Don't be Fooled By These Hair Care Myths

NapfroConsulate

Well-Known Member
I saw this on Yahoo. What do you ladies think?

Myth: Frequent trims make hair grow faster.
Truth: "Hair grows a half-inch per month, whether you cut it or not," says John Barrett, owner of the John Barrett Salon in New York City. Hair may grow slightly faster in the summer, but that has nothing to do with the stylist's scissors and everything to do with hormones, which do speed growth a little. One thing a trim will do: Eliminate split ends, making hair look better

Myth: Stress can make your hair fall out.
Truth: Although your hair is falling out all the time, to the tune of 50 to 120 strands per day, it's possible that you may lose a few more strands when you're "catastrophically" stressed, meaning you have had a major life change such as a divorce, lost job, or surgery, says Gerome Litt, M.D., an assistant professor of dermatology at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland. "Other culprits are pregnancy or antibiotics. After a few weeks, it will almost certainly grow back."

Myth: Switching shampoos can make hair look healthier.
Truth: It may seem so, but experts scoff. "Hair can't tell the difference between brands or build up tolerance to any product," says London-based hair and scalp expert Philip Kingsley. "Your favorite shampoo will work the same every time you lather up, week after week, month after month." If you have very oily hair or favor a particularly sticky styling product that contains wax, it does pay to use a clarifying shampoo once every two weeks to wash away residue. Good Housekeeping's Beauty Department recommends Redken Hair Cleansing Cream and Neutrogena Anti-Residue Shampoo.

Myth: If you pluck out one gray hair, two or three will sprout in its place.
Truth: While this isn't true, plucking out those gray strands is a bad habit. You can damage the roots, causing infection or leaving a scar.

Myth: You can't make flat, fine hair look full of body.
Truth:
Five minutes with a set of large hot rollers will add life to straight hair.

Myth: Rinsing with ice-cold water after a shampoo will give you shinier hair.
Truth:
It might wake you up, but a dousing of cold water will have no effect on the shininess of your tresses.

Myth: Coloring your hair causes major damage.
Truth:
Products today — both at home and in the salon — are gentle enough not to weaken hair. In fact, some contain extra conditioners that may leave hair more manageable than before. Although it's not necessary, "it can't hurt to consult a professional stylist the first time you do anything permanent to your hair or scalp," Kingsley counsels.

Myth: You should brush your hair 100 strokes every day
Truth:
"Brush it only to style it, because brushing pulls hairs out of their follicles and possibly weakens individual strands," says Kingsley.

Myth: You can mend split ends with the right products
Truth:
Once they're split, that's it. The only thing you can do then is cut them off. Celebrity stylist Jimmy Paul suggests making split ends less noticeable by applying a product containing silicone or beeswax. It will temporarily seal ends together, making hair softer and more manageable. Try: John Paul Mitchell Gloss Drops and John Barrett Bee Hold.

Myth: To get really clean hair, you must "lather, rinse, and repeat."
Truth:
One thorough washing will do the trick.
 

LaFemmeNaturelle

Well-Known Member
I agree with all of it except what they deem as being stressful enough to cause excessive shedding. Only reason why I disagree is because of what I've learned in psych classes.
 

Missjae09

New Member
I agree with all of it except what they deem as being stressful enough to cause excessive shedding. Only reason why I disagree is because of what I've learned in psych classes.

Hhhmmm, When I was on my way to divorce court I found that my hair was shedding excessively.. every time I combed the sink looked like I'd received a cut. Maybe being stressed out kept me from eating as I should which meant my hair wasn't getting the nutrients it needed which let to the excessive shedding... ya think?
 

LaFemmeNaturelle

Well-Known Member
No what I meant is that those aren't the only types of stress that can cause excessive shedding. They make it seem like the daily stress that someone may encounter for a long period of time at work or school is not enough to cause excessive shedding. That's what I was disagreeing with.
 

Missjae09

New Member
No what I meant is that those aren't the only types of stress that can cause excessive shedding. They make it seem like the daily stress that someone may encounter for a long period of time at work or school is not enough to cause excessive shedding. That's what I was disagreeing with.

:look::grin: My bad girl! I TOTALLY agree with you!!!
 

jada1111

New Member
I saw this on Yahoo. What do you ladies think?

Myth: To get really clean hair, you must "lather, rinse, and repeat."
Truth:
One thorough washing will do the trick.

