The 4 most common hair types and how to tame them.

1. Dry and frizzy hair.

The funnest of all the hair types, dry hair can be categorised by its lack of shine, fly-aways and frizziness. See? Told you it was fun. If this sounds like you, then you’re probably very familiar with breakage and split ends, but don’t feel resigned to a life of dull, lifeless hair. Since almost any hair type can suffer dryness through harsh, stripping hair products, you can change the moisture content in your hair and have shiny, luscious hair.

When dryness is caused by insufficient oil production by the sebaceous glands on the scalp, the cells in the hair cuticle become dry and harden, and hair loses its elasticity. Those of us with dry hair should avoid washing hair too often and over-doing it with the straightening irons. With the help of products that can deliver moisture straight to where it’s needed, you can recover dry, brittle hair.

Try: Pantene’s Ultimate 10 BB crème, this ultimate 10-in-1 multi-tasking treatment moisturises, detangles and de-frizzes, making it perfect for those of us with dry and damaged hair.

2. Oily hair.

Just like ladies with dry, brittle hair know the perils of not enough oil production by the sebaceous glands on the scalp, those with oily hair have the opposite problem: too much oil production. This is you if you need to wash your hair daily, find dry shampoo is useless on your hair or if you are prone to dandruff. Oily hair can look dull, limp, and lifeless, more so on the scalp than the ends. To counteract an oily, greasy scalp, do not brush your hair too often, condition only the ends of the hair, and use a shampoo specifically for oily hair and you can ditch the topknot.

Try: Washing hair with a gentle shampoo, like Head & Shoulders,  which  is specially formulated to control sebum and not irritate or inflame the scalp.

*Visible flakes only, with regular use

3. Normal hair.

Normal-haired folks are considered to be the Goldilocks of the hair world, possessing strands not too greasy and not too dry. If you are lucky enough to have normal hair you can also count on good elasticity, tangle-free hair and getting away with just one shampoo a week. Since you’ve been handed the hair everyone else is desperately trying to achieve, having excellent hair comes with great responsibility. You must pledge not to use products that weigh your hair down, strip them of their natural oils or leave a dull residue.

Try: Regularly applying a moisture mask on your scalp to keep it in optimum condition. Also, thank your parents as one of them has given you this most-wanted hair type.

4. Colour-treated/damaged hair.

Whether you have normal, dry or oily hair you can suffer from damaged hair if you haven’t been looking after it. Overexposure to heat, the sun and dying the hair shaft with harsh ammonia chemical dyes will do it. An easy test to determine if your hair has lost elasticity is to pull a strand out, run your fingernail along it from end to root and drop it in a glass of water. If the strand doesn’t uncurl, your hair is damaged. The bad news is you can’t exactly repair a damaged cuticle; you have to wait for new hair to grow. If you have very long hair and the majority of it is damaged hair due to balayage, you’re best bet is to cut the colour-treated ends off. But there is some good news in all of this – a good conditioner will help to replace the moisture lost by damaged cuticles.

Try: A nourishing conditioner specifically created for colour-damaged hair, like Pantene’s Colour Therapy. If you’re a blonde, forget the at-home colouring kits and leave your highlights to a professional.

What type of hair do you have and how do you handle it?

Need more hair inspiration? Take a look through these iconic hair cuts…

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** 2x more split ends/breakage protection vs. non-conditioning shampoo with system use