Dreaming of soft, healthy, Rapunzel-length hair that turns heads when you walk into a room? We get it. Long hair is so fun to style and can add the finishing touch to pretty much any outfit.
But knowing how to stimulate hair growth to achieve the hair of your dreams can be tricky, especially when there seems to be an endless—and often contradictory—list of hair growth suggestions out there.
So, we’re here to debunk some of the myths around how to make your hair grow faster and provide tips on stimulating hair growth through natural methods, proper nutrition, and effective hair care routines. Beautiful floor-length hair, here we come!
Understanding Hair Growth Basics
Before diving into what makes hair grow quicker, it’s worth understanding how it grows. Yep, we’re talking about the natural hair growth cycle. Understanding this process is the first step in growing longer hair faster, so don’t underestimate its importance when it comes to boosting hair growth!
We won’t get too technical but, essentially, the hair growth cycle is split into four stages: anagen, catagen, telogen, and exogen. The anagen phase is also known as the growing phase. This is where the hair follicles in your scalp are pushing out hairs, so they continue to grow longer. Around 85 to 90% of the hairs on your head are in this stage at any one time. This growth slows down and eventually comes to a complete stop in the catagen and telogen phases. In the exogen phase, the hair falls out from the scalp, leaving space for a new one to grow in its place.
But how quickly does this cycle happen? Well, a typical hair growth cycle can last anywhere between two and eight years, so it’s definitely not a quick process! But that doesn’t mean there aren’t ways to stimulate hair and speed up the growing phase. Let’s get stuck into how to do just that…
How to Stimulate Hair Growth Naturally
While there are lots of factors that affect how quickly hair grows, there are also plenty of things you can do to speed up this process. So, if you’re wondering how to stimulate hair growth naturally, you’re in the right place!
Scalp Massages and Derma Rolling for Hair Growth
Stimulating the scalp is a great way to encourage hair growth, and some studies have shown that scalp massages may actually help hair to grow in thicker. Consider giving yourself a regular head massage by gently pressing, stretching, and pinching your scalp for a few minutes.
Derma rollers—sometimes known as microneedle rollers—are another useful tool when you’re wondering how to make your hair grow faster. Derma rolling for hair growth uses lots of tiny, fine needles on the scalp to stimulate blood circulation and increase the production of collagen. Some research has shown that this can in turn lead to the growth of thicker and healthier hair. What’s not to love?
Nourish Your Hair with the Right Diet
When it comes to knowing how to stimulate hair growth, food might be the last thing on your mind. But sticking to a healthy and balanced diet full of nutritious foods is key to achieving that thick, luscious hair you crave.
Any foods rich in nutrients that support hair growth (such as biotin, fatty acids, riboflavin, niacin, iron, or vitamins B12, C, and A) are definitely worth incorporating into your diet. Things like salmon, citrus fruits, eggs, spinach, and oysters are an easy—and tasty—place to start when you’re buying your weekly groceries.
Most importantly, try and stay consistent with eating healthy, nutritious meals. Your hair will thank you for it!
Lifestyle Changes that Help with Hair Growth
Your daily lifestyle can have a big impact on your hair growth. If you’re dealing with high stress at work, your hair is likely to suffer from it, so stress management techniques like daily meditations can be really helpful.
The amount of water you drink each day can also affect your hair growth. To reach the length of your dreams, make sure you stay hydrated and drink water regularly throughout the day.
The Role of Vitamins in Hair Growth
As we’ve already mentioned, getting the right vitamins is essential for long, healthy hair. But what vitamins help in hair growth? And how do they work?
Biotin
Also known as Vitamin B7, biotin is one of the most important vitamins for hair growth. It’s essential to healthy hair because it helps produce keratin in the body, which is key to strengthening hair and protecting it from snapping or breaking.
Zinc
Zinc is an absolute essential when it comes to hair growth. It plays a few different roles, but one of its most important is helping cells to grow and proliferate. Zinc also helps with hair follicle recovery and regulating hormones in the body.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D is incredibly important in the growth and functioning of hair follicles, which is essential to growing healthy hair. A deficiency in Vitamin D may even cause hair loss, so this one is non-negotiable when it comes to your hair growth journey.
Vitamin A
Vitamin A is essential to the production of sebum, which helps to nourish both the hair and scalp. However, it's important not to take too much. Taking more vitamin A than your body needs can cause Vitamin A toxicity, which can actually result in hair loss.
Magnesium
Magnesium is essential for healthy hair as it plays a crucial role in protein synthesis, a process that forms the keratin proteins that make up your hair.
Omega 3’s
Omega 3’s can help to maintain healthy hair follicles by preventing inflammation. They may also improve blood circulation to the scalp, which in turn promotes healthy hair growth.
What Makes Hair Grow Quicker? Expert Suggestions
Here are some of our top tips for easy and actionable ways to boost your hair growth journey.
Benefits of Hair Dusting for Growth
Lots of people avoid trips to the hairdressers when they’re trying to grow their hair out. After all, the thought of your stylist chopping off too much length can be a scary one. But did you know that regular trips to the hairdressers can actually be beneficial to your hair growth journey?
Hair dusting is a cutting technique that can help to get rid of split ends without sacrificing any of the length that you’ve spent ages growing out. And that means your hair will look healthy for much longer!
Protective Hairstyles that Support Healthy Hair
How you style your hair on a day-to-day basis has a big impact on your hair’s ability to grow. To maintain long and healthy hair, it’s worth trying out these handy protective heatless styles and heatless overnight curls.
And if you’re looking for the best hair accessories for these protective styles, look no further than the TELETIES collection. From hair ties and hair clips to silk scrunchies and headbands, we’ve got everything you need.
The Power of Castor Oil
Still wondering how to make your hair grow faster? Castor oil is a powerful tool!
While this oil hasn’t been proven to directly stimulate hair growth, it definitely helps to moisturize the scalp, nourish follicles, and may even reduce dandruff. This results in a super healthy scalp, creating the perfect conditions for hair growth.
Debunking Hair Growth Myths
While there are some great ways to support your hair growth journey, there’s also no shortage of hair growth myths out there. So let’s debunk a few!
While some say that cutting your hair can make it grow faster, this isn’t true. While regular trims are beneficial to the health of your hair, this won’t speed up the hair growth process. And no, dirty hair doesn’t make it grow faster either! In fact, this can even lead to hair loss, so it’s definitely not worth skipping the shampoo.
How Long Does It Take for Your Hair to Grow?
You probably still have one question on your lips: how quickly does hair grow? Well, a healthy head of hair will typically grow by around 0.1 inches in a week, which is about 5 inches every year. But it’s worth keeping in mind that this isn’t the same for everyone, and lots of things can affect the speed of your hair growth. These include your age, hormones, and even your stress levels.
Your Journey to Healthy, Long Hair
When it comes to knowing how to make your hair grow faster, there are plenty of easy ways to boost your hair growth journey. From scalp massages and protective hairstyles to eating the right foods and reducing stress levels, your hair will be looking long, luscious, and healthy in no time.
For even more advice and guidance on how to stimulate hair growth, check out the TELETIMES blog. It’s got loads of top tips on the best ways to look after your hair and product recommendations to supercharge your hair growth.
Looking for unique, fashion forward hair accessories that can help keep your hair long, strong, and healthy? Browse the TELETIES range today.