How To Have Healthy Hair?

[Misanthrope 0]

I'm no expert on the subject of hair, even though I possess copious quantities of the unruly stuff. My understanding is that the term, "healthy hair" is a bit of misnomer, as hair itself is dead - or at least that's what I've gleaned form various sources. Hair is more an extention of the body and appears thick and lustrous if the body itself is healthy. Or so I've heard. But in the real world I observe people in various states of unhealthy dishevelment who possess bountiful, beautiful locks, and vice versa. I personally equate it to genetics more than anything. If both your parents had thin, stringy hair you're likely to inherit the same look. I can't figure out how I ended up with wavy hair when my parents and siblings all have stick straight hair. Either the genetics theory is a wash or I simply reached back a generation or two. Who defines what "healthy" hair is, anyway? Is it the long, straight, shiny stuff of People magazine covers? Many of us are not predisposed to whatever Madison Avenue happens to be pushing at any given time. That doesn't make our hair any less healthy, just less in vogue. Give it ten years and your natural look will be in vogue too. In the meantime, the marketing fiends who mold public opinion make a lot of money making you feel insecure because your hair doesn't look "healthy" by their proposed standards. And they have lots of things to sell the insecure: Nowadays, there are lots of potions, lotions and contraptions on the market to make thin hair appear thicker, thick hair appear thinner, curly hair look straight, straight hair look curly, short hair look longer, long hair look shorter, dry hair look oily, oily hair look dry, blond hair look black, brown hair look red, and so forth and so on. As long as you're dissatisfied with your god-given appearance, than the parasites of Madison Avenue have done their job.That said, here are a few natural ways to enhance your given hair. If you have naturally wavy hair, you'll want to avoid washing it everyday. In fact, the longer you can go between washing the stuff the better - short of total filth, of course. Nothing worse that watching two pot-smoking hippies pick the lice out of each other's dreadlocks. If you have thin, stringy hair, there's nothing I can do for you. But I hear they have surgery for that ailment. I say just shave it all off. Bald is beautiful, after all. Just ask Jessie Ventura. I've never tried it, but I hear raw, virgin coconut oil works wonders applied directly to the hair as you would a conditioner. Other potions include raw egg whites, avocado, and fish oil. And if you believe that last one, I've got a bridge in Paris to sell you.

Edited April 16, 2008 by Misanthrope (see edit history)