Natural Moisturizers Can Help Repair Dry Hair and Split Ends.

Your hair is dry lifeless, lacking luster, and maybe brittle. Perhaps you also have the "end" result of months of dry hair-split ends.

Why?It could be genetics: You were born with curly or frizzy hair, which tends to be dry because it's overly porous. Perhaps you're using harsh shampoos that strip your sebaceous glands, the oil-generating glands in your scalp. Maybe your diet is lacking in nutritional factors that moisten hair from the roots up, or you've dried out your hair with too much sun exposure, blow-drying, or chemical treatments such as coloring and perms.

You can't do much about genetics, of course, but alternative practitioners offer many different ways to counter some of those other factors and restore luster and softness to your hair, says Mary Beth Janssen, a beauty and wellness consultant and aromatherapist in Chicago. Here are some of their suggestions.

AVOCADO: A Good "Food" for Dry Hair
A conditioning hair treatment with avocado can optimize the delivery of protein to the hair shaft, thus strengthening and moisturizing dry hair, Janssen says. "A lack of protein makes hair brittle, and a lack of moisture makes it look dry," she says. Here's what she recommends.

You'll need a peeled ripe avocado, 1 teaspoon of wheat germ oil, and 1 teaspoon of jojoba oil. Combine the ingredients in a medium bowl. Then apply the mixture to your shampooed hair and scalp, massaging it into your scalp with your fingertips in small, circular motions and gently spreading the mixture from the midshaft to the ends of your hair. Finally, cover your hair with a plastic bag.
"The body heat will accentuate the conditioning," says Janssen. Leave the mixture on for 15 to 30 minutes, then rinse thoroughly. Use this treatment once a week.

AROMA THERAPY: For More Moisture
The essential oils of aromatherapy can help restore luster to dry hair, says Janssen. She recommends a regular scalp and hair massage with a mixture consisting of eight drops of cedar wood oil, eight drops of clary sage oil, and four drops of lavender oil in a base of 2 ounces of jojoba oil.
"Jojoba oil helps regulate oil production in the sebaceous glands," she says. The clary sage and cedar wood oils also help regulate oil production, while the lavender is thought to stimulate circulation to the scalp, improving the condition of your hair. These oils also nourish and moisturize the hair itself.
Once a week, massage the mixture into your scalp and hair, leaving it on for 35 to 40 minutes or even overnight (cover your hair with a sleeping cap to protect your pillow).

PROTEIN: A Post-Shampoo Treatment
Protein treatments help fortify and strengthen the hair shaft, says Janssen. "They are particularly good for dry, fragile, or brittle hair types." She recommends using plain gelatin, combining 1 tablespoon with 1 cup of water and letting it gel slightly. "Don't let it set all the way," she cautions.
When the gelatin is partially set, add 1 teaspoon of apple-cider vinegar and two drops each of jasmine, clary sage, and rosemary essential oils, then mix well. After your shampoo, work the mixture through your hair and into your scalp and leave it on for 5 to 10 minutes. Do this treatment once a week.

FATTY ACIDS: Oil Your Hair from the Inside Out
Fatty acids found in oils such as flaxseed, evening primrose, or black currant seed oils are thought to nourish sebaceous glands, moisturizing hair from the inside out, says Earl Mindell, Ph.D., a nutritionist and pharmacist in Beverly Hills.

"A lack of essential fatty acids can contribute to dry hair," he says, so if your hair is dry, he recommends taking 1 teaspoon daily of one of the oils listed above.

Add Aloe To Your Shampoo.
The herb aloe is incredibly healing and moisturizing and helps normalize dry hair, says Mary Beth Janssen, a beauty and wellness consultant and aromatherapist in Chicago. She recommends adding I teaspoon of 99 percent pure aloe gel to your shampoo and massaging it into your scalp for 5 minutes or so when you wash your hair. Be sure to rinse thoroughly.