How Often Should You Blow Dry Your Hair?

We've been around the block a time or two with the whole "how often should you wash your hair" debate, but once you actually have lathered up, you may be a little less certain about how often you should blow dry your hair? Everyone will have a different opinion on what's best for them and their hair type, but if you want to go according to science, you may not love the answer.

Fact: Blow drying your hair can damage and dry it out. So clearly, that's bad, but just how bad is bad? According to Self Magazine, you ideally don't want to ever blow dry your hair. Now, don't freak out, because as I said, that's ideally. And we definitely don't live in an ideal world. But it's important to understand the reasoning behind it. According to Dr. Michael Roizen, "The extreme heat from hair dryers (and from curling irons) causes the water under the cuticles (the outermost layer of the hair) to form bubbles that stress and break the hair." The result? Split ends, breakage, and brittle hair.

It doesn't matter if you hit your hair with the heat everyday or once a week, the fact of the matter is, every time you do it is going to cause damage, so ideally, you want to avoid blow drying altogether, or go as long as you can between blow drys.

I know, it's a little disheartening, but if you can't part from your hair dryer, at least follow these tips to help mitigate damage (and needless to say, try to blow dry as little as possible).

1. Use An Ionic Dryer

These types of dryers will dry your hair faster, limiting the amount of time heat is touching it, and they are gentler on your hair.

Revlon Tourmaline Ionic Dryer, $20, Amazon

2. Use A Heat Protectant

This goes without saying — never put heat on your hair without protecting it first.

Moroccan Oil Heat Protectant, $21.98, Amazon

3. Keep The Nozzle Away From Your Hair

While drying, keep the hair-dryer as far away from your hair as you can. The closer it is to your hair, the more damaging it is.

Xtava Allure Ionic Hair Dryer, $36, Amazon

4. Use Low Heat

Your inclination might be to turn your blow dryer to the highest heat setting to get it done quickly, but don't. Use the lowest heat setting for the least damage.

Goody Heat Smart-Temp Hair Dryer, $17.99 Amazon

5. Work Quickly

This is the one case where slow and steady does not win the race. You want the heat on your hair for as little time as possible.

6. Air Dry First

Don't blow dry as soon as you get out of the shower. Instead, let it air dry until it's just damp and most of the water is out, and then use the heat strictly to style and smooth.

7. Master "Off Day" Styles

Braids, pony tails, hats, whatever — just find some styles you like that you can do without having to use heat on your hair for those in between days.

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Images: Amazon; Pexels; Unsplash