HAIR THAT SHINES

Nothing enhances a little girl's confidence than a mane of shiny, glorious hair.

Often parents don't pay attention to their daughter's hair problems. They believe their children are too young to be concerned about beauty problems, and this is not the age to worry about such things. However, children do worry, and what's worse is that there is nothing they can do about it since they depend on you for guidance. So if you ignore your child's wild, unruly, frizzy hair, and believe that keeping hair clean and tangle free is enough at this age, you should know that perhaps your child is the butt of hair jokes at school. Children can be cruel, and you don't want your child to be taunted for her hair when such taunts can so easily be avoided.

Curly hair is far easier to maintain than straight hair. It needs to be shampooed only once a week, or once in five days. This is because curly hair is dry, and washing hair more often will dry it out even further. When shampooing your child's hair, concentrate on the scalp and not on the hair. Massage the shampoo well into the scalp, and then wash off. Every other day wash your daughter's hair with conditioner, and no shampoo. This increases moisture in your child's hair, while removing dust or dirt from the scalp. Don't massage conditioner into your child's scalp.

Comb her curly hair after a wash, when it is still damp. Never brush curls as the curls will open up and lead to frizzies. Similarly, don't comb dry, curly hair, only comb it when it is still wet. Never, ever flip your child's curly hair upside down while combing. This is certain to produce frizz. As you will be combing her hair when it is wet, don't worry about tangles. Finger-comb dry hair when required.

Your child should apply a leave-in conditioner to her curly hair everyday, to reduce frizz.

Acid soluctions like vinegar or lemon juice shrink and harden your hair's cuticle cells. This causes the cells to lay flat and well-alligned, causing a better reflecting surface. As a result hair starts shining. So if you want your daughter's hair to shine, try this: Squeeze a lemon into a mug of water or add a tablespoon of vinegar to a mug of water and give your daughter's hair a final rinse with this solution. (Don't wash off.)

Egg is excellent for hair. Not only is it a great conditioner and nourisher, but it also increases shine. Apply egg to your daughter's hair once a week, and wash off after half an hour with cold water.

Mayonnaise, which is made of oil, egg and vinegar, is also excellent for the hair. In addition, mayonnaise also helps getting rid of lice. Lice breathe through their legs, and applying mayonnaise blocks their air passage, suffocating them. You may not be able to get rid of nits (lice eggs) in this manner though. Make sure you keep checking your child's hair regularly for lice.

If your daughter's hair is straight, cut it in one length. This gives a better reflecting surface and adds shine to the hair. Hair that is cut in layers reduces shine.