Taking better care of your hair is vital as you get older – what you got away with when you were twenty just won’t work in your forties or fifties.

Hair changes in a number of ways as you age – here’s some of the things you need to look out for.

We all know this one. The most obvious sign of aging hair is a change in color. As we age, our hair follicles produce less melanin – the pigment that gives hair its color – and hair becomes gray.

Which shade of gray you go depends entirely on the color of your hair before melanin production stopped and can range from dark gunmetal gray hair to a very pale silver gray hair and even combinations of several shades.

Graying can begin as early as in our 30s although some are lucky enough to retain their youthful hair color until well into our 60s. Sadly, the latter isn’t the norm and most of us find that graying starts around the mid 40s mark.

If you want to know when graying will affect your hair – take a look at your parents. If they went gray either early or late you are more likely to follow in their footsteps.

Genetics do play an important role in graying, though, with Caucasians going gray earlier than Asians, for example. Very dark to black hair often goes gray with more style – that lovely blue silver color that needs no enhancement. Again – that’s less usual than the ‘pepper and salt’ mix that most of us get stuck with.

Hair is basically a strand of protein that grows through a follicle – a small opening in the skin. Each hair will usually remain with us for about 4-5 years before it’s shed and replaced with a new hair.

Although genetics determine the thickness of your hair, most people experience some hair loss with age. As we get older the rate of hair growth slows and each strand becomes thinner. The result – thin, fine hair rather than the thick, lush hair we used to toss and flick around for effect in our youth.

For some women – especially those with less thick hair to start with – thinning hair can be quite severe. We lose hair differently than men – female pattern hair loss tends to lead to less density of hair over the entire head resulting in a visible scalp for some.

If thinning hair worries you then look at some of the hair restoration products on the market – there are natural supplements that really work to help you grow thicker and more luxurious hair. Just like you used to have.

Hair consists of around 13% water. As we age our hair loses some of this water and becomes dry. Dry hair is less shiny than hydrated hair so the result is often dull, unhealthy looking hair.

If you’re suffering from dull, dry hair then you should try not to over use heated appliances such as straightening irons, curling tongs and even hair dryers in your hair care routine. Restrict use and use special hair finishing products to protect the hair shaft from heat damage.

You can do a lot to restore the shine and gloss of healthy hair. Starting from the inside out – since diet is so important to hair – you should nourish and condition and give your crowning glory masses of tender loving care.

Keep your hair color topped up – colored hair will look shinier than gray – provided you condition it properly. And whether you’re unashamedly gray or you haven’t “come out” yet – get a great cut regularly.

The upside is that the extra attention will repay you ten fold. There’s nothing better for your self esteem than knowing your hair looks great. Great hair really can make you look ten years younger.

Hair that’s in top condition, cut and colored beautifully – will make you feel a million dollars and make you look years younger.

Hair care products have been slow to cater for the needs of women over 40. The good news is that things are changing as companies wake up to consumer demand and introduce more hair care products just for us.

The even better news is that the right hair care can make a huge impact on the way your hair looks.  With just a bit of extra care you can make a very big difference.

Many things change the way our hair looks as we age.  What we take into our bodies is vital for great hair – what we eat and choose not to eat is important to overall healthy hair.  As well as boosting vitamins and minerals in our daily food – as we get older taking a good quality supplement makes good sense – and there are many supplements specifically targeted at giving you great hair.

For any woman dealing with thinning hair is agonizing.  But there are hair loss solutions out there.  For many of us it’s a question of hair restoration – we want the thick, glossy hair we had in our youth.  For other women with more severe hair loss – finding  hair restoration products that work becomes an urgent need.

And then there is those tricky questions of style – how long or short should you go?  How do you deal with your gray – to dye or not to dye – and when do you stop if you start?

It’s vital to spend time and effort on your hair if you want to look and feel your best as you get older.  Very few things will make you look older than you are than out of condition or badly colored hair.  Hair is more difficult to manage over 40 and needs more tender loving care to look its best.

