How to Treat Damaged Hair

Are you searching for damaged hair remedies? You have landed in the right place. After reading this article, you will have expert advice and tips to help you revitalize and rehydrate your hair.

Hair damage can be inevitable if you’re heat-styling your hair daily with curling irons and straighteners. And it seems like there is always a new tip or trick on how to remedy your dry, damaged hair that circulates on TikTok or Instagram, but what works?

If you’re looking for expert advice on how to get the healthiest hair of your life, we have some great news!

Paul Wintner, Alterna Global Education Manager and hairstylist, is sharing his expertise on caring for dry, damaged hair. He also shares tips on using Alterna hair care products to treat your hair. Trust us — you’re going to want to take some notes!

Wintner has more than 12 years of hair experience and is well versed in color theory, styling, up-styling and braiding. He joined Alterna in 2018 and has since traveled throughout the U.S. and Canada, educating salons, distributors and hairstylists on Alterna’s products and innovative cutting and styling techniques. He has worked with the hair of some of our favorite stars, like Paris and Nicky Hilton.

Getting to Know Alterna Hair Care

As a hairstylist and Alterna Global Education Manager, Wintner has a wealth of experience caring for damaged hair by using Alterna hair products. Alterna’s products were made to revitalize your scalp, slow down the aging process of your hair, restructure your strands and more. Aside from products that heal and enhance your hair, Alterna’s line of styling products also prioritizes hair health for all textures.

Before diving into Wintner’s expert advice, let’s talk about how your hair can become damaged. It will be necessary to pinpoint where most of your damage is coming from in order to identify which solutions and treatments to use.

How Does Hair Get Damaged?

Whether you color your hair or style it with heat, hair damage will happen to everyone. Depending on your hair’s texture and thickness, hair damage can vary.

“Heat styling, coloring, lightening hair and physical aggressors such as brushing and combing hair and putting hair up into an elastic when it’s wet are several ways that can cause damage to hair,” Wintner says.

Some textures may be more susceptible to unavoidable damage, while others may not experience it. Here are some of the most common ways hair damage occurs:

• Excessive Use of Heat

  – Do you regularly use some form of heat on your hair? Whether you blow dry your hair, straighten it or curl it, your hair could become damaged. If your hair is experiencing heat damage, it could look and feel brittle and dry while looking damaged.

• Washing Hair Too Much

  – How often do you wash your hair? Believe it or not, the way you wash your hair could impact your hair’s health. For example, if you are using too much shampoo too often, you may be drying your hair out, leaving hair feeling brittle and susceptible to damage. Your hair’s tolerance to being washed has everything to do with your texture. We recommend shampooing your hair once or twice a week for thicker, curly or wavy hair. If you feel like your shampoo usage makes your hair dry, only apply a small amount of shampoo to your roots.

• Weather

  – Environmental factors have a role in your hair’s health. Whether you’re in a climate with cold winters and high winds or a region that gets a lot of sun, your hair could be prone to damage. Don’t worry — we will share more tips on preventing harsh weather damage to your hair below.

• The Type of Water You’re Using

  – What kind of water comes out of your showerhead? If your hair is feeling dry and brittle, it may be time to invest in a water filtration system for your shower head. These systems help remove hard water deposits that build up on your hair and ultimately damage it.

• Being Reckless with Wet Hair

  – When you get out of the shower, do you put your wet hair up in a bun or sleep with it wet? If so, you’re probably causing a lot of damage to your hair. Your hair is at its weakest when it’s wet, and putting damp hair into a hair tie can cause hair to stretch and break.

• Rough Handling

  – How do you brush your hair? Whether your hair is tangled or easy to manage, how you brush your hair could affect its health. If you are brushing your hair from the top down, you may not be able to detangle it without breakage. We recommend starting from the bottom and combing through your hair top to bottom once detangled.

• Using Drugstore Hair Care Products

  – You have probably heard by now from your stylists or friends that there are a lot of hair care products out there that aren’t great for your hair. They could be damaging your hair with harsh chemicals and causing product buildup. If you want to level up your hair care and protect your hair, it may be time to ditch the drugstore products that weren’t made with your hair in mind.

Are you feeling overwhelmed because some of these damaging hair activities are a part of your daily routine? Let your worries melt away because Wintner is about to share some advice that could save your hair!

Signs Your Hair Is Damaged

Are you wondering whether or not your hair is damaged? Here are some obvious signs that your hair may need extra love and care. And don’t worry — we will be sharing expert tips on treating and repairing damaged hair below.

• Split Ends

  – If you have split ends, this is a sign of hair damage. However, split ends are pretty common in most hair types whether you use excessive heat or not.

