When good hair goes bad

Isn’t getting older fabulous, not only are our waists get thicker, but our hair seems to be getting thinner!

The weird and not so wonderful things that happen when we reach middle age can be a mine field to navigate and as there seems to be little or no sensible advice in books or magazines (apart from of course Amanda’s latest great find Menopause without Weight Gain), we’ve decided it’s time to get some experts in to help us through the next few months and (God help us) years. We asked respected writer, journalist, general font of all knowledge and my dearest friend TheReal(British)HousewifeofNewYork to give us some advice on what to do if your hair is thinning.

Hair Loss Helper

If you’ve been peering at your parting lately and wondering where it’s going, stop before you panic. Although hair loss can happen with age, the process that is actually happening is far less alarming and with the right nutrients and vitamins, may even be prevented.

The clue to why hair looks thinner over time comes from a very slow, natural reduction in the size and thickness of each individual follicle.  As a rough example, if you think of your thumb’s thickness, imagine it changing to the width of your little finger eventually. This is what happens to your hair, so to maintain thickness, look for products, vitamins and nutrients that support follicle health.

The key ingredient in many vitamin products for hair loss is Biotin, a B vitamin. Crucial for  improving elasticity of skin via collagen strength, Biotin can also strengthen nails and hair. B vitamins are fabulous for helping along a slowing-down metabolism leading to waist-fat storage, one of the key reasons for menopausal weight gain (as per our previous post). B vitamins help push food and nutrients through your system to all the vital organs and then out the other end.

Eating lots of protein will also improve hair strength and health over time.  Include eggs for breakfast 4 or 5 times a week if you can. Your body takes in the most nutrients after it’s nightly fast, so pile in the most potent stuff early in the day.

Thicker Hair Tips:

• Don’t blow dry with a brush, use your fingers and a hairdryer then use one roll of the brush only, over each section. Finish with a cool blast of air. If you want super sleek, use a ceramic, heat-cautious hair straightener.

• Forget fashionability and use scrunchies to hold up long hair around the house, FAR less damaging than metal clips and slides. Never put wet hair in clips and slides for longer than 10 minutes. It will contract and snap as it dries.

• Be gentle with your hair at all times, hold in bunches away from scalp to comb with a wide-toothed comb, never pull on hair at the root.

• For a thicker looking parting, part using a narrow toothed comb. This creates a thin parting line and thicker looking hair either side. A natural parting can reveal thin-ness.

• Don’t blow dry hair upwards to look too ‘full’ – it will have reverse effect as hair stands away from head, becoming more transparent and scalp revealing. For volume, back come gently at the back of the crown but keep hair close to scalp around the front for a thicker look.

PS. from Jane – Can I also recommend the BaByliss Big Hair dryer to increase volume and achieve that ‘salon dryed’ look.