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We all love the sun, that much is true—but its detrimental effects on our health and beauty cannot be denied. Makeup? Melted. Skin? Burnt. Hair? Fried. We do everything we can to evade damage, but there’s one thing you may be missing in your head-to-toe sun protection routine.
Hair sunscreen by name may sound exclusively like the province of people who find superfluous products to be “necessary.” It sounds about as necessary as a lash-lengthening base coat under your mascara, which is to say, not necessary at all. And yet! If you value the health of your hair—and of course you do—protecting your strands with SPF is an absolute must. Without it, your hair is susceptible to color fade, serious dryness and dehydration, and even premature thinning. And if you’re using hot tools to style before or after sun exposure? Forget about it.
All beauty fanatics who once squeezed lemons on their hair to lift the color in the sun know that the heat and brightness from its rays actually bleach hair. Even if you don’t apply lemon or, god forbid, Sun-In to accelerate the process, the sun is still inflicting damage. Colored hair, virgin hair, chemically processed hair—nobody is safe, which is why a bonafide hair sunscreen is an absolute must.
The good news is that you now have a totally justifiable reason to invest in a new must-have beauty product. You can find a great selection of SPF hair protectants at various prices, from the high-end Kérastase Soleil Aqua-Seal to the (slightly) more affordable Aveda Sun Care Protective Hair Veil. You no longer have any excuse for coming home with brittle, sun-scorched hair after a long day at the beach.
Read more from Daily Makeover: The Best SPF for Every Skin Type
