How to strengthen hair? There are 16 proven effective ways.

A lot of us struggle with weak hair. The hair just seems to be falling off no matter what we do and we have no idea how to deal with that. Top hairstylists have tricks that they use and when you learn what tricks those are, you will know how to strengthen hair.

What are the signs of weak hair?

There is hair always stuck on your hair tools, combs, and brushes.
Your scalp is extremely sensitive during combing.
You have a receding hairline.
You notice a lot of hair at your bathroom drain on washday.
Your hair has very noticeable split ends.

What causes weak hair?

Knowing the causes of weak hair is the first step to strengthening hair since you will avoid the cause in the first place.

1. Chemical relaxers and hair dyes

A black-haired woman dyes her hair — Both hair dye and hair relaxers can hurt your skin, hair, and eyes, especially if you are not careful.

Everyone knows that hair relaxers and dyes weaken hair. The chemicals in these products work to soften the hair and make it thinner. Repeated relaxing and dyeing, especially using harsh hair chemicals usually weakens the hair a great deal.

2. Extreme heat

Ironing brown hair — Some tools have more control but have temperatures that can reach a max of more than 400°F. You’d expect that the hotter the temperature, the better the styling, but that’s not the case. Exposure to high heat changes the shape of your hair’s keratin strands. Temperatures over 300°F convert the ⍺-keratin to β-keratin, which eventually leads to weaker hair that has lost its elasticity and become more prone to damage.

We can’t avoid using heat on our hair every once in a while. You might need to attend a high-end work meeting, a wedding or a very professional event where your natural kinks and curls might look out of place. Using heat every once in a while is okay. Overdoing it will definitely weaken the hair. Heat will deform the keratin protein that your hair is made from.

3. Harsh hair products

A girl brushes her hair with a sharp brush — Take a closer look at your products. If your hair is breaking off more than usual, this is a true tell-tale sign that you should consider changing your product regimen.

The reason why top hairstylists recommend that you check the ingredients of your products and do your research before making a purchase is because they know the implications of using some products. Harsh hair products will not only weaken your hair but most likely affect your scalp as well which does not help the case much.

4. Hot water

Showering with hot water — Using lukewarm water is best because it activates the cleansers in your shampoo while protecting your hair and scalp for your healthiest hair growth. Using excessively hot water on hair can cause other issues that can harm the scalp, which can interfere with healthy hair growth. It can damage and dry out the scalp where follicles reside, disrupting hair growth.

It is not recommended to use hot water when washing your hair. Professional hairstylists recommend lukewarm water. Hot water is not ideal because it strips hair of its natural oils thus drying it out and eventually weakening it.

5. Too much washing

Hair should be washed at most twice in a week which is still too much. Most top hair stylists recommend washing your hair once in two weeks especially if it is chemically relaxed. This highly depends on your natural hair properties, but in general less washing is better.

6. Over styling

Women's hairstyle with parting on side — You want to avoid wearing a tightly pulled hairstyle every day. The constant pulling can cause strands of your hair to break or fall out.

Wearing your hair in too tight a style or wearing it in the same position might cause it to weaken. This is because of the pressure at the ends that are pulled too tight.

7. Friction

Hair damage by sleeping on a cotton pillowcase — As you’re tossing and turning at night, your hair is rubbing against the cotton fibers of your pillowcase, which can cause your hair to break.

Rubbing your hair with a towel after washing, sleeping on a cotton pillowcase, and wearing rough hats and caps might lead to weakening of hair due to too much rubbing and moisture loss due to the adsorbent material that hair is rubbing against.

8. Smoking

A red-haired girl smokes a cigarette and looks into the distance — Smoking may lead to hair loss by vasoconstriction, by forming DNA adducts, free radical damage to hair follicle, by enhancing senescence and hormonal effects.

Anything that is bad for your health is definitely bad for your hair. This is common knowledge and should not be assumed if you want strong hair and a healthy body in general.

9. Genetics and hormones

Sometimes weak hair might be genetic or be caused by hormonal changes in the body. If you inherit that gene from a parent, it might be hard to do something about it but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try. Dealing with the hormone problem will in turn help with hair strengthening.

How to strengthen hair?

1. Eat right and drink more water

A girl drinks water and works with a laptop — Water makes up almost 25% of the weight of a single strand of hair. Drinking at least two liters of water a day will help the strength of your hair, increasing growth.

