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[H195]Healthy Black Hair Tips

by Dr Eony, Dr

If you've been using harsh chemicals on your hair and scalp and find your hair thinning or falling out or you're plagued by dandruff, you may be looking for a better way to go. Many people are discovering the benefits of coconut oil. It's natural, healthy and inexpensive too. And I'll explain in this article how to use coconut oil on your hair.

If you're looking for healthy ways to get soft, silky hair and inexpensively too, then you may want to think about using coconut oil on your hair. If you've ever seen pictures of the women from the Polynesian Islands, they have long silky hair. They eat a lot of coconuts too but also apply coconut oil to their hair.

Once you start using coconut oil or coconut butter as some people call it, you'll no doubt want to get rid of all the expensive conditioners and creams and mousses you're using for your hair. Coconut oil will give your hair a lot of body, protect it and lessen breakage of your hair, so you should have less thinning. Of course, many hair stylists who know about it want to keep this secret for themselves. But the word is slowly getting out.

You'll stop buying expensive creams and conditioners and going for salon hair treatments once you realize you can get a gallon for the cost of one small jar of salon hair conditioner.

To use coconut oil as a hair conditioner, you can warm it a little and massage it into your hair at bedtime. You can hold some in your hands for a few moments if you don't have time to heat it. It should melt fast. Use about two teaspoons or so. You won't need a lot. The first time you do it, just use a little to experiment and do it on a night when you'll be home in the morning. Colored or bleached hair may be more porous so keep this in mind.

In the morning wash it out. I like to use organic virgin coconut oil which is the best quality. When you buy coconut oil online or in a whole foods store, make sure it hasn't been refined, bleached and deodorized. You want the unrefined kind. One way to tell is it smells like coconut.

For a salon-type treatment you can apply coconut oil, put on a shower cap, and then wash it out after an hour so. If you have a dandruff problem apply one to two teaspoons to your scalp and gently massage it in. Your shampoo may be causing your dandruff so you may want to find a shampoo with fewer chemicals.

You can also use coconut oil for a shampoo but only use a little bit and mix with your regular shampoo in the palm of your hand. You can also put a tiny bit on your hair using your fingertips after you style it.

This should give you a good idea how to use coconut oil on your hair as a hair conditioner or a shampoo. You'll save a lot of money and have the healthiest, silkiest shiniest hair you can imagine. It will look thicker too because you will be losing less hair. Of course there are other ways you can use it too, and this is just one way.

Black hair (African-American hair) is different from Caucasoid hair or Asian hair. The most typical character of the black hair is that it is strong and rigid transversally but is very flexible length wise. Because of this presentation, the hair body often curls tightly and takes up a spiral appearance. The shape of African hair has a resemblance to a twisted oval or ribbon.

Another feature of black hair is that it is irregular in diameter. Neither the fiber diameter nor the cuticle diameter is the same all through its length. Because of this typical structure and coiling structure the hair has many fragile points. The outside of a tight curl puts stress on the outer hair fiber cortex and cuticle. At some points outside the curls, cuticle becomes very thin and flakes easily. These areas of stress in the hair fiber are prone to damage by chemicals. Even vigorous combing is enough to flake the cuticle and damage the hair.

Another undesirable feature of the black hair is its low moisture content. This character also makes the black hair more susceptible to weathering. Since the black hair is too curly in nature, it is difficult to comb. It is prone to hair breakage and hair shedding.

Because of these difficulties, black hair requires more care than any other type of hair. The following black hair care tips help in preventing some damage to which it is naturally susceptible.
Massage the scalp regularly to encourage oil production.

Always use a wide-toothed Afro comb. Combing helps spread the natural oil through the hair, making it look shinier and healthier.

Use intensive pre-shampoo treatments
Shampoo your black hair as often as you feel necessary but only lather once, using a small amount of shampoo. Rinse thoroughly.

Always towel-blow your hair and never rub it with towel.
Try a hot oil treatment once a month. It lubricates dry scalp and help in moisturizing black hair.
Choose non-greasy formulas for your hair gel so that they don't take away the healthy sheen.
If you want to braid your black hair, use a softening shampoo that maintains the right moisture balance. You can also try a natural oil based moisturizer.

While combing your hair, start from the tips and work towards the roots, it will be less damaging to the hair.
Have a regular trim to remove split ends as it prevents hair breakage.
Whether it's in cornrow, braids or bun, try not to repeat the same ?pull-back? hairstyle too often. The stress on the hair may cause it to weaken around the edges.

Try to avoid the use of heat treatments, chemical relaxers or hot hair drying of your hair.
Don't use any hair care product that has any harsh chemical. Only use natural hair care products.
Avoid use of alcohol based products.

Cotton pillow cases and sheets help in breakage, use a silk or satin scarf to wrap up your hair while sleeping.

Besides these natural hair care tips, there are certain black hair products that can be used for taking care of your hair. Black hair has its own specific characters and its unique problems. So special black hair growth products need to specially formulated for taking care of the more fragile black hair. The best black hair care or hair growth products are the ones that use the natural hair care products.

The common ingredients of the black hair care products depend largely on the requirements of the black hair care. The research has found that black hair is less dense as compared to other ethnic hair. Studies on black hair have shown that it also has less hair re-growth potential. Because of these factors, more Afro-American women are concerned about hair loss or alopecia. These women are mostly looking for products that offer them better hair growth other than frizz control. Natural hair care products offer these black hair care products more credibility over other products.

Article Source : Pg. 34

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Both Dr Eony & James Briaan are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.

Dr Eony has sinced written about articles on various topics from Skin Care, Panic Attacks and Alternative Medicine. Read more on . Also read more on. Dr Eony's top article generates over 90500 views. to your Favourites.

James Briaan has sinced written about articles on various topics from Hair Care. James Briaan is a specialist. He regularly writes on skin and black hair care tips. You can visit. James Briaan's top article generates over 27100 views. to your Favourites.