Washing Your Way To Longer Locks

15th October 2014

Last week, the Daily Mail reported that a new shampoo on the market can make your hair grow more quickly. Dubbed ‘FAST’ – Fortified Amino Scalp Therapy – this shampoo and conditioner duo apparently boosts hair growth by around 30 per cent. A tall order, by any stretch of the imagination!

According to the journalist – who acted as a willing guinea pig for her article – by shampooing and conditioning with FAST twice a day, she added just over a centimetre to her hair length in a month.

She seems pleased with the result but, ever the sceptic, I can’t quite buy in to the idea that an expensive shampoo and conditioner can boost the rate of hair growth. In fact, most people’s hair grows by around 1cm to 1.5cm a month anyway, so this journalist’s 1.2cm increase isn’t really anything to write home about.

Sadly, there is no secret formula to boosting hair growth – whether that’s making it longer, encouraging more hairs to grow or trying to replenish hair where there is none. The sheer volume of products on the market claiming to do so never ceases to amaze me, and I often find that men and women who come into my clinic have fallen victim to more than their fair share of over-the-counter miracle cures.

There are, however, a few things you can do to keep your hair healthy which, in turn, will encourage hair growth.

First, eat a good diet with plenty of vitamins and protein to keep your hair nourished. Secondly, treat your hair nicely! Wash it regularly – although not too often – and try and avoid excessive towel drying, heat and products. Finally, keeping it in good condition with regular trips to the hairdresser will make your hair look its best, giving the illusion of thicker, more luscious locks.

You’ll find that simply looking after your hair will do much more for it than investing in the latest must-have miracle buy.