Eating the right foods and drinking more water is one of the simplest ways to give your hair strength. Eat foods rich in Vitamins A, C, and E, iron, Omega-3, and protein while drinking at least 2 liters of water a day. This will strengthen your body which ultimately work to strengthen you in general and your hair in the process.

2. Trim ends regularly

The hairdresser cuts the ends of the hair with scissors — Hairstylists recommend trimming between a quarter to half an inch off the hair every 12 weeks if growing it out. Doing it more often won’t make your hair grow any quicker. Strands only grow approximately a half inch every month, per the American Academy of Dermatology.

Most people prefer not to trim their hair. What these people do not know is that split ends do not just end naturally. Their length increases which weakens and breaks hair. Getting rid of split ends by getting regular trims which assure you of an end to hair breakage and thus strong hair in the future.

3. Sleep on a silk pillowcase or sleep with a silk scarf on

A brown-haired girl sleeps carefree on a silk pillow — The benefits of sleeping on a silk pillowcase are most pronounced for hair, experts say, because the smooth surface reduces friction and thus breakage.

Silk will not absorb your hair oils. Cotton and other materials will absorb your natural hair oils. Dry hair is weak hair. You will notice a huge difference in your hair strength if you start sleeping with a silk scarf on or on silk pillow cases.

4. Do not over wash

A girl washes her hair with shampoo — How often you should wash your hair can be different for everyone, depending on your activity level and the type of hair you have. Over-washing can strip natural oils from your hair, making it dull, dry, and coarse. But not washing your hair enough may lead to conditions like dandruff or itchy scalp.

Washing hair means subjecting it to shampoo, heat for drying and probably other chemicals that you might use. Shampoo might leave your hair clean and smelling nice but overuse will weaken the hair strands. The rubbing motion when washing and drying is also not recommended if you are looking to achieve hair that is strong.

5. Moisturize

The difference between broken and strong, healthy hair — Moisture is important for your hair, as it protects you from the external elements while reducing any damage and breakage. It allows for the free flow of oil to the tips of your hair and maintains a healthy ecosystem on your head.

This can’t be emphasized enough. Dry hair is weak hair. Moisturizing both your hair and the scalp ensures that your hair is not thirsty. This is a good thing because hair will be strong and healthy oiled strands are less prone to breakage. Some people add oil to their hair to moisturize it.

6. Oil your scalp

Essential oils such as coconut oil, jojoba oil, olive oil, among others will work wonders for your hair when used on your scalp. Try and oil your scalp regularly. Oil in the scalp translates to oiled hair and thus general health and strength of your strands.

7. Avoid overheating your hair as much as possible

The girl avoids drying her hair with a hair dryer — If you crank up the dryer to its hottest setting and attack moisture on very wet hair, then using a blow dryer is bad. But when used in conjunction with a towel to lightly absorb some of the water from wet hair, a blow dryer on its lowest temperature setting is ideal. Held approximately six inches from your hair, it is actually the best and safest hair drying technique.

It is common knowledge that heat weakens hair. The more you expose your hair to heat, the weaker it becomes. Opt for other options of drying your hair and use minimal heat if you have to so that you can preserve the strength of your strands.

8. Check your hair product ingredients

A girl is checking the ingredients of shampoo in a store — Have you ever read the list of ingredients on your favorite beauty product and wondered what the names mean. In order to understand the list of ingredients on your product, it all starts with understanding the INCI – International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient.

Ingredients such as sulfur don’t make it to the list of hair friendly products. Try as much as possible to stay away from such ingredients. Research INCI on what is hair friendly and what is not then be extremely choosy on what you let through your strands.

9. Choose your hairstylist wisely

A hairstylist cuts a bob haircut for a blonde girl — It is up to your hairstylist to execute your dream look. Choose him wisely because he will bring out the best in you.

We all have a hairstylist that we prefer when looking for a certain look. It is important that you go for someone who knows what they are doing and has preferably gone to a hair college. The products used, way of washing hair, tools used, and styling techniques all have an effect on whether your hair stays strong or weakens more after every hair salon visit.

10. Use conditioner and hair treatment regularly

A woman brushes her blonde hair after applying conditioner — While shampoo is formulated specifically to clean off sweat, dead skin cells, and hair products, conditioner makes hair softer and easier to manage. It also protects hair shafts from damage.

