The Student Room Group

Hair Straighteners - bad for you??

I used to iron my hair and basically singed half of it off and had to get my lovely long locks trimmed almost to shoulder length.

Anyway, I acquired myself some ghds and the oil spray instead. I've been straightening my hair two or three times a day every day since (!). I separate it into sections and go through it all. But this morning I thought my layers looked shorter (it could have been because my hair was messed up from sleeping). When I washed it, it felt really thin. Do the straightener singe your hair off as well?

Along the same lines, I miss my hair :frown: Are there any vitamins I could take to make it grow quicker? I don't get a very good diet thanks to being a lazy lazy student and drinking too much and generally being unhealthy.

Thanks! :smile:

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Reply 1
You really shouldn't be straightening your hair 2-3 times a day.
I'm not sure what you mean by the oil, but a heat protection mask/spray/putty/something would be a good idea. I was advised to use one after getting loads of split ends.
i think you're supposed to use straighteners every other day otherwise it'll dry your hair out. GHDs are better for your hair along with some heat protection spray,but if you can, i would avoid using them. Besides, beach head is in! :p:
Reply 3
My hair used to be embrassingly thick until I started straightening my hair. I no what u mean, my hair doesnt seem to grow anymore and it has got a lot thinner - which is almost definitely cos of straightening.
Im not sure how much of an impact diet has on your hair growth but try eating more fruit and veg and maybe ask a pharmacy what vitamins are best to take to help?
Reply 4
make sure you use a really rich conditioner that will add moisture to your hair, maybe one of the ones with loads of vitamins in. and only straighten your hair once a day! you shouldn't need to do it several times with GHDs

lou xxx
hair grows faster in the summer. just hold on.
2-3 TIMES A DAY?!? :eek: When I straighten mine it stays straight until I wash it again. I straighten mine every time I dry my hair so basically every day or every other day.

It is bad for you, but in moderation it's OK.
use heat protecting spray and olive oil pack when wash hair should sort it out

can i say, i think these girls who straghten their hair every day do more damage than those who just get it chemically straightened once. costs bout the same as a perm and does the same damage but is probably kinder than straightening everday
Reply 8
I was wonderin, if you straighten your hair and it gets damaged, then you cut it, will the new hair that grows be damaged too?
no! when you cut off the damaged hair, make sure to cut off all the split ends - couple inches should do it, eat well, then the new hair will be nice and new.
how do you have time to straighten it 2-3 times? a day!!!
When straighteners first came out, I remember people saying "don't use them more than once a week", then it was a couple of times a week, now it's supposedly ok to use them every other day...soon people will say 2-3 times a day is alright as well! I personally think 2 times week is the most you should use straighteners.

Basically, once your hair is out of your head, it's dead, so eating healthily won't make much difference, it'll only help the hair that hasn't grown through yet. Similarly, you can't give vitamins to something which is already dead anyway! Although a rich conditioner will definitely help protect against any future damage.
my hairdresser tells me once a day is ok, as long as you use a spray...
...I really want GHD's...they're so much better than all the other brands...but so expensive!
queenselphie
...I really want GHD's...they're so much better than all the other brands...but so expensive!


yeah, but the're worth it! I don't know how i lived without mine. I must have looked a right sight for sore eyes:rolleyes:
Yeah, my hair was dead a week after i got it cut because i straighten it so much. I straighten it in the morning, when i come in from school, and then i wash it, dry it and straighten it right before my bed so that its not as hard to straighten in the morning. It's singed my layers a bit so now i hate them. :frown: I don't use anything to protect my hair though. Maybe i should.
Hair straighteners singe your hair.I used to wash and straighten mine every day religiously and all the top layers of my hair are all singed.When I pull a hair out it's all black from being burnt so much!

Nowadays I wash my hair 2/3 times a week and only straighten if I absolutely must.

When you first get the straighteners you think you rely on them and can't live without them but if you wash your hair less often the straightening should last until the next wash!
first off 2-3 times a day is INSANE! i dont know how curly ur hair is but i doubt that once a day wouldnt suffice.
if u REALLY have to straighten ur hair that much thou, invest in a ceramic straighter...its easier on the hair
Reply 17
if you're hair is curly enough to warrant straightening 3 times a day, i say embrance your curls! much better for your hair + straight hair is on its way out anyway!
xbellax
first off 2-3 times a day is INSANE! i dont know how curly ur hair is but i doubt that once a day wouldnt suffice.
if u REALLY have to straighten ur hair that much thou, invest in a ceramic straighter...its easier on the hair

It's not THAT bad is it?
need_money
It's not THAT bad is it?

...yeah, pretty much. look at the "side effects". i try to only straighten every other day. 2-3 x a day is defintely overdoing...