Post date: July 8, 2024 | Blog
How Often Should Men Wash Their Hair? Shampoo 101
As we all know, hair care is essential for maintaining our hairy health and feeling/looking our best. But, did you know that more shampoo is not always the healthy thing? How often should you really wash your hair to optimize its health?
The answer to the question above really depends on things like your hair type, lifestyle, and overall personal preferences. But, that doesn’t change the fact that, universally, washing your hair too often can cause unnecessary damage to it.
In today’s blog, we’re going to talk about when to wash your hair, how to wash it, and what to look for in safer and more natural shampoos. What you’ll find throughout this blog is that, no matter what hair you have, a gentler shampoo is going to be better.
Understanding Hair Types
Let’s first dive into the topic of hair type. You see, not everyone’s hair is the same, and this causes different hair to have different properties, including how dirty it gets and how fast it gets that way.
- Oily Hair: Skin produces excess sebum, leading to greasier “heavier” hair.
- Dry Hair: Lacks moisture, often appearing dull and more prone to breaking or splitting.
- Balanced Hair: Neither too oily nor too dry. (sweet spot)
General Guidelines
1. Oily Hair
Men with oily hair definitely need to wash their hair more frequently, as the oils tend to cause excess skin and dirt/debris to clump and clog pores.
Typically, this means washing every day or every other day and using a gentle shampoo that is designed for daily use. Something like Volt’s Sulfate-Free Shampoo will do the trick.
Using a more gentle shampoo can help prevent stripping away too many oils from the hair at any one time, causing the hair to become dry in the meantime, which can, paradoxically, increase oil production from the skin and make things worse.
2. Dry Hair
When you have dry hair, you’re going to want to wash less frequently. This is because there is already a lack of oils that could be causing damage to the hair by making it too dry.
Washing often with shampoo to strip even more oils is only going to exacerbate the problem.
What you’ll want to do is wash only 2-3 times per week with a gentle shampoo that doesn’t strip away too many oils that you likely need. And be sure to moisturize immediately afterwards with a hydrating conditioner or scalp oil.
3. Balanced Hair
If you have balanced hair, you’re in the sweet spot. In this spot you can usually shampoo 3-4 times per week to keep your hair and scalp balanced.
This way, you can maintain the natural oils without causing issues with dryness or excess oiliness.
Lifestyle Considerations
Apart from how your hair and skin behaves, your lifestyle plays a huge role in how often you should wash your hair. Consider your activity level, environment, and what products you use, if any, on your hair.
- Active Lifestyle: If you’re active and sweat alot, you’re obviously going to want to wash your hair more often to prevent issues with sweat that can cause buildup on your scalp.
- Work Environment: Obviously if you often find yourself in environments where excess dirt, heat, pollutants, or more are present, you’re going to want to wash more often.
- Product Usage: No matter how good they make you look, if you use lots of gels, pomades, sprays, or more in your hair for styling purposes, you’ll want to wash those out to avoid buildup and irritation as well.
Tips for Healthy Hair Washing
- Use the Right Shampoo: Choose a GENTLE shampoo. These shampoos help prevent excess dryness AND excess oiliness. Overall, they are more balanced than typical shampoos. Try Volt’s sulfate-free shampoo, for example.
- Avoid Hot Water: If you take steaming hot showers, STOP. Hot water strips away oils very effectively, leaving you with overly dry hair and skin. Lukewarm showers are far better for you.
- Condition Regularly: Conditioning helps keep hair elastic and healthy. Focus on the ends of your hair where dryness does the most damage with splitting and tangles,
- Don’t Over-Wash: Washing too frequently and with harsh shampoos lead to dry brittle hair and, usually, an irritated scalp as well,
- Be Gentle: Furiously scrubbing your hair does more damage than good. A light gentle massage of your scalp not only feels better but keeps hair healthier.
Conclusion
Overall, how often you should wash your hair depends on three things: Your hair type (oily, dry, balanced), your activity level and environment, and your personal preferences.
Finding the right balance and products for you may take some time, but check out this handy quiz below that will help you find the best natural and gentle volt products for your hair and body.
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