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Don’t those shampoo advertisements just make you dream of long, shiny, swishy hair?

Unfortunately, my long hair dreams didn’t exactly amount to camera-ready locks. The flowing Rapunzel locks of my dreams resembled frayed rope in reality.

You may have been in a similar position. Avoiding haircuts in dreams of long hair only to find your hair is dry and brittle, and those pesky split ends have taken over.

Let me start off by saying that once hair has split, there is no way to magically fuse it back together. While a haircut is the only way to get rid of existing split ends, there are things you can do to help prevent future split ends and make split ends appear less awful until you get your hair cut. If your hair is dry, brittle, and prone to snapping, keep reading!

First of all, here’s what split ends are and are not.

Here, there, or everywhere?

A few split ends here or there shouldn’t be cause to call your hairdresser. Hairs can fray and split for any multitude of reasons.

Longer hair has been exposed to the elements for longer periods of time, meaning it is more vulnerable. Just like skin, hair becomes less tolerant of heat and harsh chemicals as it gets older. The odd split end (especially on long hair) is something everyone with hair has to deal with.

With all of this in mind, the problem isn’t whether you have split ends (spoiler alert: you probably do!) it is how many split ends you have. Here are two quick tests you can take:

●       If you grab a patch of your hair and can see multiple split ends, your hair is likely in need of some nourishment.

●       If your split ends resemble Y’s, you have the most basic type of split end and could benefit from some hair nourishment. If your split ends resemble trees with multiple branches coming off, your hair is in dire need of nourishment.

For me, I knew my split ends were problematic because the bottom quarter of my hair looked like hay. Ragged, frayed, brittle hay. Not exactly the look I was going for! Although my hair was finally the length I wanted, it was so damaged I couldn’t wear it out.

Enter my split end system. As a cardholder of the long hair club, my hair is a huge source of pride for me.

The aim of my system was simple: long, gorgeous locks. Here’s how I worked to achieve it:

●       Strengthen my hair to help prevent breakage

●       Smooth down cuticles to prevent the worsening of splits

●       Educating myself on the ingredients in my haircare

●       Cutting back on things that were hurting my hair

The first step of the system: salvage my hair.

How I salvaged my hair with Valotin’s Strengthening System

A defining day in my haircare journey was the day I was playing with my hair strands and one snapped the moment I touched it.

The strand had a bend and a lighter spot at the bend. A simple touch caused the lock to detach. I now know that the light spot at the bend was a weak frayed spot waiting to break. It was at this point I realized that whatever I was currently doing simply wasn’t working.

To be honest, I didn’t know much about what was included in my supermarket shampoo & conditioner. I found Valotin when trying to figure out what “Polyquaternium-10” was. Valotin had a handy page that listed all ingredients and what the ingredients are included for. I found this so helpful in my haircare journey: https://www.valotin.us/ingredients

Step 1. Valotin Strengthening Shampoo (1x per week)

At the end of each week, I treat myself to a deep cleanse of my hair to remove some of the buildup that has accumulated.

For shampoos, I recommend looking for one that has the grunt behind it to actually remove buildup and grease as well as something to treat the scalp.

Styling products, scalp oils, and dust from the environment can all build up in hair if left to their own devices. This buildup can weigh hair down and dry it out, causing breakage. This is why it is so important to look for shampoos that include cleansing ingredients.

Valotin Strengthening Shampoo includes Sodium C14-16 Olefin Sulfonate, a surfactant created by coconut oil designed to cleanse hair. Although the name sounds misleading, this is not a sulfate. I find this cleanser isn’t too harsh yet leaves hair feeling like it has actually been cleaned.

This shampoo also includes disodium laureth sulfosuccinate, another ingredient that sounds like a sulfate but isn’t. Sulfates are harsh and irritating because they are made from small molecules that break into the skin. Compare this to DLS which is a large molecule that can’t penetrate into the scalp and skin reducing irritation.

I also recommend looking for products that treat the scalp. In your hair care system, shampooing is the only time you add the product to your scalp. It’s easy to overlook your scalp, despite how crucial it is to growing gorgeous locks.

One of my favorite ingredients in Valotin Strengthening Shampoo is aloe vera leaf juice. Part of aloe vera’s healing power when it comes to burns is applying it topically supports blood circulation to an area. When applied to the scalp, blood circulation supports healthy hair growth.¹ When looking at other aloe vera shampoos, make sure that yours contains aloe vera juice rather than powder to experience the full effects.

¹ Surjushe A, Vasani R, Saple DG. Indian J Dermatol. 2008;53(4):163-166.

²   D'Souza P, Rathi SK. Indian J Dermatol. 2015;60(3):248-254.

³   Int J Cosmet Sci. 2017 Oct;39(5):543-549.

⁴   Rele AS, Mohile RB. J Cosmet Sci. 2003;54(2):175-192.