5 Common Misconceptions About Hair Care

Published 7/11/19, 6:55 PM by Fleur Scalp Care

5 Common Misconceptions About Hair Care

There are plenty of misconceptions that’s been going around for a long time about hair care. You might have heard of and believed some that have eventually helped shape your hair care routine. From how frequently you should be washing your hair to whether or not you should be air-drying it, here’s the hair care truth.

Cutting your hair frequently makes it grow faster

This one is pretty widely believed. Many believed that a trim every 4-6 weeks can help to make your hair grow faster. In fact, hair growth occurs only at the follicle roots, not at the ends. So in other words, cutting or trimming your hair will not affect the hair growth at all. The visible hair we see are actually dead hair that appears to be growing when new hair grows and ‘pushes’ or extend the rest of the shaft.

However, trimming and cutting your hair frequently does help with preventing split ends from causing more damages, including hair breakage. This is because the split ends can travel up the shaft, leading to dry and brittle hair that is more prone to breakage.

Frequent shampooing damages your hair

Some people believe that shampooing frequently can make the hair drier and damage it. With the proper moisturizing and conditioning or occasional hair mask, the moisture in the hair can be restored and maintained.

On the flip side, inadequate shampooing can lead to a buildup of debris from dead cells to dirt and chemical residue. All of which can cause scalp inflammation that causes more damage.

The shampoo/conditioner routine varies from each individual and depends on the hair type, hairstyle and lifestyle. You can read more about how shampoo and conditioner works here.

Skip the conditioner if you have greasy hair

On the topic of shampooing and conditioning, some might skip the conditioner if they have greasier hair. Hair conditioner does not cause greasy hair. Greasy hair occurs when there’s an excess of sebum (the natural protective oil our body produces) from the sebum glands. This occurs for a range of reasons from our lifestyle to the diet.

Conditioning is necessary to help re-moisturize and nourish the hair, especially after shampooing. Maintaining the moisture in the strands prevents split ends, dry and brittle hair.

Stress causes grey hair

Most of us might have picked up this myth from our moms. Though stress and increased cortisol levels can speed up aging and hair loss, it does not lead to grey hair.

The natural colour of our hair is by default whitish-grey, the natural colour of keratin - the structural building block of our hair. It is the melanin molecules that is responsible for giving our hair its colour. Each strand of hair has its own melanin production cells in the follicle and some melanin production may be disrupted or slower than others, this is why grey hair doesn’t occur across our head all at once but on individual strands.

Grey hair occurs when the melanin production is disrupted and without the melanin pigmentation, the hair reverts to its natural grey colour. You can read more about how grey hair occurs here.

Brushing 100 strokes daily

This myth might have evolved over the years but it’s entirely untrue. While brushing daily is essential and can help improve the circulation on our scalp and distribute the protective sebum evenly across the strands, one hundred strokes is overly excessive!

That many strokes can actually damage the hair cuticles and cause widespread damage to your hair and scalp, especially if you’re using an unsuitable brush for your hair type.

So, grab a suitable brush and go gently, and only when needed to untangle your hair!

With these myths out of the way, you probably might want to relook at your hair and scalp care routine.