Bamboo Leaf Tea giveaway!

Giveaways are so much fun! That's why I decided to jump right back into giving another product away. This time I'm creating the opportunity for one lucky winner to get their hands on bamboo leaf tea. Everyone who's given me feedback on the tea raves on how great it tastes which makes it easy to sip throughout the day. I recently upgraded my loose leaf tea pot to one that holds 1.5 liters of water which means more bamboo tea for me!

 Enough about me, let's get on with this giveaway. To enter simply follow the blog and send me a quick email to relaxedhairhealth@gmail.com with the words "Bamboo Tea" somewhere in the title.

The lucky winner will have the option of 1/2 oz loose leaf tea or 12 bamboo tea bags. I'll select this person randomly on Sunday July 8, 2012. For those of you who are new to the bamboo tea game, this product contains high levels of silica which is essential to healthy hair, skin and nails.  It's a perfect way to promote health without feeling like you're working hard at it. 

  p.s. I chatted with the supplier of the bamboo tea over the weekend and I learned that she's been doing a ton of research on the properties of bamboo tea and how to maximize absorption of the nutrients. What I learned from her is that the process of boiling the leaves increases the likelihood of the nutrients being released from the leaves. She also shared that silica in supplement form has a pretty low absorption rate. I asked if she could forward me some of her resources so I can share as a blog post. Once I get it, I'll be sure to update. For those of you who want to just go for it and get your bamboo tea right now, you can visit our bamboo tea page and get you some!

Pink salt, yet another way to promote healthy hair growth

Salt. Who would have thought that I'd be writing a healthy hair post about simple table salt? However, this post goes way beyond the common Morton's salt we all probably have in our cupboards.  No, my friends, today I'm here to talk about something else.  My philosophy has always been to elevate myself in everything thing I do and this new find fits in right along with what I believe.

This salt I'd like to introduce to you is known as Himalayan pink salt.  What makes Himalayan pink salt to special is not just the cute pink color, but the nutritional value of this salt.  See, unlike our common table salt, Himalayan salt is unprocessed.  Common white table salt is equivalent to white bread in that the nutrients have been removed after it's been refined. Once we consume it, our bodies receive nothing in return. In fact, in some cases, the eating processed foods does more harm than good because our bodies uses it's nutrient reserves to digest food that gives back no nutrition in return.

Salt is something we consume in pretty much every meal.  What if the salt we ate contained over 80 easily absorbable trace minerals including silica, yes, I said silica.  The same silica that I rave about over and over again can be found in this special salt.  And what's even more amazing, is that the minerals in Himalayan pink salt are highly absorbable by our bodies.  Pink salt can also help promote a healthy pH balanced environment which is critical for optimal health. I touched a little on this subject on a previous post about alkaline and acid water.


Here's where it gets interesting.  A nine week study done in 2003 by the University of Graz (Austria) split participants into four groups.

-Group 1 participants drank 1.5 liters Fiji water only (Fiji water is slightly alkaline and contains silica as a trace mineral).
-Group 2 participants only drank tap water throughout the day.
-Group 3 participants drank 1.5 liters of Fiji water mixed with a solution of pink salt and water (also known as Sole)
 -Group 4 participants drank 1.5 liters of water mixed with a solution of table sate and water.

The results?  The group that drank the Fiji water and pink salt solution reported "increases in quality of sleep, energy, concentration, weight loss, and noticeable nail and hair growth.  The group with the next best results in the study was the group that drank the Fiji water only.  You can read more about this experiment here. Pink salt is said to have many more benefits but for the sake of our discussion here, we'll focus on the hair and nail growth.  These amazing benefits are possible because when our bodies are in balance, only good things can happen.  It like when the soil is fertile, the crops grow strong and healthy.  I figure that since I use salt when I prepare my meals anyway, why not use a salt that is amazingly beneficial for my hair and body.  Since I've discovered this little pink surprise, I've been using it for cooking.  I also add a pinch of pink salt to my water bottle. Next, I'll prepare the sole solution and add it to my bottle water for my early morning drink.   For those of you who might be concerned with the negative effects of the salt intake, you'll be happy to know that because nature of this salt,  it does not promote unhealthy effects like high blood pressure.  No more white table salt for me,  I'm gonna finish up my white table salt by using it in my shower water softener.

