Prevent Hair Heat Damage in 3 Easy Steps

Daily use of curling irons, hair straighteners and even your blow dryer can wreak havoc on your strands. If you want to keep your hair strong, shiny and resilient, make sure you're taking steps to protect you hair from heat damage. All of those heated styling tools can dry out your hair and leave you hair weakened and brittle. If you already have very thin hair or hair that tends to break easily, you need to be even more careful when using heated styling tools.

Here are three easy steps to prevent hair heat damage:

1. Use a heat protectant spray before you style. A heat protectant spray is an absolute must when styling hair with a flatiron or curling iron. These types of sprays will also protect your tresses from the effects of a high-powered blow dryer. Apply this spray to slightly damp hair and "scrunch" your hair as you massage the product all over the scalp. Remember that a small amount goes a long way, but you do need to work the product through your strands thoroughly in order for it to take effect when you style. These products contain compounds that work as a shield against the heat. Your hair will look shiny, healthy, and be well-protected from heat damage from heated styling tools.

2. Apply a leave-in conditioner. Strong and healthy hair will be more resilient against the effects of heated styling tools. Invest in a high-quality leave-in conditioner to infuse your strands with an extra dose of moisture after shampooing and conditioning. Massage this gently into damp hair before styling so it has a chance to sink in to your scalp. Using this conditioner daily can leave your hair looking and feeling softer and silkier.

3. Use a large-barreled brush while drying hair. Large-barreled brushes circulate the heat and air from a blow dryer much more easily than a comb or flat brush. Use a ceramic ionic brush with a good grip so you can "roll" your hair as you blow dry. This is a technique your stylist uses at the salon to not only circulate the heat better, but also to create that super-shiny finish.

The large-barreled brush is a great tool for all hair types and can help you create a salon-like blowout and add volume to your hair without any extra products. You can always use a flatiron after brushing and blow drying if you need to, but will find that you'll rely far less on the flatiron because your hair is already fairly straight.