If you’ve experienced dry ends in your strands you know what a downer they can be. Hair that’s split and dull, with little to no flexibility and breaks super easily is less than ideal when it comes to styling. And the bad news is, once dry ends appear, they’ll only get worse until you deal with them. Regardless of how they got there, whether from over styling with chemicals and heat, or just a lack of moisture, once frizzy dry ends can make your hair unmanageable. But we’ve got good news, too. Unless your ends are damaged beyond repair, they’re likely salvageable. And more good news- it’s not as hard as you think. We’re talking about the common causes of dry hair and dry ends ahead. Plus telling you how to fix dry ends with the best products and tips. This is your comprehensive guide to repairing and restoring your hair. Keep reading for everything you need to get your strands back into shape.

Properly hydrated hair should look and feel shiny and smooth, with lots of bounce and movement. Dry hair lacks moisture, and appears dull, brittle and frizzy, with split-ends, flyaways and breakage. Since you’re here, you’ve likely experienced the latter and asked yourself ‘why are the ends of my hair so dry?’. These are some of the most common causes of dry hair ends.

Chemical Processes: The harsh chemicals in hair dyes, bleach, perms and relaxers are incredibly damaging to your strands, especially if you over-do it.

Heat Styling: One of the major causes of dry hair and split ends is heat damage from hot styling tools, which strips the hair of its moisture.

Over-washing: Washing your hair too often can also strip your strands of their natural oils resulting in dry hair and dry ends.

Using the Wrong Products: Using hair care products not formulated for your hair type, or worse, that include harmful toxins, is another cause of dry ends.

 Aging: As you age, the natural oils in your hair become depleted, and hormonal changes due to age can also interfere, causing dry hair ends.

 Environmental Conditions: Overexposure to the sun, extreme heat and cold, and low humidity can all cause dry ends and dry hair.

Health Problems: Eating disorders like anorexia nervosa or bulimia and hormonal problems like hypoparathyroidism and hypothyroidism can also result in dry hair.

Your at-home hair habits may also be causing your dry hair ends. This can include washing your hair too often, using a harsh shampoo, blow-drying too often, heat damage from straighteners or a curling iron and harsh chemicals like dyes, perms, and relaxers. Avoid excessive blow-drying, over-dying, heat-styling, shampooing daily, and vigorously towel-drying hair, as these could lead to dry hair ends.

When it comes to how to fix dry ends it’s all about repairing damage. That starts with improving the overall health of your hair and trimming harsh hair habits. Let’s take a closer look below.

The most important thing you can do to keep your hair healthy is eat a balanced diet and stay hydrated. Getting the right nutrients every day is what keeps your hair strong and shiny. Make sure you’re getting lots of omega-3s and antioxidants, as well as Vitamins A, E and D; iron; healthy fats; carbohydrates; and protein. These, along with drinking lots of water, are especially important for your hair health.

Consistent hair care and regular hair health checks can help prevent or reduce dry and damaged strands. Make sure you’re following a routine for your hair type, using high quality, sulfate-free, hydrating products. These are our top tips for repairing dry, split ends of hair.

Get Regular Trims: It may seem counterintuitive but regular trims keep your hair healthy. Once the ends of your hair split, it will continue to travel up the length of the strand. So trimming your ends before they split is a must. A good rule of thumb is to get your hair trimmed every two to three months to avoid dry ends.

Shampoo Less: Frequent shampooing strips your hair’s natural oils, which they need to stay shiny and soft. Especially if your ends are dry, try to go as long as you can in between shampoo days. When you do use shampoo, avoid formulas with sulfates, which strip your hair’s moisture even more.

Never Skip Conditioner: Follow every single shampoo with conditioner. Conditioner closes the hair’s cuticle after the shampoo opens it. So skipping conditioner makes a huge difference in the way your hair looks and feels after washing.

Deep Condition: Especially if your strands are color-treated, heat-styled, chemically straightened, or breakage-prone you must keep your hair and ends hydrated. There's a Davines hair maskfor every type of hair or occasion; from instant shine to deep nourishment and repair.

Use High Grade Tools: Investing in quality hair styling tools is essential for maintaining the health of your hair. These tools are designed with technology and materials that distribute heat evenly and reduce damage to the hair. They also have adjustable heat settings, but you should never turn them up to the max to avoid burning your hair.

There are also some simple at-home practices you can adopt to help heal your dry, damaged strands. Things like sleeping on a silk or satin pillowcase, or wrapping your hair in a silk scarf before bed can help you avoid breakage and split ends while you sleep. Managing your hair’s exposure to heat, like avoiding hot showers, lowering the temperature of your hair styling tools and prepping with heat protectants can also help reduce dry ends. Finally, adding hair-loving ingredients like apple cider vinegar and coconut oil into your routine is a great way to help bring the shine and luster back to your dry hair.

If you're still asking yourself why the ends of my hair are dry and frizzy you’re likely not using the right products to protect your hair from damage. Our favorite products to repair and restore dry damaged ends are conditioners and serums. All of our deeply hydrating conditioners were formulated to compliment your everyday hair routine, to restore, refresh and smooth your hair for daily nourishment. Our NOUNOU and MOMO lines were specifically developed to nourish and moisturize highly-processed, damaged hair, dry or dehydrated hair. Our Oi Oil makes both the perfect leave-in conditioner and serum for dry ends, adding shine and softness to hair while also detangling and fighting frizz.

Dry hair lacks moisture, and appears dull, brittle and frizzy, with split-ends, flyaways and breakage. And whether it’s from using chemicals and heat, harsh hair habits or just a lack of moisture, once dry ends appear in your strands, they’ll only get worse until you deal with them. The good news is we got you covered. So stop asking yourself ‘why are the ends of my hair so dry?’ and rethink your routine with some gentler practices and products, because with proper care, split ends can be managed, treated, and even reversed. Follow our tips for how to fix dry hair ends including staying hydrated and eating a hair healthy diet, consistent care and regular trims, protecting your hair while you sleep, avoiding chemicals and heat and using only high grade hair products to repair and restore like the ones from Davines. Our damage correcting and anti-breakage formulas are free of harmful toxins and use natural ingredients to restore your hair's true texture. Not sure where to start? Take this hair quizto see which products work best for your hair! 

by Jaclyn LaBadia, featured contributor