Nowadays, cosmetic and beauty products with anti-aging' labels have bombarded the general market to attract those who don't want to look aged. The answer's simple: nobody wants to look older than their actual age. In fact, many people resort to all kinds of products, activities, enhancements, and therapies to keep their youthful appearance. Yet, many people are not aware that the most common lifestyle habits can make them look more mature than expected.
Your hair is not an exception. One of the most evident signs of growing older is growing greyer locks. Lesser hair strands pop out on your scalp, and they grow sparser than usual. However, aging isn't the only reason why you look older. You might be doing something wrong on your hair that contributes to your mature appearance.
How does aging affect your hair's quality, and what are the common hair care mistakes that make you look years older? But first, let's learn more about the connection between hair growth and aging.
Getting Older: How Does Aging Affect Your Hair?
As you age in time, your cells also grow old, to which many of them deteriorate and die. Your hair cells also undergo the same process: they grow, multiply, thrive, weaken, and perish. This cell cycle also affects your hair follicles, resulting in poor hair growth and, worse, hair loss. Aging pushes more follicles to shift into the telogen or resting phase for good, which means fewer hair strands for you.
Hair density can also be influenced by aging. Your shaft also grows thinner since there aren't enough cells to provide nourishment for your follicles. This hair cell loss due to aging does have many repercussions, for it can slow down hair growth and affect your locks' quality.
Aging can also affect your hair's natural pigments. Its strands lose their color when your melanin production declines, resulting in colorless and protein-free hair. Though 'greying' hair is a common sign of aging, other factors can also make you look older even at a young age.
Getting older is a significant factor that adversely impacts hair growth. However, some of your everyday habits can actually accelerate your hair's aging process and make you look years older. What are these mistakes that affect your overall appearance? Check out the following habits that you should ditch.
Red Flags: 7 Hair Care Mistakes That Make You Years Older
1. Keeping the same hair cut all the time
Being consistent with your hair cut or hairdo can save your time and effort, but it can make you look older over time. What may be new today might not be trendy tomorrow. Stylists also recommend you change your hairstyles from time to time to keep your fresh and youthful aura.
2. Having an inadequate sleep
A lack of sleep has many health ramifications, especially on how your hair grows and looks. Sleeping allows your body to replenish its strength for the next day's biological activities. Without enough energy, your body is forced to allocate its remaining energy to the most vital physiological functions, leaving your hair follicles with little to none. As a result, your hair follicles quickly age, and you experience hair shedding way faster than it's supposed to be.
Sleep disturbances can also increase your stress levels, which can induce hair loss problems. For instance, it can shorten your hair follicles' stay in the anagen phase and coerce them to rest in the telogen phase. This sudden shift in the hair growth cycle can be problematic and can result in slower and inferior hair growth.
3. Drinking alcoholic beverages
Drinking alcohol is a common habit for many adults, especially for those who love going out to parties and meeting with their friends. Occasionally, drinking alcohol won't hurt you that much, but excessive alcohol consumption can make you look years older.
Alcohol can trigger the production of stress hormones, which can speed up your body's aging process in the long run. Your digestive system is also at risk since it loses its ability to absorb vitamins, minerals, and proteins for nourishment. As a result, your hair suffers from nutrient deprivation, resulting in poor quality locks.
4. Dyeing your hair all the time
If you're hiding those white hair strands, it is reasonable for you to dye your locks. Dyeing your hair also allows you to experiment with your look and give you a hip vibe. However, coloring your hair frequently can make you appear older. Chemicals found in dye products can fry your hair with repeated use. They can damage your hair cuticles, leading to sparser, coarser, and dryer tresses, which all can make you look old and sick.
5. Hair dye being too dark or light
Not all colors are good enough to keep your youthful appearance. Opting for a darker color is fine, but make sure that it isn't too dark for your skin tone. Dyeing your hair with a very inky pigment lets your hair absorb light, making your locks appear dull and lifeless. Plus, your greying strands will most likely stand out in a sea of super dark-colored hair, which of course, you don't want to happen.
Nowadays, coloring your hair with ash blonde or ash grey dye is a hairstyle trend. However, going for a million shades lighter than your natural hair color might not be the best idea. When your hair's color is too light or pale for your skin, it can also make you look older because your colored locks look like greying strands.
6. Cutting your hair extremely short
Hairdos don't depend on your age; even a middle-aged woman can still sport her long hair. However, many women in their 40s and 50s opt to have shorter hairstyles, from super short bobs, pixies, and even the "Karen" haircut. Terse haircuts can also highlight your facial features, including wrinkles and eye bags. Thus, it's no longer surprising that people might mistake you as someone older than your actual age because of your concise pixie cut.
7. Rinsing your hair too much
Rinsing your locks is an essential hair care habit, for it hydrates your shaft and gets rid of all sweat, gunk, and excess oil on your hair and scalp. Yet, overwashing might harm your growing tresses because it can strip off even your hair's natural oils, leaving it dry and course instead. Overexposure to some shampoo chemicals can also damage your locks in the long run. And if your strands absorb excess water, it can also weigh your hair down, resulting in a flat and lifeless mane.
What Can You Do To Avoid Committing the Same Hair Care Habits?
How can you avoid repeating the same hair care mistakes? Below is a list of some helpful suggestions to look ten years younger.
1. Change your hairstyles from time to time.
Styling your hair is a crucial factor that affects your overall appearance. As we grow older, our locks also experience thinning problems. If you keep on sporting the same haircut, more people will be able to notice your scanty locks. Don't forget to add layers on your tresses to add more volume to your hair. Varying hairstyles can change your total vibe, making you look like you're ten years younger than them.
2. Choose suitable hair colors that will truly complement your skin tone and facial features.
Some hair colors can make your mane look shabby, dry, and rough, thus, giving you an unhealthy and mature appearance. Hair dyes that are extra light or super dark can highlight your face, allowing other people to see your skin's condition. Thus, avoid opting for too light or too dark colors for your hair and skin tone. The best thing that you can do is consult an expert hairstylist so that he or she can assess the best hairstyle and hair color for your growing locks.
3. Live a healthy lifestyle.
Hairstyles are not enough to make you look and feel younger. In reality, your hair's quality and quantity strongly depend on how you take good care of your body. Your hair follicles thrive depending on what and how much nutrients your body receives. Your strands' texture and luster also stand out depending on how you wash and brush and what products you use for your hair. Therefore, you need to keep up with a healthy lifestyle. By having enough sleep, eating nutritious meals, and using the best and safest hair growth products, you can maintain your youthful appearance.
Don't Let History Repeat Itself.
Hair growth affects your total appearance. Therefore, don't let the same hair care habits ruin your hair's glorious days. By keeping your health in superb condition, you can also keep your hair healthy inside and outside.
Win the Battle Against Premature Aging.
Having dull-looking and thinning hair can be a sign of aging problems. So, if you don't want to look a decade older, keep your tresses on point by using the best hair growth products, such as shampoo and conditioner. And of course, boost your health by supplementing your body with vitamins for hair growth.