“It is a myth that high updos, seasonal braids prevent hair from falling out. Nothing could be more wrong”

Joanna Zaremba, Woman.gazet.pl: Polish women love home remedies for biological regeneration. The web is full of recipes for homemade hair masks from products that can be found, for example, in the fridge or kitchen cupboard. Avocado, eggs, honey and olive oil reign here. Could you, as an expert, reveal a few more such home and low-budget tricks for people who are struggling with, for example, increased hair loss or want to stimulate their growth?

Martyna Pobuta: If I could give you some trichological and psychological advice, now chronic stress is strongly associated with hair loss. Here, a useful terminology would be psychogenic alopecia. To deal with hair loss, the most important thing is to know when the problem starts. Of course, hair loss can also be considered normal, because each hair goes through the so-called. three phases of its growth and at the end it just falls out. However, if we notice that from week to week or month to month we have less and less hair, then a warning light should turn on. Then we should first calm down, and then reflect on what has recently happened in our lives. Because, in fact, there are many causes of hair loss. The most popular at the moment is stress, which is destructive for our hair follicles. Due to spikes in prolactin and cortisol. If you can’t handle it on your own, see a specialist.

The second reason, relatively easy to spot, may be our diet. It can be very diverse, but it is often the case that we settle for fast food, fast food. And this, in turn, is bad for the condition of our hair. So it’s worth focusing on what we eat. Our hair loves vitamins from group A, B … For example, now it’s worth taking advantage of your own garden and planting tomatoes. You can also go to the market and buy the nutrient-rich avocado you mentioned – it will provide us with a lot of precious, healthy fats, important for our hair. But let’s also reach for seasonal fruits! E.g. strawberries, rich in vitamin C.

The third thing: if we think that we do not need the professional help of a trichologist, and we want to try out proven, home methods – which are the simplest solutions – it is worth starting with cleansing our scalp. Because it, just like facial skin, gets dirty just as easily.

For this purpose, we can prepare a special cleansing scrub at home. This is a good proposition for people who do not have inflammatory changes or intensifying itching. Because it is worth emphasizing that if we have such symptoms, then we should not perform peeling on our own. But if nothing happens, we can go to work. One teaspoon of any hair conditioner is enough, it can be our favorite, which we have at home at the moment. Then add two tablespoons of coffee grounds, two tablespoons of hot water and the whole thing can be enriched with previously heated oil, e.g. coconut oil. Apply this mixture to the skin. Thanks to this, we treat ourselves to something like a trichological peeling.

In turn, one of the most popular hair masks is a mask made of yeast, castor oil and a bit of warm milk. These are properties that typically stimulate hair growth.

Combining a scalp cleansing scrub with such masks stimulating hair growth will be the best solution among such home remedies – if, for example, we want to deal with such seasonal or telogen hair loss after an infection.

I heard that massages are also effective. We can also do it at home.

Yes, massages are one of the simplest activities that we should do every day during hair care. They are especially good if we are under a lot of stress – they stimulate our vessels. The more vessels there are on the scalp, the more it translates into nourishment and oxygenation of our hair follicles. And this, in turn, automatically translates into the reduction of telogen factors, e.g. stress. The more the skin is stimulated and supplied with blood – the greater the stimulation, the better the growth. So a massage is highly recommended.

How are they made? Nothing is easier: massage the scalp with circular, gentle movements. We can also massage the occipital area at the same time. An interesting fact is that it is in the occiput, our nervous system, that emotions and stress are accumulated. It brings a definite relief, helps to completely relax. And when we are relaxed and our skin is not tense, then it is better supplied with blood. And better supplied with blood ensures proper stimulation of hair growth. And so the circle closes.

I once heard a phrase that the hair on our head can be a map of our health. Therefore: can we “read” from them what is happening inside our body? And if so, what is their condition?

Indeed, for two years now I have noticed that more and more patients come to the trichology office with problems related not only to hair, but also to the entire etiology, the diversity of which has its source primarily in stress and, for example, obsessive-compulsive disorders. or simply in permanent, chronic stress. Stress has an extremely destructive effect on the entire body, especially on the immune system. But it also translates into an increase in hormones: prolactin and cortisol. I always tell my patients that excess of anything is never advisable – and neither is deficiency. One or the other of the extremes immediately gives a signal when it comes to hair.

