PThe more you wash them, the dirtier they get: It seems like a sort of vicious circle. However, it is necessary to immediately make a premise: there is greasy hair and greasy hair. If some hair tends to become heavier only in certain periods, for example in summer with high temperatures, or during the menstrual cycle, others are natural, in continuity. This is why it is necessary to balance it, starting from gesture number one, lo shampoo.
Greasy hair: sebum, a friendly enemy
While it is true that sebum has the purpose of hydrating and protecting the scalp, in some cases it can be overabundant, causing the hair to lose lightness. The causes are different, the first is certainly genetics: «In this case, hair is greasy by heredity and therefore they are always and all year round, he explains Nella Alberici, hairstylist Evos Parrucchieri.
«In other cases the oiliness can be a temporary phenomenon linked to hormonal changes, for example during pregnancy or breastfeeding, as soon as you enter menopause or a period of high stress. In these periods the hair it can always appear dirty, heavy, opaque.” Added to all this are also theair pollution and bad eating habitsbut also the use of products that are too aggressive.
How much pollution matters
Fine dust and smoke settle on the scalp, irritating it and undermining the hydrolipidic film of the skin. Nutrition also plays its part: refined carbohydrates and fried foods, if consumed in excessive quantities, they can stimulate excessive sebum production both on the skin and on the hair itself.
Third element, the wrong shampoo: formulas that are too aggressive, by carrying out an intense cleaning action, they risk excessively cleaning the hydrolipidic film and sebum from the stems, leaving them more exposed to external aggressions: «For all these reasons it is essential understand what the origin of the problem isalso to avoid collateral complications such as dandruff, redness, flaking and itching.”
How to wash greasy hair?
It is said that washing oily hair often, if not every day, is a mistake, thinking of stimulating the production of sebum. What stimulates heaviness on the skin and shafts is not daily washing itself, but rather the use of the wrong shampoo: the non-specific ones are too aggressive. Choose cleansers with neutral pH or sebum-normalizing formulasi.e. sebum-affine and skin-purifying, which they remove excess fat from both the lengths and the scalp without affecting the natural hydrolipidic film.
«The shampoo must be distributed in small doses over several parts of the head, particularly on the top of the temporal areas and on the nape of the neck. After a delicate scalp massage, a very light cleansing is performed with the palms of the hands, vertically, from lengths to ends, without rubbing the hair” continues the hairstylist.
“When they rinse, it has to be avoid very hot water because it is harmful, as it opens the cuticles and stimulates the sebaceous glands to produce sebum even more quickly. Furthermore, you must also avoid washing your hair and combing it upside down because, in this way, you work against the cuticle: the scales that make up the hair shaft are open and cause the hair to tangle, matting it” explains the hairstylist.
Who continues: «If it is possible, it is better to always wash your hair in the morning and not in the evening before going to sleep, so as to have fresh volume all day. In the end, once or twice a week a scrub on the scalp is useful, massaged with rotary movements to thoroughly purify. After rinsing, we proceed with cleansing.”
Not just cleansing: few but good habits to have
Good habits for taking care of greasy hair do not only concern cleansing but also small precautions to keep in mind: for example, they must be brushed with wide-toothed combs, preferably made of wood, so as not to create the typical friction of plastic. Furthermore, “rinsing must be done well, you must hear your hair “creaking” between your fingers to make sure you have eliminated all the product. A final rinse with cold water gives maximum shine.”
And what about the hairdryer? «Never use too hot air because the heat tends to dilate the hair bulbs and can make the problem worse. Furthermore, a correct distance must be maintained, about 20 centimeters, between the hairdryer and the lock without stopping for too long on a single area of the head. Finally, if it is possible, avoid wearing synthetic fabrics which tend to overheat the skin, leaving sebum to deposit on the hair” concludes the expert.
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