How can i improve the condition of my hair?

1. Drink plenty of water. Rehydrate your scalp and follicles and ensure the blood is circulating well to feed your hair with all those vital nutrients.

2. Increase your consumption of essential fatty acids. Snack on nuts and seeds and use good quality olive oil when cooking. Dress salads with extra virgin olive oil and tasty nut oils.

3. Sulphur has been dubbed the beauty mineral for making your hair smooth and glossy. It is found in foods like cabbage, broccoli and Brussels sprouts.

Conditoners, CONFUSED?

Confused about conditoners?

Leave-in conditoners can work well on dry hair. But as they coat your hair, they can weigh it down, makin it look lifeless. Use too much and your hair can appear greasy.

Rinse-out condtioners are always my first choice. They smooth my hair and eliminate tangles, making it easier to comb and style. As long as they are well rinsed out, they won't drag your hair down either.

Deep conditioners, hair masks, waxes oils are great occasionally. They need to be left on for at least 10 minutes to work properly, and are good for treated or dry hair, really helping to moisturise and strengthen the hair. To help the treatment penetrate deeper, wrap hair in a hot towel. Think of them in the same way as a monthly facial.

Volumizing conditioners use ingredients such as collagen, keratin and proteins to plump out individual hairs.

Combined shampoos and conditions are a great idea, but it seems to me they neither shampoo nor conditon as effectively as indivual products.

How often should i wash my hair?

Don't wash hair more than once a day as you will strip away all the natural protection that helps to make it look thick and shiny.

If your hair is coloured or permed, a specially formulated shampoo will gently cleanse it and won't strip the colour out.

Volumizing shampoos contain proteins that bond with your hair. Avoid using them all the time as they can leave a residue, which builds up, making hair look dull and dragging it down.

Highlight-enhancing shampoos and conditioners can make grey hair look shiny and help avoid the yellow tint that grey hair can sometimes acquire.

Acidic, clarifying shampoos containing ingredients such as lemon juice or vinegar help to strip away the residue that builds up from your normal hair products. These are ideal to use before applying an intense conditioner or before a salon treatment.

It used to be a common myth that washing your hair to often would make it oily. Leading trichologists now argue the opposite.

Hair Facts!!

Here is some facts that you might not know about your hair;

Women's scalp hair grows faster than men's- on average 0.02mm more per day.

Hair is 97 per cent protein; the other 3 per cent is made up of minerals and trace elements.

Each hair follicle grows about 20 hairs in a lifetime.

The lifespan of a hair is between 16 months and 7 years- the average is 3.

Hair can reach over a metre in length.

Pulling a hair from its follicle stimulate the next hair to grow.

Hair usually grows over a centimetre a month.

The growth and loss of hairs from each follicle are finely controlled, but don't happen at the same time as other follicle, otherwise everyone would go temporarily bald.

Hair grows more slowly in cold weather because circulation is more sluggish.

Beauty Tips!

Here are some beauty tips and tricks:

1. Stain Remover
Got red wine stains on your teeth? Rub your toothbrush over a slice of lemon, then gently brush- the acids in the juice will remove stains instantly.

2. No Drag, No sag
Always apply your moisturiser in upwards sweeping motions. Dragging it down your face will only cause skin to sag. A mini massage will boost circulation too, so rub in the cream in circular motions.

3. Fade your fake tan
If you’ve overdone the fake tan, don’t panic – you can tone down the tango! Look for body lotions that contain alpha and beta hydroxyl acids like Palmers Skin Smoothing Lotion. It boosts the speed that skin exfoliates, meaning colour fades faster!

4. Root Boost
If you’ve only got enough cash for one styling product, go for a root booster. There’s no style that doesn’t look more amazing with extra lift at the roots.

5. Spritz It
If your skin gets shiny, don’t apply loads of powder, as it makes skin look clogged. Instead, mist your face with facial spritz, the blot with tissue to lift excess oil and freshen. Powder if you need to. Try The Body Shop Vitamin Face Mist.

How to be slim

There is evidence that a diet rich in calcium, and particularly in low-fat diary products, can help with weight loss.

Your metabolic rate - how many calories you burn each day - depends upon your age and your sex, your level of physical activity, and your body weight. Contrary to popular belief, heavier people have higher metabolic rates than lighter people.

It is easy to ignore the body's appetite signals, especially when eating out: being distracted, being served large portions, and being presented with a large variety of foods can all make us eat more than wee need.

Understanding and controlling your appetite is crucial in an attempt to take in fewer calories. Certain foods will fill you up more than others for the same calorie intake.

Delay the effects of ageing on your teeth

Brush regularly, twice a day, using a fluoride toothpaste. This prevents the build-up of plaque in the surface of your teeth.

Toothpaste should always contain fluoride and be non-abrasive.

Daily flossing improves plaque control and removes food debris from the areas in between your teeth, where your toothbrush can't reach.

Change your toothbrush when the bristles become splayed or worn. Usually three months.

Toothbrushes should have medium/soft textured bristles and a small head.

