4 Tips for Avoiding Split Ends

You love your long hair but it can definitely require a lot of upkeep. You spend a lot of time washing, straightening and styling your hair and using the right shampoos, conditioners, and products but no matter how much effort or expensive products you use, you still end up with split ends that can cause or indicate hair damage. You know that in order to keep your locks healthy and longer-lasting, you must take care of them.  What if how you are taking care of your hair the wrong way?

Follow these tips  on how to avoid split ends before they even have the chance to occur. This will help prevent more hair length from needing to be cut off, letting you keep more of that long hair you’re proud of.

Skip the Wash

Instead of washing your hair every day, consider cutting down to just every other day. Even the most expensive, “natural” hair shampoo contains ingredients that strip away the hair’s naturally produced oils. While you don’t want to walk around with greasy hair, avoiding a daily wash will help your hair to retain its natural moisture, keeping it healthier. The less frequently you expose your hair to shampoo, the more exposure the hair will have with the beneficial natural oils produced by the body. By washing your hair every other day, your hair will be healthier, longer and fuller and will help prevent split ends.

Be Careful When Brushing 

No one likes getting big knots and tangles in their hair. If you’re short on time, you may be tempted to grab the nearest brush and brush the hair vigorously. This impatient tearing through the hair with a brush not only causes you to lose more hair, but it can damage your hair and cause more split ends. When getting the tangles out of your hair, be cautious and cognizant of how you are brushing, and the amount of hair you are losing in the process. Start out by choosing the right type of brush. One with flexible bristles will more easily detangle the hair without causing damage. Start at the ends of your hair, slowly working your way upward until it is untangled. By starting at the roots, you will only drive knots further down, creating more damage and split ends.

Ease the Towel Drying 

You may sometimes skip the hair dryer because you have time for your hair to air dry and you want to give your hair a break from the harsh heat of the hair dryer. Depending on how long and thick your hair is, it can take a few hours for your hair to completely air dry. Drying your hair with a towel if done right can be an effective way to quickly dry your hair. However, rubbing the towel too fast and violently through the hair can cause damage. Wet hair is weaker than dry hair, making it more susceptible to towel damage. Don’t scrub or rub the towel against your hair, especially along the ends.  If you want a quicker towel dry for your hair, wrap the towel around your hair and lightly squeeze, letting the fabric absorb any extra moisture.

Avoid Heat

The frequent exposure to intense heat can damage the cells of the hair, leading to unsightly split ends.  Whether it is blow dryers, straighteners, or curling irons, the heat from each of these will be damaging to your hair. Of these hair styling tools, the hair straightener is the worst. If you do use one of these tools, make sure to apply a heat protector beforehand. Try to use these hair styling tools as sparingly as possible. By styling your hair in a way that avoids the use of these tools, such as a ponytail, you’ll give your hair a much needed break to once again become healthy and long.  

Split ends are common and yet are one of the most damaging things that can happen to your hair. Despite their damage, they can be easily avoided or minimized. To maintain or enhance the health, and look of your long hair, it is important to avoid some of the aforementioned hair care mistakes such as using heat-producing hair styling tools, washing your hair every day and roughly rubbing the towel through wet hair, that are often what causes split ends.

Split ends don’t look great and can take away precious length from your long hair. If you have split ends, consider  scheduling an appointment with one of the hairstylists at Taylor Andrews. We know how to get rid of split ends  and how to prevent split ends so your hair can look vibrant, healthy and beautiful.