Women most often report symptoms such as problems with the hair shaft and overall loss. When I conduct an interview, most often I hear: “Martyna, I have a problem with the stem, because if I pass my hand, my whole hand stays in my hair”, “I have problems with growth”, “My hair crumbles”, “It is dull”, etc. For me, this is already a sign that you may be deficient in B vitamins.

If we have brittle, dull, brittle hair – it is possible that there is a deficiency of folic acid, often low levels of ferritin, vitamin B12, iron. Hair immediately signals this. Then, of course, I immediately recommend tests and a visit to a specialist.

So brittle, dry and falling out hair should also worry us?

Yes, if they fall out after the so-called. whole – that is, for example, if we run our hands through our hair and they stay in our hands, or on our clothes. Very often ladies confide that there are hairs all over the floor in the bathroom. This should automatically alarm us. Because it may mean that in our body there was a so-called. disturbed hair growth phase. After that, we go to a trichologist to find the cause of this state of affairs. Until we find that cause, we can’t really get any therapy.

So the brush in the hair after combing is a reason to worry…

Maybe in diffrent way. Patients often ask me: “If I lose up to 100 hairs a day, is it good or bad?”. I answer: it depends for whom.

Are there any number frames at all…?

For a person who struggles with very strong thinning and at the same time increased hair loss, this norm is absolutely not, but only, for example, 50. It’s all very individual – like the whole trichology.

Let’s talk about mistakes in hair care. I’ve heard, for example, that you “shouldn’t” wash your head too often. From the outset, this seems absurd.

Patients often come to me with such myths, so basically I have the material ready here (laughs). The first, most erroneous belief is that the less often we wash our hair – the less it falls out. This is a total myth! It’s quite the opposite. The less you wash them, the harder they fall out. The scalp requires regular cleansing, including the supply of the right amount of active ingredients dedicated to the specific type of our problem.

The second myth that I encounter is that we can adjust the shampoo the way we want. This is a very wrong assumption, because the hair is one thing and the scalp is another. We should adjust the shampoo to the needs of our scalp. We locate these needs based on such everyday symptoms: whether, for example, the skin is more oily, is it more dry, etc. And only then we choose the right type of shampoo. And people often decide on a given preparation, judging it by the smell, the appearance of the packaging, the advertisement. This is wrong! The basic trichological principle is: shampoo for the scalp, conditioner – for the hair.

Another myth, especially reproduced now in the summer, is that high updos, such typical seasonal braids on the head, buns prevent hair from falling out. Nothing could be more wrong. If we do not have air circulation, if the hair is tense, flattened, fastened – then the skin is more tense. It loses blood supply, and this may translate into increased hair loss. If, for example, ladies wear hair extensions, braids, etc. for many years – it can even lead to the so-called traction alopecia, which can take a very dangerous form at some point.

It’s finally about how to take care of our hair in the summer. Hot weather ahead, dry air, sun – is it good for your hair?

First of all, it is important to understand that the sun is not necessarily bad for our hair. Vitamin D3 is even beneficial for their condition. As a reminder: the optimal level of vitamin D3 translates into the proper growth of our hair.

On the other hand, too much exposure to the sun’s rays can end badly for us. Circumstances are also important. If, for example, we spend time in the city, then for people with curly or frizzy hair, we care primarily about strong hydration. We can protect ourselves with various spray preparations, most often without rinsing. There are numerous conditioners available on the market that protect against UV radiation.

And I repeat: we care about hydration! For example, shea butter, avocado oil will be useful. People who like to expose themselves to the sun should be careful not to burn their parting. Here it is also worth getting masks to protect the scalp.

It is mainly worth reaching for moisturizing masks based on aloe vera, shea butter, silk proteins and many other similar ingredients. Blondes should pay attention to hair color protection products! Due to the fact that they have much less of this pigment than the owners of dark hair. Besides, I will repeat ad nauseam: regular cleansing of the head is also important during the summer. Let’s choose then more enzymatic peelings, giving up acids – so that they are not too harsh for the scalp. Let’s choose homemade, natural masks and – of course – let’s take care of what we have on our plate!

Thank you very much for the interview.

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Martyna Pobuta is a psychologist and trichologist, and a graduate of Trichology Clinical Education. A member of the International Society of Aesthetic Trichology, an expert in the field of body dysmorphia and other obsessive-compulsive disorders in Poland, in particular concerning hair. A specialist in the field of female psychogenic alopecia.