I've only been doing this pink salt thing for a week now.  The immediate benefit I experienced was the elimination of my chronic charlie horse.  Gosh, I used to get those things all the time when sitting at my computer desk.  Seems like when the pink salt came into my life, the charlie horses went away.  Oh, and one more thing...I used to crave salty snacks like chips and, lately, it seems like my "salty tooth" has been somewhat quenched by the addition of the healthy pink salt.  So far so good.  I can't wait to take it to another level with the addition of the sole solution and see what happens next.

Use this method and take your affirmations to the next level

MOTIVATION MONDAY!

For a while now, I've tried to make a habit of including affirmations as part of my daily routine.  Sometimes I'm consistent, sometimes I'm not. Part of the issue is that I viewed the process of saying "positive" things to myself as a task.  The affirmations didn't feel real to me and, most often, I found it difficult to incorporate the "positive feelings" which are a vital part of the affirmation process.

Affirmations, for those who aren't familiar, are simply words that one repeats to themselves which are positive and "affirm" the things we want in our lives.  If we actually listen to the incessant rambling of our minds, one thing that stands out is the overwhelmingly negative nature of our thoughts.  When we recite affirmations, we are making a conscious choice to insert positive messages into our thought cycle.  The whole point of the process is so we can begin to think new thoughts, take on new actions, which will ultimately lead to new results (reality) that support the words we affirmed.

For me, affirmations have sorta been a "hit and miss".  Sometimes I achieve great results, sometimes I don't.  Like I said earlier, sometimes I would feel like it was just a task when I said words in front of the mirror, and once I did it, I was done for the day.

But then something happened.  Last week, before I started my day, I recited a simple affirmation.  "Today is better than I expected."  Then I headed to the airport.  What I decided to do differently this time is raise my awareness of things turned out better than I expected it do that day.  So when I timed my airport arrival at 5:30 am but I arrived at 5:15 am, I said to myself "better than I expected!"  When the rental car location ran out of compact cars and upgraded me for free to a mid size, I repeated "better than I expected!"    When I pulled up to a toll booth and realized I had no cash which meant I had to leave my car and run over to the booth with a person in it who gave me the I money needed, I gratefully said "better than I expected!"  I could go on but I hope you get the picture I'm painting.

From that day, I realized how important it is to actually AFFIRM my affirmations as I see glimpses of them in real life.  If, early in the morning, I say to myself that "I am fully comfortable speaking to a group of people," every time I speak to a group, even a small group of three people during lunch break, I can affirm to myself, "I am comfortable speaking to a group of people."  If my morning affirmation is "I love eating healthy foods,"  then I affirm that again when I eat a tomato or an apple.  The point of the process isn't just about saying empty words in front of a mirror, but to make it real by acknowledging when you see glimpses of your affirmation occurring in your real life.  When you do, you are able to include one of the most powerful aspects of affirmations and attraction--the feelings.  They say that in order to attract powerfully, I need to feel the feelings of having already accomplished or received my desires.  This can be hard to do when I'm reciting words to a reflection of myself.  Once I began affirming my affirmations as they happened, suddenly I couldn't help but to feel good about what was manifesting in the moment.

Oh, and one more thing, part two of this process is to not affirm when your actions, or the events of the day, DO NOT align with your daily intention.  If you  affirmed that "I am in control of my emotions" then suddenly you find yourself wanting to throw the nearest object at your co-worker, don't keep repeating in your mind about how much you want to punch this person, instead find something you can affirm in the situation. Perhaps it's something like "I am in control of my emotions, I could have reacted by doing ABC, but instead I chose to XYZ."  I am in control of my emotions."  The less energy you give to something, the weaker it becomes.  My not affirming the results that don't align with what you want to create, you are allowing it to become weaker.

My desire is that this post helps some of you who would like to see your intentions begin to materialize.  Sometimes what we say we want starts to happen but we miss out on them because we focus so much on negative.  Try using this re-affirmation process throughout your day today and see what possibilities you create for yourself.

Let me share how I was able to reverse my grey hair!

 "What on earth is she holding" (you ask yourself)?  "And why is she cheesin' like that?"  Well I'll tell you why I'm so happy.  I'm smiling because in my hands is a single strand of hair that represents (what I would consider) a minor miracle.  You see, the strand of hair that is barely visible in this pic is "three-toned."   It's black/brown on the end, grey in the middle and black/brown again near the root.  That's right ladies.  This strand of hair is one that was once grey and has since reversed back to it's natural color.  Hallelujah!

