In this article I show you 10 products that protect your hair, preventing breakage including split ends. I show you how they work and what to look for in an anti-breakage product.
Why you need to protect your hair if you want it to grow longer
Lots of people want to grow their hair longer, but find that it doesn’t seem to grow past a certain point. One of the key reasons for this is that the hair breaks. If you want to grow long, healthy hair, you must protect your hair and prevent split ends.
How to protect your hair so it can grow longer
Over the next few weeks months I’ll be posting the ultimate guide on how to grow longer hair and how to get your hair growing long, fast. If your hair doesn’t grow past a certain point, follow me on Twitter to stay updated on the posts in this guide and you’ll soon find out exactly how to get your hair growing to the length you want it to, fast.
Before we get into the best practices of increasing hair growth, let’s look at some products you can use to protect your hair.
Products that protect your hair from damage and prevent split ends
Protecting your hair from damage will give your hair a chance to grow, stay strong and not break before it gets to the length you want it. By protecting your hair every day it’s less likely to split and therefore more likely to grow longer.
In addition to protecting your hair, most of the following products also contain nutritious organic ingredients that will feed your hair via the scalp, helping it grow.
AVEDA Sun Care Protective Hair Veil Around $29 for 3.5oz
Key ingredients: Organic shea butter, organic coconut oil, green tea extract, organic sunflower oil, organic essences of neroli, ylang ylang and wild-crafted cistus.
- Organic coconut oil and shea butter may help protect the hair against physical damage.
- Protects against UV damage for all day protection to sun exposure.
- Contains nutrient rich organic ingredients.
- Uses palm oil, which may have a negative impact on the environment if not sourced responsibly (there is no mention of responsible sourcing).
Phyto Phytolisse Finishing Serum Around $30 for 1.7oz
Key ingredients: Panthenol (Provitamin B5), Marshmallow Root Extract, Phytantriol.
- Phytantriol and provitamin B5 together protect hair from breakage.
- Overpriced.
- Non-organic ingredients tend to be lower quality.
Miessence Organics Protect B5 Hair Repair Around $37 for 8.5oz
Key ingredients: Organic Aloe Vera Leaf Juice, Organic Fermented Grain Extract, Organic Rosehip Seed Oil, Organic Horsetail Extract, Organic Nettle Extract, Organic Burdock Extract, Organic Rosemary Leaf Extract
- Vitamin B5 protects hair from breakage.
- Outstanding use or organic ingredients that are beneficial for hair growth.
- Not only protects but also feeds the hair.
Fushi Repair & Soothe Herbal Conditioner Around $28.50 for 8.8oz
Key ingredients: Calendula Petal (Marigold), Frankincense, Cetearyl Alcohol (Coconut, palm derivative), Avocado oil, Provitamin B5), sandalwood
- Vitamin B5 protects hair from breakage.
- Some coconut derivative may protect hair from damage.
- Uses palm oil, which may have a negative impact on the environment if not sourced responsibly (there is no mention of responsible sourcing).
- Non-organic ingredients tend to be lower quality.
MOP C-System Reconstructing Treatment Around $22 for 7oz
Key ingredients: Organic Coconut/Palm Oil, Organic Vegetable Colza Oil, Organic Vegetable/Palm Oil, Organic Carica Papaya Fruit Extract, Organic Grapefruit Seed Extract, Organic Mango Fruit Extract, Organic Alfalfa Extract, Organic Rosa Canina Seed Extract, Organic Sambucus Nigra Fruit Extract, Organic Ginger Root Oil
- Lots of nutritious ingredients to feed the hair.
- Coconut and palm oils may protect hair from damage.
- Uses palm oil, which may have a negative impact on the environment if not sourced responsibly (there is no mention of responsible sourcing).
- Quite a lot of chemicals in this product that are not useful for the hair.
Simply Organic Rejuvenating Sealer Around $26 for 8.5oz
Key ingredients: PEG 50 Shea Butter, Honey*, Grapefruit Oil*, Orange Oil*, Lemon Oil*, Olive Leaf Extract*, Rosemary Leaf Extract*, Sage Leaf Extract*, Horsetail Extract*, Matricaria Flower Extract*, Calendula (Marigold) Extract*, Wheat Amino Acids, Glucose, Glucose Oxidase & Lactoperoxidase *Certified Organic.
- Excellent array of organic ingredients that feed the hair.
- Shea butter may protect hair from environmental damage.
Dr Bronner’s Magic All-One Organic Fair Trade Hair Creme, Lavender and Coconut Around $16 for 6oz
Key ingredients: organic coconut oil, organic ethanol (denatured with organic lavender oil), organic jojoba oil, organic hemp oil, organic quillaja extract.
- Coconut oil protects against split end damage by reducing protein loss. Hemp oil provides protein, jojoba oil is thought to promote hair growth.
- Ethanol may have a drying effect.
Organic Root Stimulator Olive Oil Professional Incredibly Rich Oil Moisturizing Hair Lotion Around $8 for 8oz
Key ingredients: organic coconut oil, organic olive oil, organic peanut oil
- Coconut oil and olive oil protect against split end damage by reducing protein loss. Peanut oil provides protein.
- Contains colours and other chemicals that don’t benefit the hair.
Aveda Brilliant™ Damage Control Around $22 for 8.5oz
Key ingredients: Organic Aloe, Black tea, Organic Calendula, Organic Camomile.
- Protects against UV damage and drying.
- Only provides mild protection against light blow drying.
Kiehl’s Creme with Silk Groom Around $30 for 8.4oz
Key ingredients: Silk Powder, Hydrolysed Wheat Protein, Hydrolysed Soy Protein, Jojoba Oil.
Read next
Whats the best shampoo for hair loss? - Silk powder may protect the hair, helping prevent split ends.
- Use of non-organic ingredients is a sure sign of lower quality (and less nutritious) ingredients.
Important: If you use these types of products you also need to wash them out as well
It’s important to protect your hair to prevent split ends and other damage. One of the best ways to do that is to coat it in a substance such as coconut oil or shea butter (which is what some of the products listed above use). Natural ingredients like these are the best ingredients to use to protect your hair because they are also nutritious and healthy.
On the other hand, many of the cheaper products you see in supermarkets use cheaper chemical alternatives to protect the hair.
Whichever product you use to protect your hair, it’s important to properly shampoo the product out, in order to prevent build up occurring. Build up on the hair can make it look dull, lifeless and unhealthy. Build up on the scalp can clog the pores. You don’t want either of these things to happen, so if you’re using products to coat your hair every day, be sure to use clarifying shampoo to properly remove the chemicals or oils from your hair and scalp at least once a fortnight.
How do you protect your hair?
Do you use a great product that should be featured on this list? Or have you tried natural alternatives, such as coconut oil or shea butter? Let us know in the comments.
If you’re trying to grow your hair longer, follow nicehair.org on Twitter to stay updated on this post series. The next post will be about feeding your hair to make it grow longer and faster.
Stay tuned for new articles about growing longer hair
Remember to stop back regularly and follow us on Twitter, as we’ll soon be posting the ultimate guide to growing longer hair.
