You’ve probably been getting advice about your hair for most of your life. Moms, aunts, friends, random strangers--everyone seems to have some tidbit they insist you have to do. But not all advice is good advice. It’s time to bust some hair myths!
Cutting Your Hair Makes It Grow Faster
Cutting your hair has zero impact on how quickly it grows. Nada. Zilch. Nothing. In reality, your hair follicles are responsible for growth, and nothing you do to the ends makes a difference one way or the other. A trim can totally make it look like your hair is thicker, though, by removing split ends. So if your hair is looking thin and scraggly, a trim might be in order.
Massage Your Scalp for Faster Growth
Not really. Sadly, as nice as scalp massages feel, they’re not likely to help your hair grow. And if you overdo it, the friction can even damage your hair. Does that mean you can never enjoy a good scalp massage? Of course not. But trying to squeeze out growth by excessively massaging your scalp will probably do more harm than good. Everything in moderation, right?
Rinse and Repeat
What? Everyone says this! The truth is, unless you’ve just fallen into a really scummy pond or something similarly disgusting, one wash and rinse is probably going to do it. How often does your hair really come into contact with something so slimy or sticky that it isn’t washed out on the first try? As long as you are thorough, shampooing once is all you need. Repeating the process increases the likelihood that you’ll strip your hair of its natural oils and leave it without adequate moisture.
Pulling a Gray Hair Causes Two More to Grow
No, pulling out a gray hair won’t cause two more to grow in its place. That doesn’t mean it’s a good idea, though. That’s because pulling your hair out can cause scarring and lead to permanent hair loss. Embrace your grays or color them instead.
Brush Your Hair 100 Times a Day
This one goes back a long time. If you ever read The Little House series as a kid, you probably remember Laura being given this advice by her mother. But longevity doesn’t turn a myth into a fact. You only need to brush your hair enough to detangle it and distribute the natural oils through your hair. Brushing can cause friction, which in turn leads to breakage, and frizz. Use a wide-tooth comb to detangle your hair and then a soft brush to distribute the oils. And don’t do it 100 times.
Skip Conditioner for Greasy Hair
No, no, a thousand times no! Greasy hair is caused by sebum production at the scalp, not your conditioner. Shampooing your hair opens your cuticles to allow your hair to be cleaned. If you don’t seal them again with conditioner, they stay open, leaving your locks prone to breakage. We recommend Citrus Yao for oily hair. It cuts through excess sebum while still conditioning and hydrating your hair.
Change Shampoos Often for Healthy Hair
Your hair gets used to one shampoo, and then you have to change to a new one to get the same effects, right? Wrong. This is shampoo, not medicine. Your hair doesn’t build up a tolerance. So when you find a shampoo you love, stick with it! Naturally, we hope it’s Viori.
There you have it--the truth about common hair myths. What other myths have you heard?