As far as I know, only three of these strands exist.  The first I discovered while roller setting last week.  The hair shed as I was combing prior to rolling that particular section.  I nearly lost my mind when I saw this hair that was dark, white, then dark again.  I couldn't wait to share the good news so I set this strand aside so I could eventually take a picture of it.  Unfortunately, I didn't do a good job of securing that strand and it soon got lost among the other shed hairs that were a result of the roller setting.  I was so bummed when I thought I lost the only hair that represented solid proof in my being able to possibly reverse my grey.    Then, shortly after, I found another shed hair with the same three-toned pattern.  Later on in the week, I found a third.  This last one is actually still connected to my scalp.

I tried my darndest to take somewhat decent pics of this strand of hair as evidence of my miraculous change of events. Turns out that taking pics of a single strand of hair isn't as easy as I thought it would be.  In any case, take a look at these pics attached to see what I'm talking about. 

(up close pic of three-toned hair)

(three-toned hair taped on plastic background)

So what does this all mean?  Why are some of my hairs reversing in color?  How did this happen and how can I ensure it continues to happen?  To be completely honest with you, I'm not exactly sure.  The only thing I can do is take a moment to reflect on some of the shifts I've made to my diet and lifestyle in recent past to see if I can make some sort of correlation.

Cod Liver Oil
When I started to think back, the first thing that came to my mind was the Nordic Naturals Cod liver oil that I was taking in liquid form. Each morning, without even thinking about it, I swallowed a tablespoon of pure omega three goodness.  I started this around October of last year.  I did a quick search to see if this a viable cause of the darkening of my greys.  Wouldn't you know it, when I searched online for grey hair and omega 3 oils, many of the search results claimed that there was indeed a connection between pre-mature grey hair and cod liver oil.  I've taken fish oil in some form, on a consistent basis for a while.  But this is the first time I had taken Nordic Naturals in liquid form.  I'm sure this purified, hi quality oil, is much more powerful than the Wal-Mart brand I'd taken years ago.  And by taking it in liquid form, I feel like the body was more able to assimilate the oil than the capsule.  I'm sure I was also consuming  more when I swallowed a spoonful than when I took 2 capsules.

Wheat Grass
Looking back into my archives, I noticed that I also started experimenting with wheat grass late last year.  I went back to check the post I'd written and, in it, I'd stated that I wanted to see how long-term use of wheat grass juice would impact my grey hair.  Could it be that I'm now seeing the fruits of my labor? I think the high levels of nutrition concentrated in these tiny little grasses is the reason why hairs are able to respond so well. I've got to make a small confession here and say that I halted my wheat grass practice once I started my gluten detox.  But if this hair transformation has anything to do with "the grass,"  then I might consider reintroducing it into my routine again for maintenance.  

Silica
Let's not forget that around mid last year, I introduced silica to my hair routine first in the form of Hubner's silica gel then via the delicious bamboo tea.  I read on one site that grey hair could be caused by a trace mineral deficiency (silica being one of them).  Perhaps the introduction of highly absorbable colloidal silica to my regimen was the source of my hair's gradual shift.  If so, I need to make sure I maintain my silica consumption by having a glass of bamboo tea daily.

Honorable mentions
Although these next two actions I'll share with you may not be directly related to the changes I experienced, they both are said to positively influence grey hair.  The first honorable mention goes to nail rubbing which is said to create healthy nails, hair growth and reverse greys.  Unfortunately, I haven't been consistent enough with this practice to make an impact.  My friend who first introduced me to this method boasted not only on how thick his elderly father's hair was but also on how well it maintained it's natural color.

The other honorable mention will have to go to my new gluten-free lifestyle.  I'm mentioning this now because, like in the wheat grass post, I sincerely hope this new way of eating will continue to attract multiple benefits into my life.  A gluten intolerance is said to inhibit the proper absorption of nutrients. My hope is that all the other nutritional changes I've made in the past will only be heightened by the shifts in my eating habits.  Since I've only been gluten free for a few months, I know it's too soon to say it's had any impact on the three-toned hairs I've discovered.

Looking back, I'm glad that I was able to incorporate some of these changes to my routine.  Some of these, I've slacked on but I'm completely motivated to bring them back as part of my daily habits.  Overall, the greatest lesson I've learned from all of this is the power of nutrition on the on the health of our hair.  Happy hair growing!

