by Andi S Green.

Created on: April 08, 2010

Factors that can put stress on your hair

Signs of stress on your hair are unfortunately easy to spot even by the most casual onlooker. Our hair speaks volumes about us, even if we don’t have volumes of hair! A sleek shiny full head of hair makes us look confident and healthy whereas the reverse of this which includes hair loss, unkempt hair, brittle, damaged or greasy hair, can make us feel and look unconfident and untidy. It is possible to disguise the signs of stress on hair by hiding it under a cap or wig, but the factors which cause stress on hair are often intrinsically related to wider factors relating to how we treat our body as a whole. So what factors are involved in putting stress on our hair?

Dietary stresses

Both an excess or shortage of certain dietary components can add stress to hair. Eating too many fatty sugary foods will often lead to a greasy scalp with hair that looks like it has been drenched in butter. Conversely a lack of essential minerals and vitamins will show itself in brittle damaged hair. For example, iron deficiency anaemia will often reveal itself in dull, lifeless, easily-breakable hair. Dietary deficiencies can also affect the scalp leading to dandruff and a flaky skin. A healthy balanced diet with plenty of protein and fresh fruit and vegetables will help to provide the essential nutrients that are required for that healthy looking top of hair.

Chemical pollutants

Chemical pollutants can come from within the body as in toxic chemicals arising from variety of sources. Sometimes medicines essential for the treatment of serious diseases, as in chemotherapy for cancer, can result in hair loss and general stress on the hair. Anti-depressants and pain medicines can also result in lifeless, fragile hair.

External to the body, such as in hair-dyes, harsh shampoos and hard water, the hair can be put under stress and easily damaged. Avoiding putting too much adverse chemicals on your head will avoid putting the hair under stress. It is important to use as many organic substances as possible. Remember that whatever you put on your head will be absorbed into your body, so the stress on your hair is only part of the general stress that your body is put under when toxic chemicals invade your system.

Social and emotional stresses

As social beings, we exhibit biological changes in reaction to external social stresses. If anything upsets us emotionally then our bodies will release chemicals that can have adverse effects on our hair.

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