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All good things come at a price: How dangerous is straightening your hair?
While being able to straighten your hair (permanently or temporarily) at whim does sound like a blessing, it can also be very dangerous to the overall health of your hair.
It’s a truth universally acknowledged that no one is happy with what they have. This logic extends to women and the hair they have been blessed with as well.
Ones with short hair want it longer, ones with dark hair want it lighter and ones with curly hair want it straighter. Of course, bending the course of nature in these departments is an option with new technologies but it all comes at a price.
While being able to straighten your hair (permanently or temporarily) at whim does sound like a blessing, it can also be very dangerous to the overall health of your hair. Dr Deepali Bhardwaj, director of The Skin and Hair Clinics, is absolutely against the practice: “All dermatologists recommend that you don’t straighten you hair due to all the chemical involved in the process. Also, considering the north Indian climate and the pollutants in the environment, this could mean turning bald sooner than expected.”
Here are a few side affects highlighted:
It makes your hair dull and dry
This effect is instantaneous. As soon as you pull the straightening rod from your hair, you will see that the hair looks duller and drier. While you may think that the problem goes away as soon as you shampoo the next time, the harm is already done. “Hair tends to become frizzy and dry and the natural colour of the hair fades away, making it lusterless. Natural elasticity of the hair dries leading to breakage. Also ironing hair at high temperature leads to burning of hair , and in the process cuticles die which is irreparable,” says a hair expert from Advanced Hair Studio.
Over time, with more and more sessions with the iron, your hair will start getting permanently lifeless and lose its sheen.
The chemicals are not your friends
Even sitting with those chemicals on your hair when you are getting it permanently straightened seems so impossible with all the nasty fumes, imagine how harmful it must be on your hair. The chemicals, if not of the best quality, can even give your allergies liked rashes, itchiness in the scalp and more.
Hair fall season all year round
It’s one of the most common complaints of those who get their hair straightened that the hair start falling at an unprecedented rate. The chemicals make your hair follicles weak, leaving hair prone to a lot of hair fall.
You get really, really bored after a while
Yes, straight hair maybe far more manageable than before but it is also so boring. You will not be able to work any other hair style and you will look the same, day in, day out.
The new hair kills the game
So all your hair is straight now but what about the part that will grow out now? That part will be naturally curly. Soon, half your hair will be curly and half would be straight. Not a pleasant sight. And you can’t even run to the salon again and again and expose yourself to more chemicals.
Better option is to simply embrace the hair your are born with or choose more carefully how you want to change it. Use better products or simpler styles and make it work.
Dr Deepali suggests that you include more biotin in your diet (found in spinach, milk, soya and fish) at least for six weeks before you get your hair permanently straightened. Biotin, also called Vitamin H, protects hair from the side effects and keeps it healthy.
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