Light waves reflecting on the melanin (pigment) of the hair, allow the hair to show its true colours. The hair may show through that it is not as healthy as it could otherwise be, it may be straggly, it may look lifeless, and whether is cropped, at chin level or shoulder length it is what it is.
It does not have to be this way however, and improvements on limp and lifeless hair can be made to make it shine.
You can make your hair shine strong with all the colours and vibrancy of a rainbow, if you maintain a good cleaning regime for your hair. Whilst we have gone through the potential for excessive cleaning of hair to do damage to the cuticle, it is important that a healthy cleaning regime is maintained for thicker hair types, to ensure that long hair becomes healthy, shiny, and beautiful.
Whilst the old hair shaft is pushed out by the new hair shaft in the process of growth, we can remove any impediments to this push out of the scalp by the new hair, and also improve the longevity and shine of existing hair. We do so by concentrating on cleaning the hair at regular intervals (But of course not too regular which causes the aforementioned damage.)
The hair has natural oils throughout, internal within the fibres of keratin, but also they exist above the surface of the protective cuticle. This cuticle can be damaged by brushing too often, and a brushing with plastic bristled brushes will do damage, so go for a natural bristled brush for your grooming. Brushing with natural bristles will allow for these natural oils to be spread equally throughout the existing hair on the head. The bristles will transport the oils from strand to strand, allowing for a consistency of these hair shine bringing elements throughout each strand, from below the surface right to the tip of the keratin strand.
The mid length and end need primary focus as it is this portion of the hair which is predisposed to the light, and will reflect the hairs natural vibrancy better giving shine when the beams of light hit it better than with hair which is hidden from the sun. This gives nourishment throughout the body of your thick hair.
Whilst we need to be very careful when making contact with the scalp lest we damage the capillaries, and hair follicles which lie underneath, know that brushing does stimulate the sebaceous glands under the skin. These glands in turn when stimulated go on to produce further natural oils, which can be used in the brushing process days and weeks from now when new hair grown in the follicle has risen beyond the surface.
The natural oils here in the sebaceous gland combine with the sweat on our scalp and sebum, creating a new protective layer for the skin of the scalp that is called the acid mantle. This acid mantle needs to be protected to ensure it can do its intended function adequately, with the PH level of the products we use in the grooming process particularly important and conductive to this end.
The problem with the washing of the hair, even if the intention is to bring out the natural shine of our long thick and healthy hair, is that washing plays a role in removing this protective layer. Of course washing removes dirt, that is its intention, but washing can also take away any excess oil and sweat. Shampoo is responsible for attracting grease from the hair shaft. This ‘emulsifying act’ has its drawbacks as well as its positives, so it should not be carried out on a daily basis.
It is important that in order not to detract in any way from the protective function of the acid mantle, that the shampoo you use has a PH level of below six. By having this acidic base at a level similar to that of the acid mantle, the shampoo will not cause the hair shaft to swell, and dually will not strip away these essential natural oils in their emulsifying action of stripping away the dirt and grease that takes the natural shine away from your hair.
Giving great condition that is intended to make the hair shine with its natural vitality is down to conditioner. This comes in three varieties that work in different ways towards helping thick and long hair become shiny. There are anti-oxidants which serve to deter oxidisation and natural wastage of the hair improving the vitality of the strands. There are external conditioners which serve to smooth down the surface of the hair improving shine by this means. There are also conditioners which work on an internal basis helping to improve the hair’s internal condition.
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