What increases thickness?

[RancheroTheBee]

So, I'm looking to increase the circumfrence of my ponytail. It's about 3" right now (although I have layers and bangs, so it may be closer to 3.2") and I want to hit a solid 4". Thoughts? I have no major scalp issues, and I have very little shedding. Also, I'm broke, if that narrows things down. :o

Monistat never did anything for me, by the way.

I would also like to try something that wouldn't be to hard to do for the rest of my life, unlike some treatments like MN, Megtek, and others. Basically, I'm looking for minimal effort with adequate payoff.

[eadwine]

Nothing really. You can try henna, it seems to be thickening things up a bit, but nothing major (I think).

Of course not doing the updos too tight and all those things that you have to avoid to lose hair. But otherwise.. the thickness you have is what you are blessed with, nothing else to do but to cherish it ;)

[Kris Dove]

I'd love to know this too! I'm currently growing out my bangs, one reason being to add volume.

I've read that henna can make the hair shaft expand, making individual strands thicker thus adding volume, as can other permanent dyes.

[chotee]

My thickness improved a great deal with henna and castor oil.
Other suggestions which don't really take lot of effort and money is a headstand or a shoulder stand in yoga.
brushing did good for me, but again you have to try it and find it for yourself. Going slow is a lot better and you don't shed like 20strokes a day and then to 40 a day...
The last is a hair vitamin...

[Fethenwen]

Hair massages and castor oil are cheap alternatives :)

[Centifolia]

My thickness is improving because of a better diet. ;)

[Melisande]

I still use my essential oil mixture and swear by it. It doesn't increase hair thickness or volume above your personal maximum (IMO, there is no way to do that anyway) but it helps you keep your hair in optimal shape, especially the new growth.

I also take supplements and treat my hair like old lace and color with plant dyes including henna and cassia. My hair has become thicker in the last two years but I'm sure there is no way to get it even thicker. It's in its optimal shape, and the rest is acceptance ;-)

[Cherry_Sprinkle]

Henna increased my circumference 1/4" last time I measured.

[rhubarbarin]

I think it's genetic, and secondarily, hormonal. We are all pretty much stuck with what we have. I'm talking circumference of your pony tail, of course, not the volume of your length - that can be thickened a lot with gentle care.

If you have previously lost thickness from hormonal changes or health problems, I think it's possible to recover at least some of that thickness with treatment of those issues, good diet, etc. If, like me, you've always had about the same amount of hair, I wouldn't bother to hope you can grow more.

If there was something out there that worked reliably to grow more hairs on people's head, there wouldn't be any more people with balding and most people would be walking around with thick hair. ;)

[Redheaded Raven]

Taking gelatin capsules can work and have been shown to in trials. It makes individual hairs thicker. So can improving scalp circulation with things like massage and oils. But other than adding to what folks have said about henna and improving the diet not really anything works all of the time. At least not that I know of but if you find something share okay? :D

[cocolover]

I had great success with oiling my scalp with Ramtirth oil and using Indian herbs for washing. My circum. increased from 3.5 to 4 from Feb to Aug. This was thickness that I used to have however, and was able to regain. I don't know if that made a difference or not. I plan on keeping up with oiling my scalp, but I am having a hard time continuing the washing herbs. I am curious if not using the washing herbs will make a difference or not.

[RancheroTheBee]

Ah, I see. My hair has always been this thickness, so I guess that means I'm sort of stuck with it. I'm just quite greedy, is all. :laugh:

I may try going back to gelatin and seeing if that does anything for me down the road. Thanks, everyone!

[Anje]

For what it's worth, I hear you. I have about 2.5 inches of circumference, and I would like to have about 6 inches. :eyebrows: But ultimately, each person has a personal maximum, and if you're near or at that, your hair's not going to get any thicker.

Henna (and maybe cassia?) and protein (perhaps like gelatin, though I'm still a skeptic) can help thicken individual hairs, and less wear can make sure that the hairs you have don't thin from protein loss or break off for faster taper. Some washing methods like shampoo bars or herbs or just using less conditioner can temporarily increase volume (but some people might find that less conditioner does more harm than good to their hair in the long run). Finding the wash method that leads to the least shedding can help, and scalp massages (often with essential oils) seem to help keep the roots producing hair for most folks.

