Tips To Prevent & Fix Split Ends

6 Things That Really Cause – and Fix – Split Ends

If there’s one telltale sign your hair isn’t in its best condition, it’s having an abundance of split ends. Once you start noticing them, it feels impossible not to zone in on them all the time. But while you can’t completely get rid of split ends without having a trim, there are a few things you can do not only to reduce their appearance, but also to prevent future split ends from occurring.The key to fixing split ends is to understand exactly what they are, and how they happen in the first place.

What are split ends?

The clue is in the name: when one individual hair strand either looks frayed or is split into two at the bottom, it’s a split end. And here’s where the problem lies: once a strand of hair is split, it will continue splitting further and further up the hair shaft.

What causes split ends?

Simply put: damage or dehydration cause split ends. So everything from using too much or extreme heat on your hair, not using heat protector spray before drying, curling or straightening, and chemical hair products (like bleach or a Brazilian blow dry) can all cause split ends too. So can exposure to extreme weather conditions – and even just tugging at hair too much with a brush, especially when it’s wet.

How to prevent split ends

Here are six ways to avoid split ends and keep your hair in amazing condition...

1. Be gentle when brushing your hair

While regularly brushing your hair is necessary for preventing tangles and knots, it’s important that you don’t overbrush it or tug or pull too hard when you do. Instead, use a detangling brush or wide-tooth comb and work upwards through your hair, especially post-wash, to gently ease out tangles without the risk of snapping or causing damage.

2. Deep condition regularly

Ensuring hair is hydrated will help keep it strong, which in turn prevents it from snapping or splitting. You can either use a pre-shampoo treatment, or take the time out once a week or so (depending on your hair texture) to do a deep conditioning mask. Nexxus’s Humectress Ultimate Moisture Intensely Hydrating Masque deeply moisturizes to repair dry, damaged hair. It’s formulated with a ProteinFusion blend with elastin protein and green caviar for smooth, strong strands that are less likely to split.

3. Invest in intensive treatments

Protein is what makes up the majority of your hair, so by using products formulated with it, you will help repair strands that are severely damaged. Nexxus’s Keraphix Repair & Strengthen Reparative Treatment is a reparative bonding cream that’s designed to revive visibly damaged hair, repairing up to 94% of split ends in just one use – meaning it really will help to restore hair and get it back looking like its best, most healthy self. Best used before shampooing, leave it in for 10 minutes – or longer if you want to – and then rinse before shampooing as normal.

4. Don’t use too much heat

Easier said than done, we know, but by reducing the amount of heat you use on a regular basis, you’ll reduce the amount of split-end-causing damage your hair has to contend with. And when you do use heat tools, you always need to be using a protective product pre-styling: the Nexxus Prep & Protect Leave-In Spray contains a PROTEINLOCK system to create an invisible layer of protection around the hair to seal in essential proteins and moisture, shielding it from dryness and breakage.

5. Wash with the right shampoo and conditioner

As well as investing in treatments and masques, the products you use to wash and condition hair daily are hugely important. If you use things that are formulated to prevent damage and nourish hair, you can reap the cumulative benefits and rest easy knowing you’re doing everything you can to keep locks in tip-top condition. Nexxus’s Therappe Ultimate Moisture Shampoo rebuilds broken bonds and replenishes essential nutrients, while Humectress Ultimate Moisture Conditioner smooths the surface and protects against breakage by locking in all that nourishing goodness, not only reducing the risk of split ends, but making hair more manageable, too.

6. Book in for regular trims

We know it’s probably not the solution you want, but hear us out: regular trims will prevent split ends in the best way possible, ensuring hair always looks and feels healthy – even just the teeniest trim every so often will make the world of difference.