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Showing posts from February, 2012

Sulfur - magical hair growth potion or just another smelly mineral?

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©Science-y Hair Blog 2013 Sulfur (Sulphur) is necessary to produce collagen, which is part of the matrix of skin and cartilage. Sulfur is also very abundant in keratin, which is the protein structure of hair and fingernails/toenails and in the amino acids in the cuticles of hair. There is not much research I can find regarding ordinary hair, nail and skin complaints and dietary sulfur or sulfur supplements, but inflammatory and immune system disorders such as rosacea and allergies have shown some clinical responses to sulfur in the diet or as supplements. Adequate daily sulfur intake can certainly help set up a situation for healthier skin, hair, and nails.   ©Science-y Hair Blog 2013 The sulfur in our diets comes from soil and water - which then becomes parts of plants, which we eat, or becomes parts of plant-eating animals we eat or animals which eat plant-eating animals (for example, chickens who eat insects). I'm lumping a number of forms of sulfur in foods and water under the ...

How Hot is Too Hot for Healthy Hair?

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I like to use a blow-dryer with a diffuser attachment on my hair after I have put hair gel in it for about 5 minutes. The heat and quicker-than-air-drying treatment “sets” the waves and curls in my fine hair. Then I let it air-dry until dry. If I let it air-dry exclusively, the weight of the water tends to lengthen the curls and waves somewhat. I worried that the heat would be damaging to my hair – so a little testing and research were in order. ©Science-y Hair Blog 2013 I put a thermometer’s sensor in the bowl of the diffuser right where I put my hair. The hair dryer was set on "warm" and "low." The temperature rose to 125°F (52°C). Now, looking at an article published in the Journal of Cosmetic Science titled, "The Cracking of Human Hair Cuticles by Cyclical Thermal Stresses," I have some answers. The author tested hair alternately immersed in water, then blow dried at various temperatures from 86° to 212° F (30°C to 100° C), re-wetted, and blow dri...