[jojo]

By stopping heat, sulphates and doing regular Dc's increased my thickness from 2.5 to 3.5 in the past, however the longer I get the thinner is goes.

there is photo evidence of this in my album, it is possible. I do not mean the overal hair thickness, this is genes. Maybe its volume but I definatelly noticed a difference.

heres the link for photo taken in Aug 07 and noticably thinner and curlier because its shorter.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/album.php?albumid=354&pictureid=29006

ETA-link

[RancheroTheBee]

By stopping heat, sulphates and doing regular Dc's increased my thickness from 2.5 to 3.5 in the past, however the longer I get the thinner is goes.

there is photo evidence of this in my album, it is possible. I do not mean the overal hair thickness, this is genes. Maybe its volume but I definatelly noticed a difference.

heres the link for photo taken in Aug 07 and noticably thinner and curlier because its shorter.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/album.php?albumid=354&pictureid=29006

ETA-link

Wow! You made a lot of progress. I just stopped using sulphates, actually. They feel a lot better, and if I get some extra volume, that would be fantabulous.

[MsBubbles]

Finding the wash method that leads to the least shedding can help

I'm currently working on this, too, and just started scalp washing because I shed far less hairs that way. I lost about half an inch of circumference this year somehow, and I don't know why. I didn't notice any increase in shedding! I did see a ton of hair knotted up in my post-wash comb, though, so am working to minimize that.

No-cones make my hair fluffier, but even though it looks more voluminous, it doesn't really move like hair when it's in that state!

I may also try the gelatin thing again but like young Skywalker, I don't believe it. :p

[chotee]

I am also thinking for adding some simple proteins to my diet, one of my recent inclusion is Tofu and Tempeh....its so cheap here. And added more yogurt....have seen in india many people who have long long hair eat a lot of yogurt. As far as thickness is concerned, i think we can get better if we really take good care of the scalp and health generally. When i was younger, my hair was a lot thicker and thickness and hair can be maintained for long.

One more very good way to increase thickness is using hair mask with eggs. Eggs have sulphur, and makes hair really grow in volume. Again i add eggs to my henna mask along with fenugreek. It really helps...

[spidermom]

All I know is to grow out all your hair so you don't have fringe subtracting from the available thickness. Eat well; be healthy. Avoid stress (haha; like that's ever going to happen).

[plainjanegirl]

All I know is to grow out all your hair so you don't have fringe subtracting from the available thickness. Eat well; be healthy. Avoid stress (haha; like that's ever going to happen).




Stress? Haha the I may as well give up on ever having thicker hair like when I was younger.

[eadwine]

No stress? Ehh.. I WISH!! :lol:

[Rosamunde]

I seem to be having luck with twice-weekly head massages with Chrome Dome in jojoba/aloe, but if you're already not shedding much, I'm not sure whether this would help you....

[GlennaGirl]

What about "body-building" or "for fine hair" conditioners and shampoos, guyz 'n galz? Do they actually do anything for the hair?

[elianne]

No stress? Ehh.. I WISH!! :lol:

Haha, I agree completely!

That being said, I do know that improving my diet (i.e. eating proper meals at the right times instead of eating whatever when I had a spare moment) and getting more sleep improved the quality of my hair. I did once use henna (many years ago) and I vaguely remember my hair becoming thicker... unfortunately I think beyond stopping hair loss you can't gain too much extra thickness. (Perhaps fortunately in my case, as 4.5" of hair is plenty heavy for me as it is!)

[Loviatar]

I went from 3.0 to 4.0 in the early days of my time on LHC. I have kept records since 2005, so I tracked all my changes. I started out with dyed black hair at 3.0, then started taking vitamins, going conefree and using henna. I dont know which helped the most. however I do know that currently I have a 3 inch circ again (I built it back up from the 2.5 I got when I bleached and trashed my hair last year) and if I use heavy cones, I go down to 2.75.

I have 4.5 inches immediately after hennaing (my mix is just henna, water and one cup of tea) and it stays for the next 3-4 days.

I am currently trying to get back to 4.0 using henna, vitamins, oils, staying mostly conefree and trying to grow out my bangs. I have about a half inch circumference on my bangs alone, so that should help.

I can't be bothered with stuff like Monistat :D

[jojo]

All I know is to grow out all your hair so you don't have fringe subtracting from the available thickness. Eat well; be healthy. Avoid stress (haha; like that's ever going to happen).
stress, stop your swearing SM!

[GoddesJourney]

I found that SLS shampoos were thinning my individual strands and making me shed a lot. Hot water makes me shed. You said you're not shedding much, though. The two things that did the most for me were a horn comb (in my opinion, there is nothing better because it doesn't damage my hair at all, not even wet), and a silk pillowcase. I realized there are a lot of baby hairs around my face that were getting damaged and never growing past an inch or two. They're slow growers, but they're currently about three and a half inches for the first time ever. It almost looks like I have thin bangs on the sides.

I would also like to mention that if you're wearing ponytails with tight ponytail bands, stop it immediately. If you really like the ponytail thing, get a piece of silk from the craft store and a piece of elastic and sew a little scrunchy that is hair friendly.

[pdy2kn6]

My thickness improved a great deal with henna and castor oil.



