The Hidden Hair Threat - Part 2

Well we've identified that hard water might be the culprit behind your hair and also your skin issues. For right now however, we going to focus on the hair in this series.

So what exactly makes water hard?  Depending upon the source of your water, it may naturally contain dissolved minerals ranging from calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, and silica.  Each of these dissolved minerals can build up on your hair shaft just like over time they build up on the interior of your plumbing or around your faucets and shower heads.  Go ahead run to your bathroom and see if you have a little buildup around your faucet or on your shower ahead.

Did you check?

Well the minerals that don't collect there can make it to your hair and scalp.  Since hair is fine (only about 180 micrometers in diameter even in the coarsest of hair) it doesn't take an extreme coating of minerals to notice effects. What are some of those effects?

Calcium and silica build up cause similar effects such as dry and weighted down hair, dandruff, hair breakage, blockage of new hair growth, and hair loss. It can even cause perms to be relaxed. Magnesium can also cause hair to feel dry and weighed down.  Copper and iron can discolor your hair.  All of these minerals can interfere with any chemical services you get.

So how do you find out for sure if you have hard water? Visit your local hardware store and pick up a hard water test kit. It's not very expensive and very easy to use. In part 3 I'll share the results of my most recent water test and whether or not my in-shower water filter is actually working. But check out the video below to see the follow-up to using the first version of my hard water hair rinse.

If you watched part 1, you'll see that the flaking cleared up. I've reset my test trials by not using the rinse and going back to regular preconditioning, then shampoo and leave-in conditioner routine.

The products that I've been using for preconditioning and shampooing are from Avon.  However I won't say the specific names here, as I wouldn't personally recommend the shampoo because it contains sodium laureth sulfate and sodium lauryl sulfate.  Continuing to use these products and making the only change in my routine the use of the hair rinse I'm formulating will give a more realistic view of it's effects.  You'll be able to come back soon and watch a new blog series on that...

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