Up to 85% of our hair is comprised of protein keratin. Your body gains this essential component from food sources like chicken, fish, dairy products, eggs and beans.
Diets rich in essential vitamins and minerals also contribute to healthier hair. Folic acid found in leafy greens and nuts assists the body with processing amino acids efficiently, helping keep hair looking great!
Strength
Protein is vital to hair health because it provides your strands with strength. Each hair strand is composed of keratin protein molecule found both within your fingernails and skin layers – an element also found within each individual strand of hair.
Lack of protein intake can weaken and thin your hair, potentially leading to breakage or loss. Eating more protein-rich foods, like eggs, chicken and fish — or using natural protein powder — may help ensure you are getting enough of this key nutrient, according to Cleveland Clinic research.
Hair protein treatments are over-the-counter or salon services that apply hydrolysed proteins directly to your strands to fill any gaps in the cuticle, improve elasticity and shine, keep tresses healthy, repair damage caused by styling tools or overuse of colorants, or maintain overall hair health.
Growth
There’s much that goes into having lush locks: from taking good care of your scalp and using non-damaging products to getting regular trims – but one key element might be missing: protein.
Protein is the core building block of hair and helps improve its strength, thickness, volume and elasticity – all essential elements to combat breakage and split ends.
Test our hair for protein deficiencies by wetting and stretching a strand; if it stretches far before snapping back, that may indicate your need for additional protein — something a protein treatment could address.
Foods high in protein such as eggs, berries, fish, beans, whey, tofu nuts and cottage cheese can provide ample amounts of protein in your diet. For added boost, consider trying a protein hair treatment featuring silk amino acids that attach directly to the hair follicle and strengthen it, helping prevent weak or brittle strands while slowing the effects of aging at its tips.
Healthy Scalp
The scalp is the production centre for hair growth, with each strand emerging from individual follicles. Factors such as vitamin deficiencies, health conditions and elevated cortisol levels due to stress can have a negative impact on follicle quality; build-ups of sebum, dead skin cells and dandruff may block these follicles, impairing growth. Protein can unclog blocked follicles while strengthening cuticle layers through its strengthening capabilities, according to Ogboru.
Protein has also been found to reduce hair porosity, meaning that more water can be retained to avoid frizziness or tangles, and increase elasticity – this means when stretched, the hair strand returns quickly as opposed to lacking protein which could leave it more fragile and weaker than before.
Protein is essential to healthy hair. While food sources of this vital nutrient may be ideal, you can still achieve your daily requirement through use of a shampoo or conditioner containing protein-enriched formulations or by including animal products in meals and taking biotin supplements according to Kaiser Permanente.
Hydration
Protein can help if your hair is dry, brittle or breaking easily by improving hydration levels and increasing elasticity in its strands. You can test its elasticity by wetting a strand and stretching it; if it bounces back without breaking, that means your strand is elastic.
Protein is one of the essential building blocks of both bodies and hair, according to Ogboru, so consuming enough of it helps strengthen your strands and prevent breakage. Amino acids found within proteins help form keratin – the fibrous protein responsible for giving each strand its strength and resilience.
Some of the best sources of protein for hair include eggs, berries, chicken, fish, dairy products and vegetarian sources like tofu, lentils and nuts. You may also take a supplement if your diet does not provide you with enough of this vital nutrient; alternatively a salon treatment or at-home protein mask can also provide your strands with this crucial building block of health and help avoid protein deficiency and telogen effluvium (which causes hair loss).https://www.youtube.com/embed/3j-YNI36sDM