How acid water will make my hair and skin absolutely beautiful

A few posts ago, I hinted a little bit about my new-found gem.  This new addition to my hair product arsenal is a really big deal.  I am beyond excited!   It all started with a recent visit to my local alkaline water supplier.  For those of you who aren't familiar, alkaline water is said to be a healthier alternative to most of the water we drink which tends to land at a neutral pH  level.

This matters because our bodies are said to be at a healthier state when it has a slightly alkaline pH.  When our internal bodies are alkaline, the likelihood of ideal health is much more attainable.  Unfortunately, the foods we commonly eat and the stressful environment we live in, promotes an acidic internal environment.  For this reason, many have looked to alkaline water as a suitable aid to achieving a healthier ecosystem.  I've been drinking alkaline water on and off for a while now but there was a time when I hardly drank it because my nearest supplier shut down early last year.  Since then I've located another specialty water shop and now I'm back on track to bringing nourishing water into my life.

Alkaline water is great and all but what I'm really amped up about is alkaline's evil twin "acidic water."

O.k, I'm being a little dramatic when I say "evil twin" because acidic water isn't evil at all.  As a matter of fact, acidic  (or beauty) water can highly beneficial to us.  As I stated before, our internal environment thrives at a slightly alkaline pH. Our external bodies do well when it's more acidic.  This means our skin, eyes, and (yes) hair.  

Some of you old timers to this blog may have remember this post on the proper pH balance for hair.  In it I described how the cuticle layer of our hair responds directly to the pH of the environment.  At an alkaline pH,  (like when we touch up our hair) the cuticle layers open, creating a rough surface.  When the environment is acidic, the cuticle layers will constrict which creates smoother, softer hair.  

At a cost less than a gallon of milk, this acidic water is a steal when you think about the benefits I will receive overall.  When I first brought my gallon home, I immediately began using the water to wash my face.  As some of you many know, I'm on a skin care journey that will ultimately lead me to having glorious skin.  Eliminating gluten and receiving a couple of professional facials have been a great help for my skin.  Adding the acidic water is like the icing on the cake.  In the pics below, I have on no makeup.  In the past, I would rarely take bare faced pics without attempting to camouflage the dark spots and acne. 

One big difference in my skin since using the acid water, is smoothness.  My skin looked brighter and healthier after my just first experience.   Of course my skin isn't perfect but I'm just estatic about that I'm seeing so far. For years I've been applying ACV on a cotton ball to help treat the dermatitis that was appearing on my skin. I know that this acid water will work perfectly with what I'm currently doing to compliment my skin and scalp care regimen. 

I've had one experience using acidic water on wash day which was four days prior to these pics being taken.  I did everything as I normally do except I conducted my final rinse using the acidic water.  Instead of just pouring the water over my head and allowing it to flow down the drain, I added the water, in small amounts at a time, and massaged it into my strands as much as possible. 

The biggest difference I noticed overall was softness and moisture.  I wouldn't say that this water sealed my strands perfectly.  That's probably because, according to the guy I brought it from, the pH level of this water is somewhere between 5.5 and 6.0.  If I could have my way, I would have liked the water to be slightly more acidic.  But hey, beggars can't be choosers in this hair game.  I will say this, since using this water, my moisture levels have been off the chain!  So much that I think I'll incorporate some protein next wash day to balance everything out.  I'm approaching 4 months post and prior to the acidic water, I was contemplating touching up a little before I hit 5 months.  Now I think the possibility of stretching to even six months could actually happen (fingers crossed).

There are a myriad of uses for this "beauty water."  From now on, only acidic water goes into my steamer when I do facials, steam set my hair or when I'm steaming in my deep conditioner.  The look you see in the pics is after I set my hair on steam rollers using the acidic beauty water.  Normally, my hair would be set in a few short minutes. But because I was using a different type of water, the hair took longer to dry than normal.  Overwhelmed with excitement about how it would turn out, I took the rollers out a bit early (hence the frizz you see in the pics).  But oh well,  I learned from the experience and when I do it again, I'll leave the rollers in a till my hair dries completely.  

 

This acidic water excites me like none other because I believe it will be the foundation to many other wonderful things to come.  Perhaps my hair products will work better now that my hair is closer to being pH balanced.  I'm exploring the uses for this but I see much more possibilities such as a final rinse when I touch up.  Or I may use this water when I dilute my leave-in conditioner.

