Inside story about hair

Susan Frank had greenish undertones to her dyed blond hair, caused by product buildup and her hair’s interaction with the products she used, she says.

Stylist Jenny Schneider “was immediately able to correct that,” says Mrs. Frank, recalling her first visit. She has been a client of Miss Schneider’s for the past five years.

Today, Mrs. Frank has blond highlights on top of a darker layer of hair, cut short at mid-ear and angling to the back.

“She’s come up with a great way of highlighting my hair…. fashionable without being too edgy,” she says.

Hair can be damaged by improper shampoos and conditioners for one’s hair type and by blow drying, heat styling and chemically treating hair to excess, says Miss Schneider, head of the color department at Vidal Sassoon Salon in Tysons Galleria. Hair can respond by becoming dry, frizzy, flyaway and brittle, she says.

“The more often you do it, the more damage it will cause,” Miss Schneider says. “Hair can only handle so much before it says, ‘I’m done,’ and breaks off.”

Washington-area stylists and nutritionists offer advice for preventing damage to hair and restoring and maintaining hair health, both internally and externally.

“Who wants to walk around with damaged hair?” says Scott Gelding, training director at the Graham Webb Academy, a cosmetology licensing school located in Washington. “It’s not just for vanity. It’s for healthy reasons, too.”

Mrs. Frank, of Northwest, gets her hair colored every four to six weeks. She protects it with a deep moisturizing protein treatment after each coloring.

“My hair doesn’t look over-colored, and it’s still pretty shiny,” says Mrs. Frank, a lawyer for a science technology company in Tysons Corner.

The treatment Mrs. Frank uses to restore protein to her hair consists of 90 percent of a protein fiber called keratin and 10 percent of moisture, says Tracy Guthrie, national artistic leader for Color Works, a multiservice hair color salon based in Tysons Corner.

Hair can be damaged by improperly done chemical services, heat styling without use of heat protective products, and the effects of sun, wind and water, Miss Guthrie says.

Exposure to harsh chemicals and heat can damage the cuticle, the protective layer on the hair shaft, causing the hair to become fragile and more susceptible to split ends or breakage, says Dr. Paula Bourelly, assistant clinical professor of dermatology at Georgetown University Hospital.

“Hair is a protective surface, a protective covering, the first line of defense for your skin,” Dr. Bourelly says. “If it’s unhealthy, it won’t do the job.”

Damage can be done by repeated exposure to chlorine in swimming pools (prevented by using a bathing cap), crash dieting, use of certain medications, chemotherapy, malabsorption and malnutrition disorders and eating disorders. Psoriasis, a skin disorder, and hypothyroidism also can affect hair health, along with a number of gastrointestinal diseases.

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