Protect Your Hair From Sun Damage With These 4 Tricks

There's way more to the hair on our heads than just adorning our physical appearance. It helps insulate our bodies when it's cold, and it keeps us cool and regulated when temperatures are sweltering. Hair also protects us from UV radiation: Since it acts as a barrier between our skin and the sun's rays, our hair follicles can take on a lot of damage if not properly protected.

Hair follicles are really just specialized skin cells1, and like skin cells are affected by overexposure to to sun. Damaged follicles can affect the health of your hair and its how quickly it grows, so protect your head!

Overexposure to the sun effects the protective barrier of natural oils we all have on our scalp by causing blood vessels to dilate and become inflamed. Sometimes this damage causes the synthesis of superoxide, a compound that may cause hair follicles to switch off growth and enter the shedding phase, which leads to hair loss.

Damaged hair can be reconditioned to temporarily appear healthy, but nothing can permanently “fix” or “repair” damaged hair. When hair is damaged, you can camouflage it with protein treatments and oils for softness and moisture to improve its appearance, but those treatments wash off the hair shaft. The only way to permanently improve damaged hair is to cut it off and let it regrow.