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5 simple ways to keep your hair youthful

BY READERS DIGEST

1st Jan 2015 Fashion & Beauty

5 simple ways to keep your hair youthful

As you age, and as you enter your 50s in particular, your hair becomes thinner, drier and greyer due to a decrease in natural oils and melanin. However, if you want to retain your hair’s youthful appearance, there are some proactive steps you can take to keep the natural ageing process at bay.

 

Enjoy a diet rich in nutrients

A healthy, balanced diet may be more closely associated with maintaining a trim figure, but it can also have a powerful influence on the condition and appearance of your hair as you grow older. Your hair’s thickness, moisture level and natural shine depend on the supply of certain nutrients, including vitamins A and C, protein, omega-3 fatty acids and zinc. Therefore, eating a balanced diet rich in fish, chicken, eggs, nuts and leafy green vegetables will help restore vital nutrients to their optimum levels, giving your hair impetus to retain its youthful appearance.

 

Avoid over-styling

Maintaining a fashionable hairstyle is one way of keeping in with the younger generation, but over-styling can worsen your hair’s dryness and increase its brittleness. Women, in particular, should be wary of washing their hair excessively as this can eradicate the natural oils, which help it to retain its moisture. Similarly, dryness can be made worse by the overuse of hairdryers and straighteners, which can cause considerable damage if used regularly as well as stunting the growth of new follicles.

 

Style for volume

If thinning hair is the sight you see when looking into a mirror, some simple but clever styling can help to disguise this without the need to resort to expensive regrowth serums or laser treatments. For example, you can disguise thinning around the parting—often one of the first places you may notice the change—by opting for a zigzag parting instead of a straight line. For women, cutting long hair short and adding multiple layers near the front can help to create the illusion of volume. If you’re in need of a comb-over, the chances are these little tricks may have arrived too late!

 

Protect from sunlight

Intense heat and sunlight can cause damage to your hair and accelerate the ageing process, so the simple advice is to avoid direct exposure in the summer months in particular. Wearing a hat with a wide brim will protect your hair, face and neck from the sun’s harmful UV rays. While applying a spray-on sunscreen to your scalp will help to prevent sunburn to this often forgotten part of your skin.

 

Colour for greater volume

Hiding grey hair is easy with a good quality colour but your hair may also appear to be thicker as a result. Applying a colour treatment can cause the cuticle to thicken, so your hair gains in volume as well as colour. Selecting a colour slightly lighter than your natural shade will also conceal the scalp, so thinner patches will blend in more naturally. However, over-colouring can cause damage to your hair and decrease its strength, so restrict root treatments to once a month and highlight less frequently.

By following these simple and inexpensive steps, you can help your hair to retain its youthful appearance and keep the unmistakeable signs of ageing firmly at bay.

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