8 Healthy Hair Tips for Black Men
As a guy, you eat right, exercise, and choose clothes that create a personal and attractive style. One of your best assets is your hair. Here are some hair tips for keeping your gorgeous locks manageable and healthy.
1. Skip a Day between Hair Washings
Like most men, you probably like to shower every day. You might even shower twice a day if you’re involved in sports or other strenuous activities. It’s only natural when you hop in the shower to wash your hair simultaneously.
While your body may need daily washing to be fresh and healthy, your hair doesn’t. Your scalp produces oil that nourishes and moisturizes itself and your mane. Shampooing too much can strip away those essential oils leaving your hair and scalp dry and damaged.
2. Use Sulfate-Free Hair Products
Your lovely locks may be shiny and strong, but it requires some tender loving care. Do you know what you’re putting in your hair each time you wash and style it? You might be using products that can be damaging and lead to hair loss.
Ensure all your shampoos and hair products are free of sodium lauryl sulfates, also called SLS. It’s a common additive to soaps, shampoos, and other cleaning products because it’s a powerful cleaner. Unfortunately, it can also quickly strip the natural oils from your hair and cause it to be unhealthy.
3. Condition Your Locks
Let’s face it: guys want their mane to be as healthy and attractive as the ladies. Keep your hair soft and nourished with an effective conditioner. Consider silicone-free ones enhanced with natural extracts like cocoa butter, aloe, or shea butter. You might also try a deep conditioner once a month to keep your hair looking its best.
4. L.O.C. in the Moisture
Black men often notice that their hair is prone to dryness and breakage. If you don’t moisturize your locks regularly, you can cause permanent damage and even hair loss. Many hair experts recommend you use the LOC method: Liquid, Oil, and Cream.
First, apply a water-based hair moisturizer, then seal it with essential hair oil. Finally, work in a layer of moisturizing cream you can leave in and go. At night, twist or braid your hair tightly to lock in moisture while you sleep.
5. Give Your Hair a Rest
The cool thing about men’s hairstyles is that you can always do something different to boost your overall style. Think of all the teasing, twisting, braiding, brushing, and picking your locks daily, not to mention the plethora of dyes, hair products, and styling tools.
Be a friend to your hair and give it a well-deserved rest. Try an occasional protective style that is low-maintenance and simple to keep clean and moisturized. Your handsome locks will thank you with a healthy glow.
6. Protect Your Hair
Although the shaft or visible part of your hair is essentially dead protein, the follicles are alive. If you want your hair to stay healthy and attractive, it needs protection. Hats and scarves preserve your main and your scalp from harmful UV rays from the sun.
Another way to safeguard your hair is to wear a wave cap while sleeping. It allows your hair to breathe while preserving your style. The cap can also minimize the drying effect of sleeping on a cotton pillow.
7. Keep Your Hair Trimmed
As your hair grows, split ends and breakage can be inevitable. Your manly mane will stay healthy if you keep it trimmed regularly. Plus, it will always look its best well-groomed.
8. Adopt a Nutritionally Balanced Diet
Your body is a complex machine that uses food like a car uses fuel. If you put junk in your gas tank, you’ll destroy your engine. Likewise, a diet of processed junk food is detrimental to your body.
All body parts depend on proper nutrition to stay healthy, including your hair. Follow a well-balanced diet rich in whole foods, vitamins, and minerals. Choose lean proteins, colorful veggies, fruit, low-fat dairy, and whole grains.
One of the tell-tale signs of malnutrition is hair that’s dry and brittle and hair loss. Keep your mane attractive and healthy and kick the junk food habit. It can also help you lose any excess weight around your middle.
Managing Hair Loss
Male-pattern baldness and other forms of hair loss can be devastating to your self-esteem. While many guys take it in stride, many others feel like it makes them look older than they are. Even with the best hair care routine, you can still battle thinning hair and a receding hairline.
Do you want to regain your self-confidence and youthful appearance? AZ Hair Restoration Clinic in Raleigh, NC, offers hair transplants and other procedures for men and women with hair loss. Call Dr. Zacco and his team of caring, experienced professionals today to see how they can help you.
