In our daily lives, hair brushing is a common practice for nearly everyone. We often hear claims like: "Brushing your hair more frequently is good for you" or "Brushing your hair 100 times a day not only improves hair health but also boosts brain function."
But is that really the case? How should you brush your hair? How often is it appropriate to brush? Today, let's talk about all things related to brushing hair.
Let's start with the conclusion: Brushing your hair does have its benefits, it's fine to brush it occasionally, but if you're not doing it right, it could lead to problems.
There are indeed benefits to brushing your hair regularly. The most obvious one is that it helps clean the scalp and hair. Many people notice a "snowflake flurry" when brushing, but what's actually being removed isn't just dandruff; it's a mixture of things.
Cleaning out old hair at the scalp: Each day, people naturally shed 50 to 100 hairs. Just like how rubbing a ruler on your hair roots can attract bits of paper due to static electricity, many of these hairs don't naturally fall out.
Removing leftover shampoo and conditioner: Due to improper washing techniques or insufficient rinsing time, there are often gaps and corners on the hair that aren't thoroughly cleaned. Many shampoos on the market tend to be alkaline to ensure oil removal, which can dry out the hair if left on for too long. Brushing your hair daily is essentially cleaning it in a dry environment.
Maintaining hair moisture: Additionally, for those with dry hair, daily brushing can help keep the hair moisturized. This involves the sebaceous glands, which are crucial for protecting and nourishing the scalp and hair.
The scalp consists of the epidermis and dermis layers, with numerous hair follicles distributed throughout the dermis. Each follicle produces a hair strand and is connected to sebaceous glands that secrete oil. Brushing distributes these naturally secreted oils from the roots to the ends, providing a natural conditioner for the hair. However, if you already have oily hair, excessive brushing may exacerbate the issue.
Brushing has benefits, but it's not as exaggerated as some may think. Some claim that brushing promotes blood circulation and helps hair growth, believing that the stimulation from the brush can enhance blood flow and promote hair growth. However, this notion is unfounded.
Firstly, while the scalp does have many blood vessels, they are located beneath the epidermis. Stimulating these vessels through layers of keratinized cells with a brush is highly unlikely. Additionally, even activities like soaking feet in hot water for twenty minutes only stimulate local blood circulation in the feet and legs. Similarly, relying solely on brushing to accelerate overall blood circulation in the body is improbable. It's more effective to go for a run.
Moreover, stimulating hair growth through brushing isn't straightforward. Excessive scratching of the scalp can stimulate the sebaceous glands, making the hair oilier and leading to premature shedding of the stratum corneum, which can hinder hair growth.
As for using scalp massagers like the "soul-extracting" octopus head massager, the sensation of comfort experienced is due to the stimulation of nerve endings, similar to the pleasure derived from ear cleaning. While these are normal physiological responses that induce temporary relaxation, they fall short of providing substantial hair care benefits.
Long-term neglecting to comb hair would lead to what consequences? Also, what are the impacts of frequently not combing hair? There are popular claims suggesting that not combing hair can lead to hair loss or dryness, but there's no scientific evidence supporting these assertions.
As mentioned earlier, combing hair does have its benefits, but it's merely the icing on the cake. After all, it's just a comb running through the hair and scalp a few times.
If one neglects scalp and hair hygiene, barely washing the hair once a month, no amount of combing can salvage the situation.
The method of combing hair is crucial. Improper combing techniques may increase the risk of hair loss, known as "traction alopecia." For instance, frequent pulling of the scalp during combing can damage the hair follicles over time.
Most people's hair isn't as smooth as advertised in shampoo commercials, where a simple shake results in sleek, shiny hair, or where fingers glide effortlessly through the strands. In reality, combing hair inevitably encounters knots and resistance.
This is quite normal since everyone's hair accumulates dead skin cells, oils, shampoo residues, and other impurities.
Hair easily attracts oils, as anyone who regularly cooks can attest: every time you fry an egg without wearing a cap, the smell of oil clings to your hair. Not to mention the dust that settles everywhere in our daily lives.
In such circumstances, combing the hair from root to tip only exacerbates the situation, contributing to hair breakage. As for claims suggesting that excessive combing leads to hair loss, there's currently insufficient evidence to support a direct correlation between combing frequency and hair loss.
However, improper combing techniques do indeed increase the risk of hair loss.
So, how should one properly comb their hair?
Many medical and hair care experts recommend combing once in the morning and once in the evening, without overdoing it. The American Academy of Dermatology also mentions that there's no need to comb the hair a hundred times a day.
The key to combing is to be gentle: "Even combing once a day with force can cause hair breakage and damage."
Combing hair is an art in itself. To ensure its benefits and minimize negative impacts, careful attention should be paid to the choice of comb and combing method.
Firstly, when selecting a comb, consider three points:
There are techniques to comb hair properly.
For dry hair, it's best to start from the middle of the hair, combing down to the ends, then move a bit from the starting point and continue combing down until all tangled hair in that section is combed out. Repeat this process.
For wet hair, extra caution is needed.
Hair mainly consists of the cuticle, cortex, and medulla layers, with the cuticle being composed of many tiny scales, known as cuticle scales, which act as a protective layer for the hair.
In a healthy state, the cuticle scales are neatly arranged, giving the hair a shiny, smooth appearance. However, after washing the hair, the cuticle scales cannot instantly recover. If you comb the hair directly at this point, it's easy to damage this protective layer.
Many people have the habit of blow-drying their hair from the ends, or twisting their hair with a dry towel, which can both cause damage to the hair.
After washing the hair, it's best to wrap it in a towel and gently press or pat to remove excess water, then comb it gently using the method mentioned above.
Overall, combing the hair does have its benefits, maintaining the luster of your locks and helping to remove loose hairs, dandruff, and shampoo residues that weren't washed away yesterday.
But it's essential to do it correctly, without overdoing it in terms of frequency or force. As for claims that combing prevents hair loss, promotes hair growth, or enhances blood circulation in the body, these are purely speculative.