Does anyone know how you use castor oil to increase thickness? I have some but it is so gooey, its quite hard to apply to dry hair...

[teela1978]

What about "body-building" or "for fine hair" conditioners and shampoos, guyz 'n galz? Do they actually do anything for the hair?
They usually work by opening up the cuticle, so each hair looks bigger. You sacrifice shine, but can make your hair look thicker. Protein treatments can help too... by coating each hair (as someone mentioned with their henna treatments), but it doesn't last forever.

I went from about 2" to 3" once my dye grew out, I remember having some pretty massive sheds after each root touch-up. 3" seems to be my upper limit, although a little more would be nice ;)

[jojo]

Does anyone know how you use castor oil to increase thickness? I have some but it is so gooey, its quite hard to apply to dry hair...

Apply to ends and scalp but better if you mix with another oil, almond oil is good. I personally find castor oil a little bit thick and sticky for my hair but lots have had good results from it.

[RancheroTheBee]

I found that SLS shampoos were thinning my individual strands and making me shed a lot. Hot water makes me shed. You said you're not shedding much, though. The two things that did the most for me were a horn comb (in my opinion, there is nothing better because it doesn't damage my hair at all, not even wet), and a silk pillowcase. I realized there are a lot of baby hairs around my face that were getting damaged and never growing past an inch or two. They're slow growers, but they're currently about three and a half inches for the first time ever. It almost looks like I have thin bangs on the sides.

I would also like to mention that if you're wearing ponytails with tight ponytail bands, stop it immediately. If you really like the ponytail thing, get a piece of silk from the craft store and a piece of elastic and sew a little scrunchy that is hair friendly.

I've actually recently stopped using SLS and ponytails. Hopefully, this will make a difference.

[Calista]

I wonder what makes you hit on 4 inches as your goal. Is it because the LHC range of "thick" (iii) hair starts at that circumference? It seems a bit arbitrary to me. Healthy hair is beautiful at any thickness.

[RancheroTheBee]

I wonder what makes you hit on 4 inches as your goal. Is it because the LHC range of "thick" (iii) hair starts at that circumference? It seems a bit arbitrary to me. Healthy hair is beautiful at any thickness.

:p That's pretty much exactly it. Plus, it seems "achievable" to me, and I would also like a thicker braid going on.

[Rapunzal2Be]

Well, for what its worth, I don't see using MegaTek as something that is not easy to continue doing long term/forever. I put it into a hair color bottle and add distilled water until it is a nice consistency just to squeeze out onto my scalp and then massage in. I use it every other night or so. I've had my bottle for about six months now and I still have plenty left! So it isn't that expensive when used this way. If you are willing to try, it may just work for you.

I've seen increased thickness from henndigo and I recently started phasing out SLS. I had been a faithful Nioxin fan for a long time and worried that I would lose the growth I'd gotten since I started it - but now I am going to experiment with going SLS and cone free and see how that goes. I have found that cold water vs. hot has made a difference in my shedding, as well as twice daily brushing of my scalp. There's a thread on brushing where someone linked a blog of a woman who regrew her hair simply by brushing. So you may try brushing and scalp massage if you don't already.

[plainjanegirl]

Well, for what its worth, I don't see using MegaTek as something that is not easy to continue doing long term/forever. I put it into a hair color bottle and add distilled water until it is a nice consistency just to squeeze out onto my scalp and then massage in. I use it every other night or so. I've had my bottle for about six months now and I still have plenty left! So it isn't that expensive when used this way. If you are willing to try, it may just work for you.

I've seen increased thickness from henndigo and I recently started phasing out SLS. I had been a faithful Nioxin fan for a long time and worried that I would lose the growth I'd gotten since I started it - but now I am going to experiment with going SLS and cone free and see how that goes. I have found that cold water vs. hot has made a difference in my shedding, as well as twice daily brushing of my scalp. There's a thread on brushing where someone linked a blog of a woman who regrew her hair simply by brushing. So you may try brushing and scalp massage if you don't already.



So has the megatek helped you gain faster growth or thicker hair or both?

[longhairedfairy]

I haven't measured in a loooong time, but since I've been taking biotin my hair feels a bit thicker near the scalp. YMMV.

[Rapunzal2Be]

So has the megatek helped you gain faster growth or thicker hair or both?

Hard to say because I break the cardinal rule of trying only one new thing at a time to track progress. So I started it at the same time I started Monistat and henndigo and taking MSM and gelatin. And I've used Nioxin for the longest of times.

So, I don't really know how much MegaTek has been working for me, but I'm not unhappy with it. It's not my holy grail though. Actually, I'm going to be trying a sulfur oil as a scalp treatment as soon as I get get the ingredients and mix it up. I may reserve my MegaTek for protein treatments if the sulfur oil goes as well as I am hoping it does.