It is great to know that there are shampoos, conditioners, hair masks, hair sprays and finishing products – all manner of hair care products around.  Whatever you do – don’t give up on your hair as you get older.

With the right hair care and a great hairdresser you can restore your hair to its former glory.

Not only that but dry, brittle or damaged hair will be cruelly revealed by the intense clear light of a summer day. The beginning of summer is just about the best time to give your hair a bit of extra tender loving care.

Add an intensive deep conditioning mask to your weekly hair care routine to restore glossy shine and superb condition.

A hair mask is just like a face mask – a deep conditioning treatment for hair that you leave on longer than your normal conditioner. Depending on how out of condition your hair is – you can use them at every shampoo or just once or twice a week.

Here’s my pick of the best around:

Philosophy Shear Splendor Age-Defying Conditioning Mask – My personal all time favorite – a rich cream conditioner that you apply after washing and towel drying your hair. Leave the product to penetrate your hair and then rinse off thoroughly. Despite it’s richness the cream doesn’t flatten your hair or make it greasy. You’ll notice results the very first time you use it – the formulation includes peptides and a botanical butter base for soft, conditioned hair with a lovely sheen.

Philosophy Shear Splendor Weekly Hair Marinade – This can be used as an additional once a week treatment for chemically treated or damaged hair. Apply to unwashed dry hair and then leave your on your hair for as long as you can – a minimum of 20 minutes and overnight if possible (make sure you protect pillows with a towel). Messy but worth it!

Frederic Fekkai Protein RX Reparative Treatment Mask – An intense hair conditioning treatment from this famous hair stylist. For hair that is heat or color damaged, the cream contains soy and milk protein to strengthen and restore shine. Regular use helps prevent further damage and breakage to hair.

Frederic Fekkai Technician Color Care Mask – Rapidly restores and rejuvenates color treated hair. Beautiful creamy avocado oil based formula – almost good enough to eat – restores silky texture to damaged hair.

Kerastase Resistance Masque VolumactiveThis is an unusual hair mask in that it provides deep conditioning AND restores thickness and vitality. Specifically for fine and vulnerable hair which can be flattened by many rich conditioners.

Get started now with any of these superb hair masks and continue the treatment right through the summer months. Your hair will look silky-soft, glossy and impeccably conditioned – whatever the sun, sand and salt do to it!

Get it wrong and you can end up looking years older – nothing is more aging than flat heavily dyed hair.

But a great hair color job can add warmth and radiance to your looks and give your confidence a turbo charged boost.

If you’re using a hair coloring kit at home the choice of hair color becomes even more difficult without the advice of a professional color stylist.

So – before you grab for the hair color that looks ‘about right for me’ – stop and take some time out to think about what you really need.

Here’s five tips to help you get the hair color that’s right for you

Stick to your base hair color as far as possible to That means your natural “base” hair color as it is now – not what it was like in your 20’s or teens.

Don’t go too blonde or you could look too pale all over. Your hair needs to frame your face and give a subtle contrast to your skin tone. Add some soft low lights to the overall color to give depth and tone.

Stop at light brown or light auburn if you have brown hair – you could look washed out. Reds are very harsh for most complexions so try ash browns. Use lowlights and highlights to lift the hair color – mid browns can look dull.

Lighten darker or deep brown/black hair – up to three tones away from the original color with additional highlights for a more realistic less flat look. Don’t go any darker than a deep chocolate brown or dark auburn. Hair color that’s too dark is an unnatural contrast with mature faces and can look a bit witch like.

Take care with red – covering up gray with red is very hard to do well since red emphasizes any ruddiness in your complexion. If you are naturally pale and fine skinned like Susan Sarandon – a natural redhead anyway then you may be an exception. Take the advice of a good hair colorist.

