Caring for dry hair. Tips for healthy and shiny hair
Dry hair looks dull and feels brittle like straw. To make dry hair smooth and shiny again, special care is needed. We explain to you the tips and tricks you can use to make your crowning glory look wonderfully strong and feel healthy down to the ends even when the hair structure is subject to stresses and strains.
10 June 2024 • 3 min. reading time
Table of contents
Causes of dry hair
There are many causes for hair to lose its shine and feel brittle. The main reasons include the wrong haircare and excessive styling. Using haircare products that are not suitable for your hair type and chemical treatments – like perms, dyes and bleaches – can damage the hair structure permanently. Blow-drying with the temperature too high and regular straightening make hair lose moisture. In summer, the UV light from the sun, chlorine in the pool and sea salt cause even healthy hair to feel dry, while in winter the same is true for dry air outdoors as well as indoors.. Diseases, hormonal fluctuations and lack of nutrients can also lead to hair drying out.
Dry hair – what can you do about it?
If you notice that the texture of your hair has changed, that it feels more like straw and doesn’t shine so nicely, it is important to supply the hair immediately with additional moisture. The earlier you react, the less damage will occur to the hair structure.
Washing and shampooing
Every time you wash your hair – even with mild haircare products – oil and moisture is drawn from the hair. Therefore, shampoos for dry hair contain active ingredients like glycerine and aloe vera, which deliver moisture to balance it out. Nourishing ingredients, first and foremost plant oils or urea, encase and protect the hair shaft.
To avoid additional stress for your hair through excessive mechanical rubbing, you should gently massage the shampoo into the scalp with your fingertips when washing the hair and then distribute the foam in the direction of the hair ends. When rinsing, you should not turn the water on too hot. Lukewarm water, which does not dry out the hair and scalp further, is better.
Conditioners
Conditioners for dry hair contain nourishing active ingredients, protect against dehydration and heat, and are used – like shampoos – on damp hair. Through their smoothing effect, dry hair feels smoother, and combing and styling is easier.
Conditioner for dry hair
Split ends and frizz frequently go hand in hand with dry hair. Special hair liquids and nourishing hair oils alleviate the consequences of hair damage and prevent it in the long term. They are massaged gently into the dry hair ends. Nourishing hair treatments and hair masks contain nourishing active ingredients in high concentrations, which penetrate the hair deeply and strengthen it from within. To make dry hair smooth and resilient to environmental influences again, you should use a hair treatment for dry hair at least once a week.
Tip
If you have long hair, it can be worth parting with a few centimetres of your hair so that stressed hair can grow back healthily. Frequent trims prevents hair breakage spreading.
Hair treatments & hair masks for dry hair
The right way to dry dry hair
Hot hairdryer air contributes to dry hair losing even more moisture. Brittle, stressed hair should therefore only be squeezed gently with a towel – not wrung out – and left to air-dry. If you are in a hurry and can’t do without blow-drying, it is best to choose a combination of the lowest heat setting and the highest speed setting. In addition, you can reach for the diffuser attachment. It functions as protection from direct heat and enables you to dry wet hair exceptionally gently. Curls are beautifully defined with the diffuser attachment, while smooth hair gets additional volume.
Tip
If you direct the airflow consistently from the roots down, you ensure that the cuticle layer lies flat. This makes your hair feel smoother and look healthier.
Styling for dry hair
When styling, you should take care to use only high-quality styling products that do not draw any moisture away from the hair. Fatty creams, hair oils and hair wax without alcohol, which seal the hair structure protectively and help the hair retain moisture on the inside, are perfect for this. Hairstyles that largely do not need blow-drying and require as little mechanical rubbing as possible are the best.
Takeaway
With the right haircare and styling that protects the hair structure, you ensure that dry hair retains sufficient moisture and looks healthy. It is important to react to the first signs of dry hair and adjust the way you wash and dry your hair to meet its new requirements. Damaged hair looks smoother and shinier with high-quality hair liquids and hair oils. Nourished, sealed ends are more resilient to hair breakage, dry ambient air and environmental influences.