As we've noted, damaged hair repair isn't possible because the protein bonds and cuticles have been permanently altered. Instead, the focus should be on maintaining hair to prevent further damage. If your hair is severely damaged, the most extreme solution is to cut it off and start fresh.
Using products that are designed to nourish the scalp and hair can definitely speed up this process, but on average you'd be looking at six months to a year to fully see a difference in your hair's condition.
You may also experience a change in texture, and your hair might not cooperate as it once did. Damaged hair becomes brittle and breaks easily. Your hair might look dull and dry, and the appearance of split ends is more noticeable. It can also be challenging to get your hair to lie flat.
Damaged hair has less elasticity and is prone to breakage and splitting. Split ends are absolutely not repairable and are very challenging to conceal, especially when there are a lot. Another downside to split ends? If they're not removed, the strand will split even farther, faster and unevenly as the hair grows.
Fortunately, in the vast majority of cases, you can eventually grow the damaged hair out as long as the follicle itself has been preserved. The most common causes of damage are below. Damaged hair can still grow eventually, but routine damage can result in negative consequences for your hair.
Your Hair Appears Dull
Dullness is a sign of hair damage. Hair with damaged cuticles will lack the smoothness and shininess that come from a smooth cuticle layer and properly moisturized hair. Damage that shows itself with dullness could be caused by pollution, UV rays, product buildup, hard water, and more.
Because hair is not a living tissue with regenerative ability, it cannot heal and repair. You can use oils, conditioners, hydrolyzed proteins or other ingredients to disguise the issues temporarily but it's akin to using makeup on the face.
Both dry and damaged hair can appear frizzy and dull, and can feel brittle. You might notice stray hairs and split ends.
Dry or damaged hair: While noting that it depends on the level of damage and dryness, King typically recommends shampooing every five to seven days, as "you may need to allow some [of the hair and scalp's] natural oils to get in the mix until that time." Courtney adds that "if hair is dry and damaged, it could be that ...
Does damaged hair grow back healthy? The only way to get healthy hair is to allow your hair to grow without further damage. If you'd damaged your hair by over-styling, too much heat or over coloring with harsh chemicals, the good news is - your hair will grow back healthy.
A professional hair stylist will be able to diagnose your hair's condition in more detail, but in general, damaged hair breaks easily when pulled and has visible split ends (due to fragile bonds), while dry hair is often accompanied by white flakes of skin and a coarse, rough texture.
"Once the hair is fried, it loses natural moisture and elasticity, and sometimes the best solution is to stop the damage, grow out your hair, and cut off the damaged hair," she notes. But if it can be saved, you might want to invest in a hair treatment, or at the very least, an extremely rich shampoo and conditioner.
Olaplex gets to work on repairing your hair from the first application, with each of the Olaplex products designed to restore your damaged hair by repairing broken bonds. While Olaplex does restore these broken disulphide bonds permanently, clients should be aware that new damage can still occur to the hair bonds.
Telogen effluvium hair loss — the type of hair loss linked to stress — typically affects your scalp and may appear as patchy hair loss. However, it can also cause you to shed more body hair or notice less hair on your body than you normally would.
Damaged natural hair is first and foremost characterized by its dryness and frizz. This can present itself in the form of split ends, where your strand splits into many pieces, or an overall dull look to your hair. It might also have a more irregular texture and less defined curls.
Share on Pinterest Common causes of hair breakage can include styling and over-brushing. Products that people use for coloring, perming, or relaxing the hair contain chemicals that can weaken the hair and make it more likely to break. Even some shampoos can cause the hair to break, become brittle, or turn frizzy.
“By overwashing, you can actually further damage the hair, causing it to become even more dry and break off.” Because of this, he recommends washing severely damaged hair (hair with breakage, brittle ends and extreme dryness), no more than twice a week.
It depends on your hair type. Generally, folks who have fine or oily hair should wash their hair every other day. But those who have medium to thick, wavy, curly, coiled, or damaged hair can go a bit longer — usually 2 to 4 days.