The beach isn’t a place for work. It’s all about leisure, lying out in the sun, and forgetting that you have responsibilities to attend to, even if for just a few hours. However, that sense of relaxation can be completely destroyed the moment you realize your hair is a fried and dry mess afterward.
For as long as we can remember, the only “beach hair” we saw in magazines was long, blonde, and wavy. The idea was more about a look and less about protection. Thankfully, we’re moving past rigid beauty standards and have begun using the term as code for healthy summer strands. Ahead, three experts break down everything you need to know about protecting your hair from the sun rays this summer.
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Before styling your hair with a sea salt spray or texturizer, it’s important to know why it also needs the same level of sun protection as your skin. Quick science lesson: A single hair strand is made up of three layers. The protective outermost layer is the cuticle. The thicker, central layer that contains the hair’s pigment and protein is the cortex, and the fragile innermost layer is the medulla.
According to Taliah Waajid, founder of Taliah Waajid Hair Care, some level of sun damage has likely already occurred because of how that top layer is disturbed by daily manipulation. And once that top layer is opened up, the other two are f...