Marina | June 12, 2014 | Beauty |

Summer doesn’t only mean fun road trips and lazy days at the beach. It also means higher risk of damage to the hair. There are so many things that can contribute to hair damage during summer. The chlorine in the pool water that you swim in, the heat from your blow dryer every time you use it to combat summer frizz and of course, your hair’s worst summer enemy: the harsh sun. We all know that prolonging hair’s exposure to the sun causes damage so if you want your locks to continue looking and being healthy this summer, make sure you put in extra effort to protect them. Here are some tips on how to sun proof your hair for summer.

• Find hair products with SPF – almost everything that you use on any parts of your body today contains SPF because we all like to get all the protection that we can get to make sure we’re safe from the sun. Hair products like hair serums and hairsprays now also contain SPF so if you’re a frequent user of these, make sure you read the labels and reach for ones that offer SPF protection.

• Use facial SPF on hair – just because the label says it’s for the face doesn’t mean you can’t use it anywhere else, right? If you can’t find any hair products out there that offer SPF protection for your locks, you better improvise and using facial SPF mist is the next best and most practical thing. You can also use the spray-type sunscreen for this but you’ll want to be careful if you have dark tresses as it may leave a visible stain on them. To get the lightest amount of product on your hair, spray the product in front of you and walk past it. This way, your hair won’t get greasy from the product.

• Protect the hair cuticles – the outer layer of your hair is made up of hair cuticles. It’s what protects your hair from all sorts of harsh elements that cause harm to your hair and it is often the part that takes all the damage. When the cuticles get damaged, they often stick up and make the hair look dry and bristly. Your hair cuticle is also what protects your hair color and makes it last longer so having damaged hair cuticles can also result to quicker fading in your hair color. Protect your hair cuticles from the sun by coating it with cuticle sealers.

• Use heat protectant products – heat protectants are often used before you expose your hair to the heat of styling tools but you can also spray them on your hair to leave a layer / coat of protection before you go out in the sun. Do this even if you haven’t used any styling tool on your hair. Your mane will thank you for it.

• Wear hats – wearing hats don’t only make your outfit look more fab and stylish, it also works great for covering up a bad hair day and for protecting your hair from the sun. Choose a hat that would go well with your outfit. For summer, baseball caps and floppy hats are super hot so you might want to look into buying one of those.