Archive for category: Hair

With school starting throughout the Treasure Valley, parents everywhere are well aware of the germs being passed around.  That’s why we load our kids up with hand sanitizers and boxed tissues. Despite the fact that we are all susceptible to the common cold or flu, another common classroom epidemic is head lice.

Head lice season peaks when our kids are in school, mainly because they tend to bump heads together or share things that touch their hair. The thought alone is enough to make anybody  itch. While nobody likes to think about buying expensive shampoos, or the time consuming task of combing out nits, head lice is something we all need to be aware of…

Head lice is caused by a nearly invisible insect called Pediculus humanus capitis. Rarely seen this six-legged creature is usually only noticed by finding white eggs (nits) in a child’s hair near the scalp. While head lice can be annoying there is no reason to panic. Despite the stigma that goes along with head lice, personal hygiene or cleanliness in the home or school has nothing to do with getting head lice. In fact, lice are often attracted to clean hair because it is easier to cling to the hair shaft.

Below are some Boise hair salon tips to avoid catching this itchy critter:

• Avoid head-to-head (hair-to-hair) contact during play and other activities at home, school, and elsewhere.
• Do not share clothing such as hats, scarves, coats, sports uniforms, women’s hair ribbons, or barrettes.
• Do not share combs, brushes, or towels. Disinfect combs and brushes used by an infested person by soaking them in hot water (at least 130°F) for 5–10 minutes.
• Do not lie on beds, couches, pillows, carpets, or stuffed animals that have recently been in contact with an infested person.
  

If you do happen to deal with an outbreak, don’t panic! Our Boise hair salon stylists recommend using a medicated shampoo to kill the lice. These types of shampoos can be found over-the-counter in your local drug store. While medicated lice treatments usually kill the lice and nits, it may take a few days for the itching to stop. Unlike regular hair shampoo, it’s important to follow the directions exactly as they are listed because these products contain insecticides.

Treatment may be unsuccessful if the medication is not used correctly or if the lice are resistant to it. After treatment, your Boise hair salon stylist  also suggests combing out the nits with a fine-tooth comb and repeating with a follow-up treatment 7 to 10 days to kill any newly hatched nits. Other tips include:

• Machine wash and dry clothing, bed linens, and other items that an infested person wore or used during the 2 days before treatment using the hot water (130°F) laundry cycle and the high heat drying cycle. Clothing and items that are not washable can be dry-cleaned OR sealed in a plastic bag and stored for 2 weeks.
• Vacuum the floor and furniture, particularly where the infested person sat or lay. However, spending much time and money on house cleaning activities is not necessary to avoid reinfestation by lice or nits that may have fallen off the head or crawled onto furniture or clothing.
• Do not use fumigant sprays or fogs; they are not necessary to control head lice and can be toxic if inhaled or absorbed through the skin.

We all know how we feel about HORMONES! Yes, the world as we know it, being a female has it’s challenges. Not only that but being married to a female does too!  But did you know that hormones not only affect us emotionally, but it affects our hair as well?

The reason, I’m writing today’s blog on the topic of hair and hormones is because I am 46 and going through pre-menopause, and have lost my mind somewhere down the road. While I praise my husband and children for still supporting me through this craziness, I really want to talk about what it does to women physically. As I get older so does my clientele. So as the owner of the best Boise hair salon, let’s take a look at not only the emotional side things but the hair factor of this crazy time in our lives.  

When we become a teenager, a lot happens to us. For some reason, the higher power thinks it’s funny to give and take away hormones during different eras during our lives. I love it when clients who grew up in the eighties tell me that they got a perm when they were 12-13 years of age and that it never went away. The reason this is so funny to me is because, during that time their hormonal shift occurred and that’s what actually gave them curly hair. This is also the reason why as clients get older, their hair somehow turns curly to straight or straight to curly.

Additionally, during pregnancy the hair does not fall out as much because estrogen is at a high level. Your hair is shiny and healthy. Then low and behold, you give birth to your child and your estrogen plummets, which makes the hair follicles enter a resting stage, and suddenly you have hair falling out everywhere! If this is happening to you, don’t worry, it will come back in about 6-12 months.

Then we have medications that can put our hormones in a tail spin. This can also lead to balding. This also why most chemo patients end up with completely different hair after hair loss than before. Just when you thought you had a handle on your hair!

As the owner of the best Boise hair salon, I wanted to take a closer look at hair as we age. As we get older testosterone levels drop. Many clients start balding during this time and it is caused by the testosterone converting into DHT (with the aid of the enzyme Type II 5-alpha reductase, which is held in a hair follicle’s oil glands), which in turn hurts the hair by shrinking the hair follicles. This makes it hard for the hair to survive.

Then last but not least is menopause. Not only do we suffer from hot flashes, and mood swings but hair seems to grow everywhere but your head. Sound fun? Not really. Our Boise hair salon stylists are trained to help with this phase in our clients lives. You see, it’s not only the lack of testosterone but the estrogen hormone that affects us as well. Both of these lovely hormones become unbalanced causing hair to thin, loose its shine and even become very dry. You may also find that your hair strand seems thinner and the truth is, it is. It may also even have a harder time growing since the growing cycles are shorter.

So while you may be cursing at your hormonal hair, please don’t fret. There are many products that can help get you through this period of your life. Please ask one of our Boise hair salon stylists about what they would recommend and let them pamper you. Remember, stress doesn’t help things either!

Creative Commons Image Courtesy of Vix Walker