| What we all know as split ends is actually | | | | What causes hair to split like that? General |
| trichoptlosis where the protective cuticle | | | | abuse such as - |
| around the hair (especially at the ends) has | | | | |
| been damaged or removed. When you have split | | | | - a lot of heat (curling irons, blow driers) |
| ends, your hair does not look neat, clean or | | | | |
| healthy. The ends either look "fuzzy" or | | | | - chemicals (chlorine, perms, straighteners, |
| they break off at different lengths along the | | | | hair color) |
| hair shafts and give your hair a straggly | | | | |
| appearance even when freshly washed and | | | | - outside elements (extreme heat, extreme |
| groomed. | | | | cold, wind) |
| | | | |
| Let's take a bit of a scientific look at | | | | - overbrushing (such as the old recommended |
| split ends. Each strand of your hair is made | | | | 100 brush strokes per day) |
| up of 3 layers - the cuticle, the cortex, and | | | | |
| the medula. | | | | - cutting with dull scissors (ouch) |
| | | | |
| The medula is the core, made up of soft, | | | | - lack of regular haircuts |
| coin-shaped cells stacked on top of each | | | | |
| other. | | | | Prevention |
| | | | |
| The cortex surrounds the medula and is made | | | | You can take precautionary measures to avoid |
| up of spindle shaped cells which determine | | | | split ends such as - |
| the color and texture of your hair. | | | | |
| | | | - use a low pH shampoo |
| The cuticle is the outer layer that consists | | | | |
| of hard, round tubular cells that overlap and | | | | - use a leave in conditioner to avoid tangles |
| act as armour for the softer, more delicate | | | | and moisturize your hair |
| cells that are inside your hair shaft. | | | | |
| | | | - after washing your hair, squeeze the water |
| Cellular Damage | | | | out and absorb the rest with a thick towel |
| | | | (rubbing will split the ends or even break |
| When the cuticle becomes damaged, the | | | | hairs) |
| overlapping cells will curl and your hair | | | | |
| will look dull. Not only that, the softer | | | | - gently comb out your wet hair with a |
| cortex beneath these cells gets exposed, and | | | | wide-toothed comb (wet hair stretches and |
| that is when you get split ends or even some | | | | snaps more easily than dry hair) |
| breakage. | | | | |
| | | | - limit your use of styling products (such as |
| Remedy | | | | gel, mousse hairspray) that could build up on |
| | | | your hair |
| A head full of split ends is not attractive, | | | | |
| so what can you do about it? Many years ago, | | | | - avoid or at least limit heat from curling |
| people would actually burn split ends - a bit | | | | irons, blow driers, etc. |
| drastic and not recommended. There are | | | | |
| products that are available on the market | | | | - use fabric covered elastics or scrunchies |
| today that will actually fuse or glue the | | | | rather than elastic bands |
| damaged pieces of your hair together, but | | | | |
| that will only last until you wash your hair. | | | | - trim your hair every 6 - 8 weeks |
| Unfortunately, the only remedy for split | | | | |
| ends is to cut them off. | | | | - cover up your hair with a hat when you need |
| | | | to be out in the sun for an extended period |
| Split ends should not be left unattended. | | | | of time |
| The damaged ends need to be cut off before | | | | |
| they travel further up the shafts of your | | | | - eat a healthy diet (protein, iron, vitamin |
| hair and do more damage. Some splits can | | | | C and vitamin E are essential for healthy |
| split right up the entire hair shaft or else | | | | hair) |
| the split ends themselves will actually | | | | |
| split, leaving you with split split ends. | | | | If you treat your hair well with regular |
| | | | shampoong and trimming and take the mentioned |
| Causes | | | | precautionary measures, you shouldn't have to |
| | | | worry about split ends. |