Sunny Health

If hair care is crucial to you, you are definitely spoilt for choice. There are so many varieties of shampoos, conditioners and treatments which can be easily purchased in the supermarkets and pharmacies these days, each one promising a spectrum of benefits from stimulating hair growth to promoting smooth luscious locks. Yet despite the religious use of shampoos and treatments from top-notch brands, you may find that your hair condition doesn’t improve. 

Perhaps it is then time to examine your hair care habits, rather than the products you use. Here is some advise to common mistakes often made, that on a frequent basis, could cost long-lasting damage to your hair!

When you use hot water to wash your hair, make sure the temperature is no more than 40 degrees celsius

Hot showers and hot water baths feel great after a long day of work. However, overly hot water i.e. higher than 40 degrees Celsius, can also damage the protein in your hair, resulting in poorer elasticity and duller hair texture. That’s how you end up with limp, coarse hair. Further more, long exposure to the heat can lead stimulate the hair to secrete more oil, resulting in an oilier scalp. 

Wash your hair every day

After a bath, it is common to find lots of loose strands of hair in the bathroom. Consequently, some people then come to the conclusion that the actions associated with hair washing have caused hair loss, and hence avoid washing their hair to “give it a rest”. This is an absolute myth; unless you’re practically tearing at your hair during each hair wash (if you’re doing that, please don’t), your healthy hair will not fall out just because of some tugging and rubbing. In fact, it is normal to lose 50 to 100 strands per day.

In tropical, humid countries like Singapore, the scalp secretes a moderate amount of oil and perspiration. Hence, unlike in winter or in cold countries when you may even skip some days of bathing, you can’t really afford to skip the hair wash in Singapore. Daily hair washing is required to keep your hair clean and healthy.
Some people prefer dry shampoo, and indeed it is something you can consider. But you still have to alternate it with normal shampoo, because while dry shampoo absorbs oil, it doesn’t get rid of debris and skin flakes. 

Rinse your hair with warm water before applying shampoo

If you’ve ever had your hair washed at a decent hair salon, you’ll remember that the staff who washes your hair would rinse your hair thoroughly with water before shampooing your hair. In contrast, many of us have a typical habit of applying shampoo right in the middle of your head, then dampen the hair and spread the lather all over. This might feel more efficient, but it is in fact potentially damaging.

Concentrating shampoo in one spot can result in failure to thoroughly rinse it off later. Shampoo that stays in the scalp clogs pores, resulting in hair loss. That might partially explain why it is common for hair loss to start from the middle of your scalp.

So instead of adding shampoo to your hair as soon as you step into the bath, take a few minutes to rinse your hair thoroughly with warm water. It is much easier to spread the shampoo all over when your hair is wet. Then pump shampoo into your palms, lather it and then start shampooing your hair.  

Dry your hair before sleeping

Wetness in hair is a breeding ground for germs. The dampness also damages your hair, leasing to weakening hair strands and hair loss. If you wash your hair at night, do use a dryer to dry it until it is at least 90% dry, and wait at least 15 minutes before lying down. 

Hair loss can also be due to a myriad of other problems, including genetics (if your blood relations have hair loss problems, so might you), poor dieting habits, certain medical treatments and medicines. Hair loss may even be a sign of serious illnesses. If you experience unexplainable hairloss, do consult your doctor before going for any hair loss treatments. 

The flu is easily one of the most prolific viruses in Singapore. If someone around you starts coughing or sneezing, you can almost be guaranteed that he or she won't be the first or the last you see in a short while. You may even find yourself experiencing the the same annoying symptoms!

Singapore is a densely-populated country, and it is thus not unusual for the virus to spread fast, especially when you're spending copious amounts of time in highly-populated places such as schools, your workplace or public transport, where there are ample opportunities for human contact, direct or indirect.

You can certainly keep your immune system in good shape through healthy eating and exercise, as well as getting lots of rest. However, poor sanitary practices and frequent contact with the germ-infested surfaces are major causes for spreading the virus. Germ-infested surfaces are not necessarily obviously dirty-looking, but they also refer to places that come into high-frequency contact with people. It makes sense of course, the greater number of people who come into contact with it, the greater the possibility that one or a few of these people are sick. Throughout our day, we often don't think twice of touching such surfaces and cleaning up accordingly. Let this article serve as a reminder, that it is always important to practise good hygiene.

If you work in a high-rise office building, you'll be using the lift a few times a day, and you'll be touching buttons that all the other building occupants also use. Instead of touching the buttons with your finger, use your elbow or knuckle instead to decrease exposure of germs.

Do you visit the pantry often? Guess what, so do your colleagues. They use the very same coffee pot, microwave and refrigerator that you do. Make sure you wash your hands with soap or use anti-bacterial hand wipes before you tuck into your lunch or coffee.

Researchers have already tried to ingrain in our minds how our handphones are much dirtier than the toilet seat. Desk phones aren't as bad, but if you use them often enough, and especially if it is a common phone that several people share, you should invest in alcohol wipes for the phone receiver if your office cleaner doesn't.

Many offices are going green which means less investment in fax machines, copiers and printers. Yet we can't do away completely with them, so you've got an entire department or at least a few cubicles of colleagues sharing them. Again, alcohol wipes will be your saviour so you reduce the possibility of spreading that nasty flu around.

Once you're out of your own house, there are lots more "high-risk" items and environments if you analyse your surroundings carefully. The right mentality is not to practise avoidance or paranoia, but to be mindful of what you come into contact with, and to always wash your hands before handling food or touching your face whereby germs could easily be transferred to your orifices.

Last but not least, if you're sick, do yourself and everyone in your office a favour by seeking medical treatment and staying away until you're well. Wear a surgical mask to reduce the spread of germs from your saliva as much as possible.

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