Overall – the important message is to keep your hair color natural and subtle and use lights to lift the color – the end result will give you a much younger look and make you feel great.

The instructions are right there in the pack – and yet most of us choose to ignore them.

Hair color products nowadays are safe, effective and mostly foolproof.

Yet every year hair color disasters happen with hair color kits because people like you and me chose not to follow a few simple steps.

You need to do two tests – a patch test and a strand test. You can do them both at the same time to avoid remixing the product. For the patch test you apply a small amount of mixed product to an area of skin usually the inside of your forearm and wait 48 hours for any sign of allergic response.

For the strand test you apply the product to a small piece of your hair to check the final hair color result and how long it takes to develop.

Of course your’e longing to get started and see the new you – do you really need to test? We’ve all been there – ignored the sensible instructions on the packaging. Well – here’s some very good reasons why you should do a test before you color your hair.

Hair color results vary – especially for gray hair or hair that has been previously bleached. If you don’t do the strand test you might find out too late. Then you’ll end up spending a lot more time and money correcting the bad hair result afterwards.

Manufacturers vary their formulations – you could react to a new ingredient in the product. Not only that – even if you have used the product before – your body changes. It’s very common to suddenly become sensitized to certain stimulants later in life. Don’t assume everything will be OK because you’ve used it before.

It will only hold you up 48 hours – surely not too long to make sure you get it right?

You can complain to the product manufacturers. If something goes wrong you have that right of redress – if you didn’t follow the instructions on the pack – forget it!

So be sensible – next time you have a hair color session at home – follow the manufacturer’s instructions and you’ll avoid any unexpected problems and get the result you want..

Those grey hairs just keep on coming. You may start off in your early 40’s with a light sprinkling of gray and by the time you’re in your mid 50’s you have half a head full of gray hair.

And of course – the more gray hair you have the more difficult and time consuming it is to cover it up.

So – do you go for hair color at home or do you find the best hair salon in town?

Cost is definitely an issue here. More than likely it will be much cheaper to do your own hair color at home. Even the most expensive hair color treatment is unlikely to set you back more than $30.

Getting your color done in a good hair salon will cost a whole lot more. Nowadays hair color stylists are highly trained and hair color options in salons involve multi-tonal effects – much more flattering and natural for most over 40’s.

Trips to the hair salon on a regular basis will add up fast – especially when you have to go back regularly to get those roots done.

Don’t forget the mess factor. Applying permanent color to your own hair – as well as highlights – can be a messy business taking up almost as much time as a visit to the hair salon.

Shampoo-in hair colorant is easy enough to do in your bathroom – but multi-tonal color is something else. Applying highlights to your own hair is hard, particularly when it comes to the top and back of your head. For the best results you want fine strands of hair picked out with lights just as the sunlight naturally would.

Try achieving that with two mirrors, messy bleaching cream and only one pair of hands!

Then of course there’s the potential for disaster at home. Judging the final effect can be very difficult for a total amateur with only a bad photo and a misleading name on the packet. Grey hair can be resistant to color – other hair may be much more porous – you may end up with an unusual black stripey effect when you had natural honey brown in mind.

And if you do make a bad mistake at home you will probably have to get the salon to fix it – your economical approach may cost you much more than you bargained for.

Of course you can get over this problem with help from a good friend. Most real friends will enjoy helping out but remember this isn’t just a one time request. How’s your friend going to feel a year later after six hair color session?

Full head bleaching is definitely one for the professionals. Peroxide is serious stuff and if something goes wrong it could result in hair loss or severe damage to your scalp.

Good advice if you want to maintain your hair color at home is to talk to your salon first. Get them to do the first treatment so you get a hair color you like and a really professional finish. Whilst you’re at the salon, pick up tips and techniques for maintaining your hair color at home afterwards.

If you talk to your hair salon first you could end up with the best of both worlds – a combined approach that will give you a professional hair color result AND low cost maintenance at home !