This might be true for someone who washes their hair daily and doesn't use waxy products or butters. I do, so the lather, rinse, repeat is mandatory.
 

Honey Bee

Well-Known Member
Myth: Rinsing with ice-cold water after a shampoo will give you shinier hair.
Truth:
It might wake you up, but a dousing of cold water will have no effect on the shininess of your tresses.
Really? So, cold water doesn't, in fact, close the cuticle?

Does that mean, conversely, that warm water doesn't open the cuticle?

In which case, why bother to dc with heat?

Too many questions...
 

Nonie

Well-Known Member
Really? So, cold water doesn't, in fact, close the cuticle?

Does that mean, conversely, that warm water doesn't open the cuticle?

In which case, why bother to dc with heat?

Too many questions...

I have always said I didn't believe cold water closed the cuticle. I believe it is the pH that affects opening and closing of cuticles. If heat was such a huge cuticle opener, I think a lot of relaxers would require this as part of the step to make sure the cuticles were lifted, but I don't remember this being the case when I relaxed.

I no longer use heat to DC either, and my hair is doing fine. I actually haven't used heat from a dryer to DC in over 2 years. Also I only use lukewarm water to wash my hair, even my ACV rinse is warm, and my hair still feels smooth afterward.

I do wonder about DCing with heat. As much as it seems to make sense, I wonder about it because there's all the talk about bubble hair that can occur when bubbles of a liquid inside hair expand and thus lead to a split (mid-strand splits maybe?). I wonder if that isn't something that can happen not just with direct blowdrying but also with DCing with heat. Just something that I've been wondering.
 
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lovelexi

New Member
I have always said I didn't believe cold water closed the cuticle. I believe it is the pH that affects opening and closing of cuticles. If heat was such a huge cuticle opener, I think a lot of relaxers would require this as part of the step to make sure the cuticles where lifted, but I don't remember this being the case when I relaxed.

I no longer use heat to DC either, and my hair is doing fine. I actually haven't used heat from a dryer to DC in over 2 years. Also I only use lukewarm water to wash my hair, even my ACV rinse is warm, and my hair still feels smooth afterward.

I do wonder about DCing with heat. As much as it seems to make sense, I wonder about it because there's all the talk about bubble hair that can occur when bubbles of a liquid inside hair expand and thus lead to a split (mid-strand splits maybe?). I wonder if that isn't something that can happen not just with direct blowdrying but also with DCing with heat. Just something that I've been wondering.
I too have questioned the necessity of DCing with heat. And now that I know that cold water doesnt close the cuticle I will stop putting myself through that
 

ms.blue

Well-Known Member
I deep condtion over night w/o any heat except my own body heat and my hair turns out fine w/ no problems.

Also w/ shampooing I hardly repeat. Once is definitely enough.
 

newbeginnings2010

Well-Known Member
I saw this too. I agree with everything except the, "Coloring hair doesn't cause damage," part. If that was true, why do I see these girls walking around with bleach blonde, dried out, chewed up hair?
 

newbeginnings2010

Well-Known Member
Really? So, cold water doesn't, in fact, close the cuticle?

Does that mean, conversely, that warm water doesn't open the cuticle?

In which case, why bother to dc with heat?

Too many questions...

There was an article around somewhere that says water and shampoo cause the hair follicles to swell. The article was about something else though...maybe the coconut oil vs. (some other) oil article?
 

LaFemmeNaturelle

Well-Known Member
I saw this too. I agree with everything except the, "Coloring hair doesn't cause damage," part. If that was true, why do I see these girls walking around with bleach blonde, dried out, chewed up hair?

Probably because they are not taking care of it and they are abusing their use of coloring. They said it doesn't cause MAJOR damage. The same arguments can go for heat or a relaxer. Sure we see heat damage and some chewed up relaxed heads, but when done properly and your hair is being taken care of, you shouldn't experience MAJOR damage.
 

newbeginnings2010

Well-Known Member
Probably because they are not taking care of it and they are abusing their use of coloring. They said it doesn't cause MAJOR damage. The same arguments can go for heat or a relaxer. Sure we see heat damage and some chewed up relaxed heads, but when done properly and your hair is being taken care of, you shouldn't experience MAJOR damage.

Ahh. Very well put LaFemme! Now I'm rethinking coloring my natural hair in the future! :lick:
 
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