Protecting Your Hair This Summer
Whether you’re off on short city breaks or jetting off to places unknown, you should understand that you need to take certain steps to protect you and your body. During the summer, you know you need to be careful of the sun and the risks of sunburns or increasing your chances of contracting skin cancer in later life.
However, did you know that overexposure to the sun and UV rays can damage your hair?
Yes!
While you can’t sunburn your hair, it can be damaged during the summer. It can cause your hair to become dry, coarse and brittle. In some cases, exposure to the sun can result in your hair becoming bleached.
Along with exposure to wind, seawater or chlorinated pool water, summer can be an extremely rough time for you and your hair. In this article, we look at various ways you can protect your hair this summer.
Protect your Hair with Sun Hats
In a perfect scenario, you would not leave your hair exposed to intense UV rays. This applies to the middle of the day, between 11 am to 3 pm, where the sun is at its strongest during the summer. It is during this time of day, you and your hair are at most risk of damage from the sun.
A straightforward but effective way of providing your hair with protection this summer is to simply cover your head. Shielding your hair with sun hats or other kinds of hats can provide it with much-needed shade while keeping the moisture in the hair. Under the cover of a sun hat, it can prevent your hair from becoming bleached.
The Risk of Swimming
On a hot summer’s day, a nice dip in a pool or the ocean can be just the thing you need. However, it is important to understand that when you do, what the ocean or pool water can do to your hair.
Believe it or not, seawater or swimming pool water can be harmful to your hair.
On a microscopic level, seawater can harm your hair by forming salt crystals onto individual follicles, which is far from ideal. Acting like miniature magnifying glasses, they can magnify the UV rays and make them more harmful to your hair. That is why, after a swim or a splash in the ocean, you should rinse your hair with some fresh water. If you’re at a beach, there may be public showers or similar facilities you can use. If not, bottled tap water would do.
Swimming in a pool has its fair share of risks to your hair. The disinfectants used by leisure centres, such as chlorine or copper, may cause your blonde and grey hair to turn green. This is not uncommon but does not panic! There is a quick solution to this. Dissolve three ordinary Asprin tablets into a litre of water. Once dissolved, soak your hair in this solution for an hour. Afterwards, rinse with a colouring shampoo.
Protect from Bleaching
Powerful UV rays will harm natural and artificial hair colours. However, you can be proactive and take steps to protect your hair’s colour pigment with a colour guard that has a built-in UV filter.
This could be a shampoo, a rinse or hair spray that has been specially formulated to protect against the sun. Armed with colouring agents, these products can help bring back your hair’s brilliant colours as it infuses them with vital proteins and vitamins. All the while, antioxidant ingredients and light filters work to protect pigments from bleaching from the sun.
It is why Schwarzkopf is a must-have this summer. Enjoy long-lasting colour protection from the sun, whether you’re off to places unknown or sunbathing by a pool, with Schwarzkopf. Check them out today.