We all know (and envy) those magical women who always look like they are just out of a shampoo commercial. Even more now that the unicorn beauty style is trending around the world. You’ve surely seen those long, smooth, pastel-coloured hairs that leave us swooning. But how do they do it? How do they keep their manes long, healthy, smooth, and bouncy? 

Having spectacular unicorn hair may seem impossible, but it’s not! The key is to give your hair some love, and use appropriate, natural products that keep it shiny and lively. If this is your objective, we have news for you!

How to Quickly Assess Your Hair’s Health

We all want full, glossy, smooth hair from scalp to ends and we know this takes time and effort. Hydrating regularly, using the right brush, trimming it often, choosing a good shampoo… the list can feel extensive and quite long. But how do you assess how healthy your hair is? 

Here we present you with a short, DIY assessment that you can do from your home to gauge your hair health.

When examining your long hair, look for:

Breakage and Split Ends 

Heat and chemical treatments can often lead to split ends. This is where your hair literally breaks into two at the end or begins breaking off. Unfortunately, there are no magical solutions to fix split ends. The only known method that works is heading to the salon and trimming those rebel ends. These are clear indications that your hair health is struggling or that you are not getting trims often enough. Don’t let them go and they can split up the shaft of the hair and require more length to be cut in order to ensure that your hair is healthy.

Thinning 

Losing from 50 to 100 hairs per day is completely normal, according to the American Academy of Dermatology (1), but more than this may be an indicator that you are suffering from thinning hair. This can give the appearance of thinner spots on your head and make you feel as though you are experiencing balding. Thinning is a process that does not happen overnight and is influenced by genetics, lifestyle habits, hormone fluctuations, and certain diseases.  

If you notice too many hair strands in your brush every day, here are some measures you can take to prevent thinning from happening: 

• Avoid heat treatments and chemical treatments 
• Don’t use stiffening products like gels and hairsprays
• Let your hair down! Avoid tight hairstyles
• Introduce more iron and minerals in your diet
• Consider a supplement (Shhhhh! Don’t tell, but we can help!)

Too Much Hair in the Shower 

Losing too much hair when having a shower is definitely a warning sign that something’s going on up there. As stated before, a healthy person loses from 50 to 100 hairs per day, but this really depends on the length, thickness, and type of hair. People with a shorter mane, for example, seem to shed less hair than those with longer ones. Plus, it’s only natural to shed more when you have a bath (up to 200 strands).  

But if you notice you are losing far more hair than you should, then it’s time to take action. Diet can help to balance vitamin and mineral levels but it is important to make sure that you are consuming enough calcium, vitamin A, B vitamins and more. If you think that you could benefit from a supplement you will want to keep an eye on our announcements this month. 

Loss of Colour and Lustre 

Have you ever left the salon loving the colour and shine of your hair but then, as weeks go by, see how it loses its moisture and volume? This happens more often than not and can be caused by a variety of factors, such as having a poor diet, overusing chemicals, or even applying the wrong products. 

Fortunately, there are many ways to put life back into your lifeless locks, like changing the products you use for fragrance and paraben-free ones, improving your diet, and avoiding using heat products too often. 

Natural Factors That Work Against You 

Now that you have the tools to assess your hair at a glance, let’s dive into natural factors that work against your attempt to be the next Rapunzel. Regardless of your hair type, everybody wants hair that looks like it’s been in a professional salon every day. Sadly, there are certain natural factors that can work against you when trying to grow those unicorn locks, as you end up losing hair quickly and easily. 

And while it may seem there’s nothing you can do to go against nature, the truth is that you can take some steps to have healthier, glossier, easier-to-style hair. Let’s take a look, then, at the natural factors that can prevent you from having long and healthy hair and how to fix this fast.

Ageing

We all age and - no matter how many creams you use, pills you take, or even surgeries you undergo - there’s no way to stop time. And as you age, so does your hair. For example, your follicles produce less melanin, the substance responsible for giving beautiful, natural color to your hair. That’s when greying begins, around your 30s: your hair color becomes lighter and eventually lightens and becomes grey. 

