White dots

[shockinglength]

I've never used heat regulary on my hair. . .two or three times a year. The last time I used heat was in september. I have white dots. . . are they only caused by heat?

[naereid]

No, they are also caused by mechanical breakage and can turn into split ends.

[ArienEllariel]

I have them too and I barely ever use a blowfryer on my hair. In my case, my hair is really fine and easily damaged.

[Avital88]

OOOhh i hate those dots!!! i just removed a lot of them today before they will split!
I hope they will not come back else i really need to trim.

[shockinglength]

Yeah I have been noticing alot less splits after my trim and regular S&D missions. I always cut off the dots when I see them. Has anybody noticed that they break off if you brely touch them?

[deko]

White dots are evil!

You can have them from heat styling or it may be the hair type. You should cut them off with really sharp scissors, they will not mend by using any product.

[lajsa]

A lot of my hairs have white dots at the ends, which makes me panic everytime I see it since that means the hair has broken off beneath that stupid dot. Boo for breakage :p Can white dots travel along the hairshaft on their own or do they turn into split ends in order to kill my hair?

[christine1989]

I haven't had any for years but all it takes for me is literally one time using a straightener and they will crop right up before my eyes. Needless to say back when I straightened daily EVERY hair had a white dot. It seems that my hair can tolerate quite a bit of environmental wear and tear but heat is the one thing it can't handle. I wouldn't totally discount heat use as the culprit for white dots. If your hair is anything like mine once is all it takes to cause damage.

[vampodrama]

I don't use heat on my hair (blowdried maybe 5 years ago, have never used straightener) but I have white dots galore. I believe it's simple mechanical damage, one step before split ends. My hair is very fine and kinda fragile, and tangles if you look at it wrong. Hence the white dots, I believe.

[Igor]

My understanding is that white dots appear white because the fragile inside of the hair strand is exposed. The protective outer cuticle layer has been worn away and the damage will soon either break off or develop into a split. The light reflecting differently on the cuticle and the cortex is what makes the spot appear “white”(That and the area can have a thickening from the developing split)
White dots can be caused by any kind of damage: Mechanical, heat and chemical

[monsterna]

So I was looking all over my hair after this thread and come to find I have loads as well, although I use the hairdryer every day because I have to. Looks like I need a micro trim. I haven't had anyone cut or trim my hair in about a year, so I guess it's time to now. :violin:

[Kristin]

The only time in my life that I had white dots was when I was growing out a spiral perm in junior high. The last 3-4 inches of my hair were full of them. Cut them off and haven't seen them since. They're awful!

[ktani]

They do not always turn into spit ends. Mine do not.

See the links at the end of the article, http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=118.