When you desperately want longer hair—whether trying to grow out a haircut you’re not feeling anymore or dealing with hair loss, a problem that affects 40 percent of women—looking in the mirror can get depressing and waiting can feel like an eternity. Thankfully, there are steps you can take to speed up the process, like incorporating special shampoos into your routine.
Before you try to give your hair a nudge, it’s essential to understand the science. Diet, genetics, stress, and age can all cause thinning and breakage. “Hair growth is a cycle and many issues can disrupt this, such as hormonal shifts, medications, diseases, and illnesses,” explains New York City dermatologist Dendy Engelman, M.D., adding that life changes, like pregnancy, menopause, and weight loss, can interfere with hair growth. And chemical treatments, hot tools, brushes, and other styling tools can reduce or damage the hair. What’s more, “as we age, most hair is reduced either in the form of balding, receding, or thinning.”
Dr. Engelman recommends shampoos that nourish the scalp and strengthen hair, making it less brittle and healthier, as well as reduce oil buildup, which can help hair growth by reducing breakage. Pro tip: Healthy hair growth doesn’t stop with topical products. To really speed up your hair growth, supplement your shampoo with a diet rich in protein (found in lean meats, leafy greens, nuts, beans, and fish), fats (“Fish, nuts, flax and avocado can help keep hair soft and silky,” says Dr. Engelman), vitamin A (milk, eggs, and yogurt to improve scalp health), and iron (try a supplement or eat more lentils, eggs, and spinach).
Now that you know why your hair might not be growing as fast as you’d like, it’s wash time. Here, celebrity stylists and dermatologists share the shampoos that will give you Rapunzel-like locks.