Hair and beauty aside, this wonderful water can also be used to rinse my veggies prior to juicing.  The water can also be used to sterilize surfaces after cleaning. The uses are endless.  I'm so glad I stumbled upon such a great find! 

Mizani Supreme Oil Giveaway!

It's been way too long since we've shared a giveaway.   Now's as good time as any to give this pretty amazing product from Mizani. For those of you who aren't familiar with Mizani's Supreme oil, here's the scoop.  Supreme oil is a "hair treatment" formulated with 99% pure oils. This product contains no silicones or mineral oil. Some of the yummy oils contained in this blend include: jojoba, sunflower seed, apricot oil, sesame seed, argan oil and more.  I like how light this oil feels.

Enough of my rambling, let's talk about how you can get Supreme Oil in your hands!

This giveaway is open to all who are living in the U.S.  Simply follow the blog, like us on Facebook and send an email to relaxedhairhealth@gmail.com with the title "Supreme Oil" to enter.  It's that simple.  I will randomly select a winner on Sunday June 10th and reach out to that lucky person via email.


Good luck everyone!

Using Heat and Mainting Healthy Hair Part 2

Let's continue on in the conversation about heat usage and healthy hair shall we?  As you recall from my last post, I brought up the subject of heat usage in an effort to understand if we can incorporate heat into our regimens in a powerful way.  Using heat (for good and not evil) isn't an easy task.  We all know those who have fallen as casualties to the destructive powers of heat.  We don't want to be one of them so let's take a moment to identify some of the factors that cause/create heat damage.

• Styling tool used
• Frequency of heat usage
• Ineffective protection of the hair from heat 
• Lack of replenishment (rebuilding of) the hair before/after heat usage
• Improper use of heat

Now here's the good part where we dissect each of these factors one by one.

Styling tool used

 I've invested a couple of hundred dollars on flat irons even though I use heat only a few times a year.  Why?  Because:

1.  I can not afford to have a sub-par flat iron ruin my hair because I tried to save a few dollars. 
2. Flat irons are evolving into less damaging tools (and I want to take advantage of the newest technology).

When I use my Sedu ceramic iron, my hair feels smoother & silkier than with my old flat iron.  Does this mean that my hair is healthier when I use my Sedu?  Possibly. But what's really more important is that because my hair feels better when I use this quality iron, I tend to avoid using it again because the need isn't as great.  Even though I love my Sedu, I still  purchased a titanium flat iron because (allegedly) titanium is said to be smoother (when viewed under a microscope) than ceramic.  My search for the perfect flat iron plates may continue, but for now, I won't blindly close my eyes to the dangers of heat and use it inappropriately just because they claim to be healthier for the hair.

***side note:  Those of us who visit salons may notice that our hair feels  really healthy after getting it straightened.  One thing to note is that it's very likely that your stylist uses a quality flat iron on your hair which can create a smoother, silkier result. Quality does matter. ***

Healthy Heat Usage Tip #1:  Go for the best tools you can afford

Frequency of Heat Usage

If you break out your flat/curing iron more than once every week, you are asking, no begging, for heat ravaged hair.  It's inevitable.  Let's think about this for one minute.  Hot metal plates, which can easily burn our skin is applied (with pressure) to our hair strand.  This initial use of heat may have the ability to seal the top layer of the cuticle layer down.  Steam rises as the moisture in our hair evaporates.  Then.....three days later.....you put your hair through the same process again.  Your hair is probably already be straightened from the first instance, now you're doing it again to "freshen up" the style.  That is a huge risk to your hair.  I remember the days when girls would break out their flat iron to bump their ends every morning.  No wonder everyone was walking around with perpetual neck length hair.  All the ladies I talked to with (healthy hair) used heat every week or every two weeks.  Breaking out the flat iron between wash days was a no-no!  Honestly, I don't think using heat every week is a good idea but some people are able to do it.  Like Phoenix mentioned in the comments in part 1 of this post.  Those of us who relax our hair shouldn't have the need to use direct heat for at least the first 2 or so months post relaxer.  Any heat usage before that may be considered overkill. 


Healthy Heat Usage Tip# 2:  The flat/curling iron is a SEALING TOOL, not a styling tool.  Use it as a styling aid and heat damage will become your new best friend. 