Washday should have hair conditioner and treatment incorporated into it. The conditioner is to make hair softer and thus give you an easy time when combing and avoiding damage caused by combing through tangled hair. Hair treatment basically nourishes the hair to provide and maintain strength.

11. Do not over style

Blonde with tight ponytail — Any hairstyle that pulls hair tightly at the scalp can put serious strain on the hair cuticle, leading to scarring, damage and hair loss. It also puts strain on the finer hair around the front hairline, making it thinner and weaker.

Have you ever seen hair that is too tightly styled that someone’s eyes become smaller and the forehead bigger? Hair styles that strain the hair roots ruin the hair by weakening the roots and the positions where the hair bands are regularly tied.

12. Use hair combs and brushes made of quality material

Girl brushes black curly hair — Using the right hair brush for your hair and your styling needs can make a difference in your hair’s health and appearance. The appropriate brush for someone with long, curly hair will be drastically different than the best brush for fine or thinning hair.

Plastic is not very much recommended by top stylists; especially for natural hair. Buy quality hair brushes and combs to avoid damage that comes with regular use of combs that strain the hair strands. Fiber made hair brushes are the best.

13. Do not over brush

Brushing your hair will always rid you of some strands. Imagine doing this up to 5 times a day. Try and brush your hair at most twice a day if you must. To avoid over brushing, always try to keep things simple and neat.

14. Go natural

Woman with a short afro natural hairstyle — If you are considering going natural you will soon learn there is a difference between being natural and using only natural products. Going natural means you are not chemically altering your hair or using artificial hair. Using natural hair products means you are using products that have been deemed as natural but still contain some non-natural ingredients.

Use hair chemicals and dyes only if you need to. Going natural is definitely not easy considering the amount of work that you will have to put in to maintain your hair. It is very much worth it because the chances of the strength of your hair strands being compromised are minimal.

15. Use protective styles

Black weave wig hair — To make a weave wig, braid your natural hair into a flat, straight braid and then sew wefted strands of human or synthetic hair onto your braid. A weave will last about two months, but it must be sewn in and removed by a professional hairdresser. Weaves are ideal for those who want to protect their hair from weather and heat damage.

Braids, weaves, wigs, and other hair additions can work in your favor. This is especially if you have been exposing your hair to harsh conditions and are working on getting it back to its healthy state. Using braids and weaves minimizes the amounts of heat you use on your hair as well as the number of times you need to wash your hair and this is definitely good for you.

16. Avoid harsh weather conditions

A girl in a denim jacket with blond hair in the wind by the sea — While cold, dry weather can lead to scalp flaking and hair breakage, sudden increases in humidity can also have serious side effects.

Too much sun, extreme wind, and rain are some of the weather conditions that weaken hair over long exposure. Try and limit the amount of time that your hair is exposed to these conditions.

Conclusion

Remember that strengthening your hair is not rocket science. All that you need to do is know what weak hair looks like, know what causes the weakness and find ways to get rid of the weakness causes in the first place.

In no time, you will be saying goodbye to weak hair.

But if your hair is seriously damaged, read the detailed instructions on how to repair damaged hair.

Writers and researchers of the womenhair.style are happy because you have reached the end of the post. Can we conclude that we did a good job?

Let’s recap what we learned in this post

First we learned the answer to the question:

What are the signs of weak hair?

1. There is hair always stuck on your hair tools, combs, and brushes.
2. Your scalp is extremely sensitive during combing.
3. You have a receding hairline.
4. You notice a lot of hair at your bathroom drain on washday.
5. Your hair has very noticeable split ends.

After that we learned the answer to the next question:

What causes weak hair?

1. Chemical relaxers and hair dyes
2. Extreme heat
3. Harsh hair products
4. Hot water
5. Too much washing
6. Over styling
7. Friction
8. Smoking
9. Genetics and hormones

And finally, we learned the answer to the main question:

How to strengthen hair?

Eat right and drink more water
Trim hair ends regularly
Sleep on a silk pillowcase or sleep with a silk scarf on
Do not over wash your hair
Moisturize your hair
Oil your scalp
Avoid overheating your hair as much as possible
Check your hair product ingredients
Choose your hairstylist wisely
Use conditioner and hair treatment regularly
Do not over style your hair
Use hair combs and brushes made of quality material
Do not over brush
Go natural
Use protective styles
Avoid harsh weather conditions