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By Alan J. Bauman, M.D.
Summer is here again, and while most of us think only about our skin during the hot season, it’s important to remember that your hair needs extra attention too. Just as you wouldn’t want to go to the beach without a layer of protective sunscreen, you also don’t want to run around in 90-degree, 90% humidity weather without taking some extra steps for your hair.
Your hair, like your skin, reacts differently to changes in temperature and humidity, so you need to adapt and redefine your hair care regimen during the summer, and again in the winter, to keep your locks feeling and looking luscious and healthy. High temperatures and humidity can quickly become a dull, static-y, frizzy nightmare if you don’t prepare for and take care of your hair through the harsh summer months.
Here are three things everyone (guys too!) should do to protect their hair during the hot Florida summer:
Shampoo and Conditioner:
Women tend to wash their hair more frequently during the summer months to rinse out the chlorine, beach sand and sweat, so it’s important to take extra steps to protect and replenish your hair. Shampoos remove the natural oils, like sebum, from our hair, which can lead to dull-looking strands and make the hair more prone to breakage. Excessive washing can also mean more time styling, putting your hair at increased risk of damage.
In simple terms, shampoo cleanses the hair and scalp like a detergent and a conditioner moisturizes and replaces the natural protective coating on the hair shaft. However, choices become complicated (Ever been down the hair care aisle in the supermarket?) because the degree of cleansing—often called surfactancy—and the type of conditioner you may need depend on many factors. For example, someone with oily hair and scalp and fine hair might need a deeper cleansing shampoo and a lighter conditioner. Another person with coarse curly hair or damaged hair from over processng may need a deeper conditioner product or even a leave-in. When you add in scalp issues like dry, itching/flaking, sensitive scalp, shedding/thinning or other symptoms, decisions become even more complicated and often a round-robin / trial-and-error process begins.
In order to find the right balance between hair that’s clean and hair that’s healthy, it’s important to use the right types of shampoos and conditioners. Your hair type, sebum production, styling products and shampooing/styling frequency, lifestyle, etc. all play a role in what kind of shampoo/conditioner pairings and other products should be used.
Blocking UV Rays:
Everyone knows they should be using sunblock when they go to the beach, but how many think about using UV protectant on their hair too? UV rays can damage the hair too, by making it more prone to damage and fading out the color. Try using a product that contains a UV protectant. Similar tohow thermal protectant sprays reduce the harmful effects of the heat of curling irons and blow dryers, UV protectants can protect your hair from the harmful rays of the sun. Plus, if you are suffering from some thinningon top, it’s important to use a UV protectant to avoid endangering the scalp.
Get a Hair/Scalp Makeover from a Pro:
During the hot summer months, when the hair is getting hit on all sides – heat, UV rays, chlorine, etc. – it’s a good time to go one step further by boosting the underlying health of your follicles.
You can do this by taking professional-grade supplements for your hair, like biotin or Viviscal Professional—which contains more active marine protein than the “extra strength” version, eating more hair “super foods” like dark green vegetables, beans/lentils, avocado and oysters, and using low level laser therapy devices like the LaserCap to boost the cellular metabolism of the follicles themselves.
Confused? You’re not alone! The good news is that trained professionals are here to help. For many, the best course of action is to undergo a quick scientific hair/scalp analysis by a trained trichologist to determine the best way to treat the underlying causes of your hair problems. Whether it’s breakage, frizz or damaged strands, shedding, thinning or hair that’s simply dull, limp or otherwise lackluster, shampoos and styling products can help hide it, but only a trichology analysis and treatment of the scalp can actually fix it. With a scalp makeover, women and men undergo a series of simple non-invasive diagnostic tests to see if their scalp’s sebum, pH, hydration, toxin and cortisol levels are imbalanced, and then depending on the results, a variety of scalp therapies and hair care guidance are provided. Beauty treatments for the scalp range from sebum-regulating topical serums (as well as hydration, hormone-regulating and blood microcirculation enhancers) to scalp steaming, scalp massage, electrotherapy stimulation, hair boosting dermal patches and laser therapy. Think of it like a spa treatment for your hair and scalp, specifically tailored to your hair’s needs.
At Bauman Medical Group, we recently launched “SalonB,”which is the only program of its kind in the state of Florida. SalonB is an advanced new treatment center in a spa-like atmosphere that offers patients cutting-edge scalp and hair follicle therapies from the renowned leader in trichology, Bologna, Italy-based CesareRagazzi Laboratories.
Trichology Evaluation appointments can be conveniently scheduled by calling SalonB at 1.877.Bauman.9
or online at www.BaumanMedical.com/SalonB