Lack of Replenishment before/after heat usage

Let's say you're someone who visits the salon every week or two weeks for your wash and style.  Chances are, you are getting a deep condition (under a hooded dryer) with every visit.  If you're like our friend Toni, you may even be receiving steam treatments when you deep condition.  When I was introduced to the Mircromist steamer, my hair faired beautifully after my blow dry and flat iron session.  In fact,  Marie promised me that if I visited her regularly, she could have my hair at a healthy waist length in no time.  Why?  Because she would take the time to nurture my hair with each session prior to the heat styling.  The heat styling would then become a method of sealing all of the high quality products into my strands.  For those of us who don't put in the work of fortifying the strands ahead of time, using heat on the hair can will be highly destructive. 


Healthy Heat Usage Tip #3:  Only use heat following a deep replenishment process (deep conditioning or steam treatment).

Improper use of heat

I've mention several times that our heat irons should be used as sealing tools.  But I don't want you to get all excited about  what I like to call "reckless sealing."  The iron shouldn't be doing all of the work.  You've got to do all you can to seal your hair prior, during and after, so your iron doesn't have to do all the heavy lifting. There are a myriad of ways to help your iron do it's a job.  Rinsing with cold water, apple cider vinegar, and even acid water will help seal the cuticles before the drying process.  When using the iron, opt for additional tension (the chase method as seen in this video) and more pressure versus turning the temperature dial higher.  Also realize that bone straight hair can be achieved with the help of the iron and other techniques like wrapping the hair, or tying it under a scarf to manage bulk.  So basically, don't look to your sealing tool to do all of the work. 

**p.s. I know some of y'all are wondering about this "acid water" I mentioned earlier. Acid water is the newest addition to my hair regimen (as of this afternoon).  Once I've had a chance to play with it for a few days, I'll post my thoughts.**


Healthy Heat Usage Tip #4:  Seal your hair prior to flat ironing and leverage tension so less heat is required to achieve desired results.

Ineffective protection from heat

Investing in quality "sealing tools" is one thing, but getting the best in heat protectants is the holy grail of effective heat usage.  Heat protectants have two main purposes including "protecting the hair from heat" and helping to promote that smooth, silky feeling.  I'm here to challenge our way of thinking about heat protectants which I will now refer to as heat-activated strengtheners.  If the product you are using isn't a heat activated strengthener.....toss it.  For the longest, I used Gleau whenever I flat ironed.  Was it the best choice, who knows? But I used it because I knew that whatever product I utilized would be seared into the hair strand through the use of heat.  The heat protectors in my arsenal were not heat-activated strengtheners so I chose to go without.   It wasn't until my salon visit with Marie that I finally found a heat activated strengthener that, I thought, was worth using. 

Ladies can I introduce you to my homie, Kerastase Fibre Architecte?

Seriously, my hair never felt as silky and soft and when I left Marie's chair when she first introduced Fibre Architecte to me.  Then I learned that this product contained a Pro-Keratin complex, wheat protein, and ceramides (the holy trinity of healthy hair).  I didn't even bat an eye at the $40.00 price point.  The cost meant absolutely nothing to me because this product manifested itself as a perfect heat-activated strengthener.  Each time I used heat, my hair would be receiving reinforcement beyond what occurred during the wash and condition. Along with the Fibre Architecte, I also snatched up the Ciment Thermique Heat Activated Reconstructor Milk.  This product feels like a thick moisturizer. You can apply to wet/damp hair before using a blow dryer for added strengthening.  Since I don't normally blow dry, I use it as a moisturizer when I notice some breakage.  I also use it on my hair before apply the Fibre-Architecte so I have two layers of heat-activated strengthening.  For now, these are my strengtheners of choice.  If I find something more powerful, I will certainly let you all know.    

 Healthy Heat Usage Tip #5:  Your hair deserves the best, use quality heat-activated strengtheners!

When we visit salons regularly for heat styling, they tend to use quality products to replenish the hair and they may even do a decent job of protecting the hair from heat.  What I think they miss is when it comes to improper use of heat.  Sometimes the tension used is excessive along with a high temperature setting.  Hence the long term damage and thinning one experiences.  With these tips mentioned perhaps you can incorporate the good while eliminating the destructive parts of heat usage.  I'm hoping to give you some things to consider if you choose to use heat from time to time as a part of your regimen.  To be honest, some people do o.k. with heat as long as the rules are being followed.  And of course, you can also give your hair a break from heat as necessary. If your hair does better when the strands are sealed, consider these healthy heat usage tips as a part of the road map on your amazing hair journey.

Safe travels.