• Dry Hair

  – Does your hair feel dry to the touch? This could be a sign of damage — especially if you have recently colored your hair. Hair can become dry after being styled with heat tools.

• Brittle Hair that Falls Out

  – Are you losing a lot of hair all of the time? This could be a sign that your hair isn’t in optimal health.

• Greasy Strands

  – Our scalps produce natural oils that protect our skin and our hair, but it is possible that your hair could be overproducing oils. If this sounds like your hair, it may be time for a scalp refresh.

• Thick at the Root, Thin at the Ends

  – If the hair feels and looks fuller in the root area but tapers off toward the end, this could be a sign of breakage and damage.

• Hair Looks and Feels Dull

  – Is your hair feeling and looking lackluster? This could be a sign of damage.

• Excessive Tangling

  – Do you notice a lot of tangling occurring with your hair? If your hair becomes tangled more than usual, it may be a sign of damage.

How to Treat Damaged Hair

It’s time to learn how to treat and revitalize your hair. Wintner will be sharing his must-know, expert advice on making your hair feel and look healthy and luscious.

Use a Deep Conditioning Mask Regularly

For hair that feels dry, brittle and damaged, you should implement a deep conditioning mask to your weekly hair care routine.

“Use a deep conditioning mask one or two times per week,” Wintner says. “I’d suggest alternating between the CAVIAR Replenishing Moisture Masque and Restructuring Bond Repair Masque from Alterna.”

A deep conditioning mask can replenish your hair with high-quality ingredients, prevent breakage and give you soft, luscious hair.

Wash Your Hair Less

If you have a problem with breakage and your hair tends to be dry, you could help nurse your hair back to health by washing it less. Washing your hair less will help your hair replenish its natural oils, which protect your hair from damage and breakage. If you currently clean your hair every day, try reducing washes to once every other day.

Invest in Quality Hair Care Products

For hair that is damaged, the average hair care product may not be getting the job done. If you want to treat your hair and bring it back to life, it’s time to invest in professional hair care products that are made to revitalize damaged hair.

“Alterna Restructuring Bond Repair line will help repair damaged hair,” Wintner says. “In fact, every product in the line offers 99 percent reduction in breakage and split ends.”

Finding products with high-quality ingredients that aim to solve specific issues like dullness, dryness, breakage and volume will completely change your hair for the better.

Filter Your Shower Water

Did you know that the water that comes out of your showerhead could be damaging your hair? We were shocked, too!

“One surprising factor that can cause hair damage is hard water minerals in your water when you shower,” Wintner says. “To help eliminate hard water deposits on your hair, use a water filtration system on your shower nozzle.”

Hard water deposits dry out your hair and cause buildup, which makes it harder for your hair care products to penetrate your hair effectively.

Water filtration systems prevent hard water deposits and buildup. When you filter your shower water, you will notice an immediate difference in the look and feel of your hair.

You can find water filtration systems at various price points and styles, which means there is a system for every kind of showerhead and budget.

Get a Regular Trim

Seeing your hairstylist for a regular trim could help you keep damaged hair at bay while also allowing your hair to grow more. Seeing a stylist could also help you treat your severely damaged hair as they can recommend custom solutions tailored to your needs.

If you have a lot of split ends, your stylist may be able to cut your hair to a healthy length that eliminates the damaged parts of your hair.

Reduce Your Use of Heat

If you’re trying to prevent hair damage or revitalize damaged hair, limiting the use of heat on your hair could help.

Hair tools like straighteners, blow dryers and curling irons can cause damage to your hair if used excessively. This doesn’t mean you have to leave the house with your hair looking lackluster every day. There are a variety of ways to style your hair naturally that can also help revive your locks.

And this certainly doesn’t mean that you have to quit using heat on your hair altogether. If you limit heat exposure to once or twice a week, you can dramatically improve the look and health of your hair.

Take a Break from Lightening Hair

If your hair is damaged and you want to help bring it back to health, it’s a good idea to avoid lightening your hair. When your hair is lightened, it strips your hair and causes it to become weak. Once your hair has been brought back into good shape, you can definitely try lightening it!

“Some ways to prevent or slow down damage in the hair is to limit the use of hot tools and blow drying hair, stop coloring hair, put on a leave-in conditioner before going into pools or water, brush hair before bedtime to distribute natural oils down the hair shaft and take supplements that help with keratin production and help grow stronger hair,” Wintner says.

Everyone’s hair is different. You may be able to apply some of these approaches to your hair or all of them. We recommend starting with one of these treatments and seeing how your hair reacts after consistent treatments. Then, you may be able to add more hair self-care to your routine to achieve any other goals you have. Your hair is already looking healthier!