It is completely natural to be concerned about your hair health—we devote a fair amount of time to maintaining our hair, scouting out the perfect hair care products, styling and grooming our strands, and booking regular salon appointments, all in the quest for healthy, luscious locks.

But it's easy to wonder if our routine habits are doing more harm than good in the long haul. What if the secret to a great head of hair now and well into your twilight years isn't what you're putting into your routine—but what you're doing between washes? Hair loss can be triggered by factors like genetics and hormones; however, daily wear and tear also contributes to follicle stress and breakage.

Noticing extra shedding? It might be time to look at your daily routine. You may have wondered or guessed that a few things you do could affect your hair. While many concerns about daily habits are rooted in myths, some should be avoided due to genuine, albeit manageable, risks.

Don't know what you do every day that could be triggering damage and thinning?

Let's clear up a few things to make sure you aren't engaging in habits that could be impacting your hair health or quietly triggering hair loss.

#1 Washing Mistakes

How often you wash, what you use, and even the quality of your water matter!

Is it better to wash hair less frequently? Not necessarily. Underwashing causes scalp buildup, which can clog hair follicles, restrict blood flow, and cause inflammation. This can potentially weaken the hair roots and accelerate shedding, making hair appear thinner.

Does washing my hair every day cause hair loss? No, daily shampooing removes dirt, oil, pollutants, dead skin cells, and product buildup, keeping your hair follicles and scalp healthy. However, using a sulfate-free shampoo is recommended to help prevent dehydration and keep your scalp and hair moisturized. Any hair you see in the drain was likely already in its shedding phase.

The Fix: Know your scalp. Those who have an oily scalp, sweat a lot, or use styling products will want to wash more often than those with dry scalps.

If your hair looks greasy or stringy a day or two post-shampoo, regular washing with a balancing deep clean shampoo for oily hair is essential to help prevent buildup that can impede follicle health. But if your scalp feels tight or itchy and your hair looks dull, coarse, or lifeless, a moisturizing shampoo for dry hair and scalps is a better choice.

Why should I avoid sulfates? Sulfates can strip natural oils, making hair dry and brittle, which may lead to breakage that looks like thinning.

What about using dry shampoo? Dry shampoo is a fabulous, and dare we say, convenient way to extend a blowout. But it's important to practice moderation. Overusing dry shampoo and skipping more than a few actual wash days in a row creates a buildup of product and natural oils on the scalp, which can cause follicular clogging, inflammation, folliculitis, or scalp acne, and ultimately lead to increased shedding.

The Fix: Keep dry shampoo as a quick fix to be used once or twice between shampoos, rather than as a replacement.

Should I invest in a water filter?

As water supplies are often fraught with bacteria, viruses, heavy metals, and minerals, local water utilities and certified water treatment operators add disinfectants (like chlorine and chloramine) to protect you and keep you safe. However, these disinfectants can strip away natural oils, wrecking your hair (and skin!) The other nasties can clog hair follicles and leave a filmy residue that blocks moisture, leading to breakage and irritation. A shower filter can help eliminate these harsh chemicals, impurities, minerals, and sediment, to keep your hair healthier and brighter.

#2 Brushing Wet Hair

Does brushing wet hair cause it to fall out? Although brushing wet hair is not advised, it doesn't cause the follicles to stop producing hair, or trigger hair fall or hair loss.

However, when hair is wet, it's at its most vulnerable. As wet hair is more elastic, fragile, and prone to snapping, vigorous brushing can cause breakage.

How you brush also affects your hair. While it's tempting to start at the top of your head and rake a brush down to the ends, ripping through tangles from the top down creates unnecessary tension, causing breakage along the hair shaft and pulling weaker hairs out right from the root.

The Fix: Always start detangling from the ends and work your way up to the roots.

Using a wide-tooth comb or a flexible wet brush, along with a good conditioner, is recommended to provide some slip and prevent it from snapping or breaking.

#3 Drying Don'ts

Does towel-drying my hair damage it? Yes, if you rub it aggressively. Friction can roughen the cuticle and snap fragile, wet strands. Using a blowdryer on a high-heat setting can also damage hair and trigger breakage. High heat evaporates the hair's water content and damages the cuticle.

The Fix: Before even reaching for any sort of towel, gently squeeze out as much excess water as possible. Then, instead of a heavy towel which can tug on your hair follicles, pat your hair dry with a microfiber towel which absorbs water incredibly fast without the need for friction or wringing.

Pro Tips: No microfiber towel? Even an old, soft cotton t-shirt is a better choice. Then air dry if possible. And, when you need to look polished and can't skip the blowdryer, use a thermal protectant and the lowest effective temperature setting.

#4 Ditching Hats

Does wearing a hat every day cause baldness? While extremely tight hats can cause friction or, in rare cases, traction-related scalp irritation, wearing a hat won't cause hair loss. Since UV rays can break down keratin, dry and weaken the hair, making it more vulnerable to breakage, which can resemble thinning, wearing a hat is actually a good thing.

The Fix: Throw on a hat before heading outdoors to help protect your scalp from UV rays, which can cause sunburn and scalp inflammation, a physical shock that could trigger temporary hair loss known as telogen effluvium.

#4 Styling Choices

Can how I style my hair cause hair loss? How you style your hair can negatively impact it. We all love the convenience of tossing our hair up into a messy bun or rocking a high sleek ponytail. But if a tight updo is your signature daily look, you might be setting yourself up for hair fall.

Tight ponytails, braids, buns, or extensions worn for long periods can lead to traction alopecia. Wait, what is "traction alopecia," and is it contagious?

Although it may stem from the spread of hairstyling trends, it isn't contagious! This mechanical type of hair loss, caused by the constant pulling or tension on the hair roots, stresses the hair follicles around your hairline. Over time, it can permanently damage the follicle, leading to thinning hair and a receding hairline.

The Fix: Swap out tight styles for low, loose ponytails or buns, and traditional elastics for silk or satin scrunchies and give your hair a break by wearing it down a few days a week.

#5 Lifestyle Habits

Many of our daily habits can negatively impact the state of our hair, from lighting up to ignoring stress and de-prioritizing sleep.

Does smoking affect my hair? Yes. Smoking can impair circulation and damage the DNA of hair follicles, contributing to premature aging and thinning.

Can stress really make my hair fall out? Yes. Significant emotional stress can trigger telogen effluvium, which pushes a large number of follicles into a resting phase, leading to sudden shedding.

Is hair loss linked to a lack of sleep? Don't worry, a few late nights won't make you bald. However, chronic sleep deprivation stresses the body and exacerbates other factors that lead to hair thinning.

The Fix: If you're stressed about your hair, put your health first. Explore stop-smoking aids, stress management techniques, and sleep hygiene to address lifestyle habits that could be getting in the way of your healthiest hair possible.

The Takeaway

Thick, healthy hair isn't just about the products you buy; it's about the daily habits you cultivate. By making a few small, mindful shifts in how you wash, dry, and style your hair and what you use to take care of it (hint: hair loss prevention products are always in style!), you can protect your follicles. At minimum, incorporating a hair loss serum into your routine is an effective way to help prevent and manage thinning hair.

Disclaimer: If you notice sudden, patchy hair loss, a significant change in hair texture, or thinning that doesn't seem linked to styling or lifestyle, it is best to consult a dermatologist. Many types of hair loss have treatable medical causes that fall outside of daily habits.