Dos and don'ts of blow-drying your hair: Expert tips to avoid damage

Blow-drying your hair before stepping out is a common practice. But do you know that there is a correct and efficient way to blow dry your hair? Read on to know

Who doesn't love silky, smooth, blow-dried hair? As soon as you step out of the shower and grab your towel or blow dryer, it may seem like the most obvious step in your hair care routine - drying your hair. You may not realise it, but this simple step in your beauty routine can be the cause of dull, damaged hair. However, the use of electrical styling appliances such as hair dryers and flat irons has recently come under scrutiny because of the potential damage they can cause to your hair strands. Blow drying can be harmful if done incorrectly, as it can leave your hair lifeless or dry and frizzy.

Dr Avantika Srivastava, Consultant Cosmetologist, Kosmoderma shared with HT Lifestyle some essential blow-drying dos and don'ts that can make all the difference in your daily hair routine.

Top Mistakes to Avoid When Drying Your Hair

1. Never dry your hair when they are very wet

If you dry your hair when they are dripping wet, you might make them brittle and rough in this process. While the hair is wet, they absorb moisture and the outermost cells swell. But when heat treatment is given to the hair at this stage, water evaporates from the hair cells at a faster rate, making the cells contract, thereby damaging the hair. Always let them dry a bit and then use a hair dryer or you can even use a towel instead.

2. Never over-dry your hair

Since heat treatment on a daily basis is not a very healthy thing to do, so refrain from over-drying your hair to avoid its permanent damage.

3. Never use a towel very aggressively over your hair

There is a correct way to use a towel to dry the hair. What is extremely wrong is vigorously rubbing the towel on your hair with tremendous friction thinking to dry it quicker. But what most people don’t realise is that a rough towel can damage the hair irreversibly. Gently press the towel onto your hair with calm hands and try using a towel with microfibres.

4. Never dry your hair all at once

Whenever you dry your hair all at once, moisture transports from the wet strands to nearby already dry strands, thus causing a strand to be dried up multiple times damaging it. So always divide your hair into sections and dry it section-wise.

5. Always use heat protectant products

If you want to keep your hair healthy in the long run, never refrain from the usage of heat protectant products on your hair. You can spread them with a comb or your fingers to make them highly beneficial.

6. Never hold a blow dryer too close to your scalp

Sometimes, when in a hurry, individuals make the biggest mistake of holding the hair dryer too close to the scalp. While this removes the water faster you will eventually pay the price for the hastiness in the form of heat-damaged hair.

7. Avoid using hair dryer multiple times a day

There are adverse effects of drying your hair multiple times as hair doesn’t get enough time to recover from previous heat exposure.