New Year Resolution: All-Around Healthy Hair

“A woman’s hair is her life” goes an old Japanese saying. Although I have always had long hair, I have never quite developed the same interest for hair care that I have for skincare. But if you think about it, the health of your hair has a lot to do with the health of your scalp, which is skin. In fact, my hair stylist told me recently that if I wanted to continue wearing my hair long in my 30s and 40s, I would need to do more than just wash and occasionally condition it. She pointed out that just as the skin on your face and body starts to change as you age, so does your scalp, which affects the look and health of your hair at the root.

The scalp is the home for your hair follicles, out of which your hair grows. Underneath the scalp, there are muscles, nerve endings and a network of tiny blood vessels that carry nutrients and oxygen through the pores to the follicle. With age, the metabolism of your skin slows down. Good skincare products help you prevent environmental damage, replenish nourishment that your skin starts lacking, and help keep the metabolism going. If the metabolism of your scalp slows down with age, it only makes sense to nourish and treat the skin there, too, so that it can perform all its functions and produce radiant, healthy hair. After my hair stylist’s comments, I vowed that in the new year I would not only take better care of my hair, but in particular I would pay more attention to scalp care.

Scalp Care

Not surprisingly, some of the most sophisticated hair care lines, especially in Europe, rely on advanced dermatological research to develop their products. One of the leaders of scalp care is Rene Furterer, a French hair care line (available at www.sephora.com). In addition to a whole range of hair care products, they also have scalp care treatments, mostly to treat thinning, weak hair due to stress, age or genetics. I have started using “Triphasic Revitalizing Formula” ($66), an ampulle treatment, applied once or twice a week for 2 months after washing hair, to increase micro-circulation and protect the hair bulb, in order to help my hair root produce stronger hair and to stop progressive hair loss. I have been using it for almost a month and have definitely noticed decreased shedding in the shower and when I brush my hair. Whether the product is effective in actually making future hair stronger remains to be seen. The preliminary results at least look promising – “ so promising that I have started using another Rene Furterer Scalp treatment product: “Complexe 5 Regenerating Extract” ($42), which is used once or twice a week before you wash your hair. This product, too, is designed to increase micro-circulation of the scalp and overall “optimize the action of other treatment products” by facilitating penetration of the scalp. In addition to my new scalp treatments, I have started taking high-dosage biotin supplements, since biotin has been helping keratin production, an essential part of hair. In fact, many European hair care brands offer supplements formulated specifically for healthy hair growth, such as Rene Furterer’s “Vitalfan Antichute” ($30), Phyto’s “Phytophanere” ($48 at www.beauty.com). You walk through any pharmacy in Germany or France, you will find several such supplements containing vitamins and amino acids essential to healthy hair growth.

Apart from high-tech scalp care, there is also the regular hair care aspect of course, shampoo and condition, to make your existing hair look healthy and shiny.

Condition

Most daily conditioners or detanglers don’t do much for the hair other than detangle it and make it easy to comb, thanks mostly to silicones. Apparently, products loaded with silicone give you the illusion of having softer, healthier hair. But silicone will also create deposits on your hair that will weigh it down and worse, on your scalp, making it more difficult for the scalp to transport nutrients and oxygen to the hair root. My most recent discovery? Marlies Moeller’s “Pashmisilk Repair Intensive Serum ($80, available at www.arivaskincare.com). Marlies Moeller is a high-end German hair care brand which represents the silicone-free school of thought. Its “Pashmisilk Repair Intensive Serum” is a treatment lotion applied to clean, damp hair as a leave-in conditioner. It has the most amazing, floral scent and it really does soften and smooth your hair without any silicone! Pashmina Extract, Ocean Silk and Silk Protein help repair hair and protect it from the damaging effects of heat styling. Needless to say, I am totally hooked.

Shampoo

This may be the area that I pay the least attention to. After all, shampoo is meant to be washed out completely. The most important points to remember about a shampoo are that it contains gentle cleansing agents, that it is not overloaded with silicone and that it’s adapted to your hair and scalp type. All of Marlies Moeller’s shampoos are silicone-free and come in different formulations depending on hair type (oily, normal or dry). I personally like “Daily Mild Plus” ($16.50) because it cleanses properly while not drying out my hair or scalp.

Check out Yoshiko’s skin care line.
www.juaraskincare.com