of shampoo, oiling and grooming their hair, which is in fact quite ridiculous and damaging to them. How does one diminish the facts from the Hogwash? Quite simply, by searching for logic behind each of their claims, hence, I have chosen the most common and popular myths to help you see the illogical reasons that repudiate them.

Myth 1: Worrying brings on grey hair

Reality: True It’s well know that the stress hormone adrenaline does damage the DNA which produces melanin which is the pigment that gives hair it’s colour. High levels of stress hormones in the skin does cause the hair to lose its colour.

Myth 2: Being stressed makes your hair fall out.

Reality: True Excessive Stress does take a toll on your hair growth. Telogen effluvium is brought on by anxiety, emotional or physiological stress which alters the normal hair cycle growth. Since Hair Follicles go through a periodic “rest” phase, over stress cause the follicles to enter this resting period prematurely making hair fall out within three months from the onset of any stressful event. It’s important to deal with stress immediately and also seek medical advice to rule out any underlying illness related to hormonal imbalances and drug side effects.

Myth 3: Brushing your hair a 100 times daily makes your hair healthier.

Reality: False An old wives’ tale, that’s been circulating the grapevine since stories of Rapunzel first made its appearance eons ago. Though it might seem very logical, excessive brushing is known to damage your locks and often break healthy strands of hair and scratches the scalp which can cause cuticle damage and make hair look frizzy. Always brush gently as needed using a wide tooth comb and a brush with soft bristles that help detangle the hair and not tug at the strands. Scalp massages are always helpful and very therapeutic.

Myth 4: Trimming your hair makes it grow faster.

Reality: Truth Although hair growth happens at the scalp, regular trims prevent split ends from forming and stops breakage keeping your hair less dry and prone to damage. Every 4-6 weeks is ideally a perfect time to re-freshen your hair with a mild trim, and if you have hair that’s not dry then every 8-12 weeks would work best for you.

Myth 5: Avoid hair conditioner if you have oily scalp.

Reality: False Over excessive sebum excretions from the scalp tissues causes greasy hair. For an oily scalp use a clarifying shampoo and always only use moderate amount of conditioner on the tips of your hair.

Myth 6: Blow Drying hair is bad

Reality: True After washing your hair, around half an hour to an hour is the average time it takes for hair to dry depending on the weather conditions you are exposed to. While hair is wet it swells up and puts pressure on the proteins that keeps your hair intact and healthy. As studies reveal the blow-drying causes more damage to the hair’s surface, air -drying causes damage within the strands. In some situation where it’s imperative to blow-dry, it is advised that you air-dry it until 75% of hair is dry then switch to a low mode heat setting on your dryer and dry the rest of your hair. Using a hair serum during this process does help reduce dryness.

Myth 7: Hair only grows a certain length

Reality: Truth and False Genetics plays a key role on determining the maximum length your hair can grow, as each follicle has a period of growing and resting. This is categorised by three specific periods, the Anagen period when hair grows, Catagen period when hair stops growing and blood supply is cut off from the root of the hair and from the cells that produce new hair and Telogen period where the follicles are resting eventually hair falls out and the cycle starts again. But with a healthy diet and lifestyle one can control the effects of this natural process and achieve more than their own follicles capacity, as seen when many natural use of products that encourage a healthy growth of hair. To the wise I say, Well Done! For you are one of the many that didn’t fall prey to gibberish. To the uninformed I say, well now you know! And it’s just with a little wisdom does one learn how to truly protect yourself from uncredited falsified theories.