Households with hard water deal with a number of inconveniences, such as limescale build-up and stains. Even washing one’s hair can be problematic. Many people with hard water complain of dry, brittle hair.

The calcium and magnesium minerals contained in hard water affect soap’s ability to build a good lather. Therefore, building a rich lather takes major amounts of shampoo. Each hair shaft consists of overlapping slates, called scales, which are similar to a roof’s shingles. On a healthy shaft of hair, the scales remain smoothed down.

However, in hard water, the minerals run under the overlapping scales, turning up their edges. The result is rough hair, prone to tangling, as the scales on different strands catch on one another. Hair does not rinse well, so a film of residue remains. Using hair conditioners in an effort to soften hair only leaves additional build up. In the end, hair just might not look or feel as healthy as it could.

So how can one reverse the damage of hard water? Some people suggest using natural soap as opposed to shampoo, which is a member of the detergent family. Natural soaps, without the additives found in shampoo, are less abrasive as they run through the hair. Another suggestion is washing with softer water, such as bottled water or collected rainwater that has been run through a coffee filter. No matter the kind of water or soap product used, it is important to be gentle when washing hair. There are solutions to hard water hair problems, but they just take a little extra effort and patience.

Tags: Beauty, Hair, Hair care, Hair conditioner, Health, Shampoo, Shopping, WATER

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 1st, 2009 at 12:36 pm and is filed under Health, Home, Kitchen, WATER. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.