Plus, hair production slows and losing hair speeds up, as your follicles become smaller and sebum production declines. That beautiful, thick, shiny hair you once had as a young adult will inevitably become thin and light-coloured. But this doesn’t mean you cannot combat these hair changes! Strategic hairstyles and the proper nutrients can help to hide or slow these changes dramatically.

Stress & Anxiety

Stress!! This is a big one as it can have a myriad of negative effects on your body and guess what? It can literally make your hair fall out. Research shows that, together with other risk factors, high levels of stress can cause alopecia areata, a condition in which your immune body mistakenly attacks the hair follicles, causing hair loss (2). 

The good news is that, once stress and anxiety are under control, your hair will grow back. Talk to your physician to start an effective treatment towards good mental and body health. 

A Poor Diet 

We are what we eat, and this also applies to our hair. Eating more fish, brussel sprouts, and broccoli while limiting your intake of chocolate may suck, but so does losing hair! A beautiful crown comes at the price of introducing more fruits, vegetables, seeds, and overall nutritious items into your diet. When this can’t be achieved fully, and some of the nutrients you need simply can’t be achieved through diet alone, a supplement is your best friend! Keep an eye on our announcements this month for more!

Here are some foods you cannot ignore if you wish to have unicorn hair include: 

• Eggs are great sources of biotin and proteins, two nutrients that promote hair growth by strengthening your follicles.
• Berries, which are loaded with Vitamin C and antioxidants that protect your follicles from free radicals. 
• Salmon (and fatty fish in general), which are excellent sources of omega-3 acids. Research has linked this substance with hair growth (3). 
• Avocados are packed with antioxidants and Vitamin E, which has also been linked with having long hair. Participants in a study experienced 34% more hair growth when taking Vitamin E supplements than those who didn’t (4). 

Genetics… Thanks Mom and Dad.

If you thought inherited baldness was a male issue, you were wrong: family genes can also cause hair loss and hairline changes in women. Also called androgenic alopecia, this condition affects us differently than it does men. Instead of having a receding hairline, the hair tends to become thinner in the whole head. Luckily, this condition rarely leads to complete baldness (5).

The sooner this disease is detected, the better the prospects are for treatment to be effective. Consulting a doctor and finding the right medication and proper care can slow down the process. With medicines and a little creativity, you can still have that beautiful, shiny hair you always wanted! 

Menopause & Hormonal Changes 

Menopause can be a tough period in women’s lives. In addition to having symptoms that may be hard to manage, your hormones can also affect the smoothness and shine of your hair. For example, the lack of estrogen that occurs during this time in your life can lead to lacklustre, dull-looking hair. In extreme cases, you may also notice some hair loss as a result of a lower production of progesterone. You can’t stop menopause from coming, but you can both proactively and reactively combat hair loss due to menopause and hormonal changes. 

For example, you can introduce more protein into your diet to strengthen your follicles, get keratin treatments, try out protein-enriched shampoos and treatments, and even take health supplements with iron, zinc, biotin, and other vital nutrients that will make your hair lively and smooth again. 

Something similar happens when you are pregnant. Many women experience shedding due to hormone imbalance and stress, making them lose up to 300 strands instead of 50 per day (6). The good news is that the condition should go away 3-4 months after delivery. Often your hair returns even thicker than before!

The Way to Fix This FAST 

Later this month we have a special announcement that will guide you through your healthy hair pathway. Designed to cleanse, rebuild, and nourish your hair back to life for long-term results and healthier, stronger, thicker hair. This treatment is simple and takes seconds a day and it won’t involve any nasty topical treatments that smell weird or leave you feeling greasy.

Keep an eye out for upcoming announcements this fall, and opportunities to join our waitlist. Perfect hair is right around the corner!

In the meantime, if you’d like to learn more about your health and take control with natural solutions, you can also take FREE Comprehensive Hair Quiz today! It takes just minutes!