While we can all do as we please, there is an optimal way to dry our hair to keep it healthy. But according to hairdressers, too many of us still use our hair dryers in a clumsy way.
Whether it’s to shape a curtained fringe, straighten your hair or simply to dry it… The blow dryer is a staple in our hair routine. Unfortunately, it is also very often responsible for breakage and dryness. That’s what famous hairdresser Michael Van Clarke found out when he had to repair his clients’ hair. He explains to Glamour Uk magazine what is the most common mistake that brings his clients to consult him:
“One of my clients with fabulous, thick, medium-length hair was having trouble with the front sections always breaking and splitting. It didn’t make sense to me. Her wavy hair was growing so well, but the front sections kept breaking.
One day she came in and asked for a big round styling brush, saying that hers only lasted 4-5 months before it wore out and needed to be replaced. I thought that was strange because mine lasts 20 years with daily professional use, so I asked her to bring it in for me to see.
I saw that the large round brush had become a medium round brush because it had melted the stiff nylon bristles to half their length. The hair dryer was too hot and created severe over-drying. If your hairbrush melts, what do you think happens to your hair?”
As you can see, using a blow dryer too hot, too close and too long (especially when a concentrator tip is added) comes with damage to the hair fiber. The worst, according to Michael Van Clarke, is when you put the concentrator tip directly on the hair to get the best results.
But how to avoid this problem? Well, according to the hairdresser, the solution is much simpler than we think. It would be enough to throw away the tip of the discord and to keep a safety distance of approximately 2-3 centimeters between the hair dryer and the wick.
He also advises if possible to use hot styling less frequently and try to let them air dry at least once a week.
Drying hair too hot = damaged scalp
It’s not just the hair that gets damaged when a too-hot blow dryer gets near it. The scalp also suffers because, as is often explained, it is a skin, with a hydrolipidic film covering it. This natural protection is very sensitive to heat and can be much less functional when damaged. Obviously, high temperatures are not the only thing that can damage it, but this factor is one of the most important for the health of the scalp, a part of the body that is often put aside… Now you know.