Ideally brush for two minutes.

Brush your teeth 20min after meals to allow your mouth's pH to return to normal.

Try and choose an alcohol free mouthwash.

Visit your dentist every six months.

The effects of smoking

Tobacco smoke has a drying effect on the skin's surface and causes stress lines, particularly around the mouth and eyes.

Smoke is an irritant so smokers tend to squint and wrinkle their eyes, giving them lines that eventually become permanent.

As well as puckering around the mouth from drawing on a cigarette, smokers also often develop hollow cheeks.

Smoke restricts blood vessels and so reduces blood flow to the skin, robbing it of oxygen and nutrients.

Smokers lose 35mg more vitamin C a day than non-smokers.

Smoking has a serous effect on women's skin as it is thinner, so wrinkles show sooner and are more obvious.

The good news is that if you stop now, you'll also stop the damage to your collagen levels, you'll immediately boost your flagging circulation and will see obvious improvements in your skin after just two weeks.

Facts about skin cancer

Skin cancer is the second most common cancer in the 29-39 age bracket.

One in 25 males and one in 38 females will develop melanoma of the skin by the age of 75.

Sun exposure causes more than 90% of all skin cancers. It doesn't have to be constant exposure- you stand a very strong chance of contracting skin cancer if you have suffered from sunburn just five or more times.

The good news is that early detection of skin cancer can save lives.

P.S. Always make sure and check your moles if you have them.

www.cancer-breakthroughs.com

A guide to happiness

Follow these steps to beat off the winter blues

1. Make your own happiness. Don't assume because you've always been a cup half empty person, you cant improve on your level of happiness. Studies have shown that 50% of our happiness is governed by our genes, and so effectively beyond our control. However, that gives us the other 50% to work with.

2. Give to charity. Giving as little as £2.52 a month can make us happier, according to a study of more than 600 people. Those who gave to charity had improved opinion of themselves and felt happier knowing that they had helped others.

3. Fake it smiling, even when you don't feel happy, can make you feel better. When you smile, a psychological change happens which makes you feel better, and on the flip side, a frown can make you feel miserable. A smile will make those around you feel better too!

4. Don't over think. Gretchen Ruubin, who is researching tips and theories of happiness for a book called The Happiness Project, says, "I realised quite quickly that, rather than daily meditation or answering deep questions of self identity, I should go to sleep at a decent hour and not let myself get too hungry. Science backs this up; these two factors have a big impact on happiness."

Do you want your skin to have a youthful glow?

What to eat:

Fortified cereal, lean meat, pork, poultry, oysters. Zinc and iron are key to skin functioning. Zinc contributes to cell production, plus natural cell sloughing, which keeps dullness at bay. Red blood cells need iron to carry oxygen to skin, helping give you a glow. Aim for 1 serving of cereal (a cup), 1 palm-sized serving of meat or poultry or 3 oysters per day.

Want clearer skin?

Do you want clearer skin?

Follow the great skin diet:

What to eat:

Whole wheat and grains

In the past, dermatologists have maintained that unless you wipe greasy fingers on your face, food doesn’t cause zits. However Australian researchers found that a low-glycemic diet (more whole grains, protein and produce versus refined carbs such as white bread) may reduce acne. Low-glycemic foods keep insulin steady, and refined carbs and sugar spike it. The surges may boost production of androgens, hormones that, when elevated, can cause zits. After 12 weeks of a low-glycemic diet, subjects’ pimple counts dropped 20 percent, a study in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition notes. More studies are needed to prove the link, but no doctor will discourage you from eating whole grains and veggies! Aim for 3 servings a day (one serving equals a slice of bread or 1/2 cup cooked grains.)

Weight Watchers healthy eating recipes!

http://www.weightwatchers.co.uk/food/index.aspx

Plaice Fillets baked with Orange and Thyme

Fish is so good for you, being a high protein food, and it’s very quick to cook too. This easy recipe is based on plaice, stuffed with orange and thyme-flavoured breadcrumbs, cooked in white wine. Then to carry on the theme, we give you suggestions to use the same ingredients in two different ways. Ingenious!

Ingredients

Low fat cooking spray

50 g fresh white breadcrumbs

2 sprigs of thyme

1 orange

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 large plaice fillets (or use lemon sole)

150 ml dry white wine

Take 1 - Plaice Fillets baked with Orange and ThymePreheat oven to 190°C, Fan Oven 170°C, Gas Mark 5. Mist a shallow baking dish with low fat cooking spray.
Put the breadcrumbs into a bowl. Strip the leaves from the thyme sprigs and add them to the breadcrumbs with the finely grated zest and half the juice from the orange. Season.

Lay the fish fillets on a work surface, skin side up. Spoon the stuffing on them at the wide end, then roll them up and arrange in the baking dish, tucking the ends underneath. Place a slice of orange onto each one. Pour over the wine, and squeeze over any remaining orange juice.

Cover with foil or a lid and bake for 25 minutes. Serve with plenty of zero POINTS value vegetables.