Now that it is officially fall, cooler weather is inevitable.

With cooler weather, comes dry skin and brittle hair and nails – not exactly what I look forward to each year.

Do you suffer from dry, brittle hair and nails in the cooler months?

If so, you are in the right place!

I will let you know the reasons why your hair and nails take a hit in the fall/winter and let you in on our tried and true secret to keeping your hair and nails strong all year long.

WHAT CAUSES BRITTLE HAIR & NAILS?

Before you can start curing brittle hair and nails, you need to know what the problem is.

DIET

For some, it’s just diet. Without enough calcium, your bones, teeth, hair and nails can all start to weaken and snap.

Brittle hair and nails can also be a symptom of vitamin D deficiency because the body can’t absorb enough calcium without the vitamin D.

Makes sense. In the fall/winter, there are less chances to see the sun and absorb your vitamin D the natural way, so, of course your hair and nails will be weak and brittle.

A way to solve this deficiency is to add more vitamin and mineral rich foods to your daily diet.

Foods such as:

• Dairy – Milk, cheese, greek yogurt and cottage cheese
• Greens – Kale, spinach, collard greens, broccoli and okra
• Fish – Sardines, salmon, perch, tuna, mackerel and rainbow trout
• Nuts & Beans – Soybeans, white beans and almonds
• Beef & Eggs – Beef liver and egg yolks

Add in some of these calcium and vitamin D rich foods to your daily diet to help aid your body in repairing your dry and brittle hair/nails.

If you find it difficult to consistently get enough from your diet, you can always take a vitamin D or calcium supplement, just be sure to run it by your doctor first to make sure it is okay for you.

DAILY WEAR & TEAR

Another reason for brittle nails is the way they are used throughout the day.

A common misconception is that the nails are tools. People will use them to open cans/packages or to scratch into material.

The nails aren’t designed to be used as tools or to be tapped on tables. This weakens the ENTIRE nail bed and can lead to the nails growing at a slower rate.

You will also find that the nails snap and they can break at odd angles, causing pain and bleeding.

So, if you find yourself using your nails as tools, try and stop this habit to give your nails a chance at growing stronger.

Your hair also takes a beating each and every day. If you are like me, you enjoy a hot shower every morning and part of that shower is washing my hair with shampoo and conditioner. I then blow dry it and use a flat iron to get the style I want. Every. Single. Day.

This daily torture isn’t doing my hair any favors. Learning this and seeing it firsthand, I now sometimes let my hair air dry or I skip washing my hair every now and then to let the natural oils sink in. This new routine is definitely hard to get used to, but it’s worth it for shinier, healthier looking hair.

HEALTH PROBLEMS

There are times that brittle nails are a symptom of a more serious condition.

For example, it could be the early signs of fungal nail infections. No matter how many treatments you use on the nails, the brittleness won’t go away without treatment for the infection.

Psoriasis and eczema can spread into the nails, along with many other skin conditions.

It’s worth finding out if this has happened with your nails.

There are other more serious conditions that involve brittle hair and nails as a symptom:

• Hypothyroidism
• Eating Disorders
• Biotin Deficiency
• Anemia
• Hormone Imbalance
• Androgenetic Alopecia
• Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)

If you are at all concerned about the severity of your brittle hair and nails, talk to your doctor about what else could possibly be going on with your body. Blood work to check your thyroid, hormone levels and vitamin deficiencies may be in order to make sure everything is working as it should.

The only way to completely clear up the condition is to treat the main problem. Your outward appearance always tells a story about what is going on inside – remember that!

OUR TRIED & TRUE SECRET TO KEEPING YOUR HAIR AND NAILS STRONG

There are some really easy home remedies you can use on your hair and nails to keep them looking healthier.

For example, coconut oil rubbed into your hands and nails can help tremendously. The coconut has antibacterial and anti-fungal properties. The oil gets right into the nail beds, healing from the inside out. The vitamins will also help to strengthen the nail beds so the nails look brighter and healthier than ever before.

You can also use coconut oil as a natural way to help your hair grow longer, thicker and faster. The vitamins and essential fatty acids naturally found in coconut oil nourish the scalp and help to remove sebum build-up from hair follicles.

Lemon and honey are also excellent choices for brightening your nails, fighting fungus and providing vitamins that your nails need to grow strong. Just massage the combination into your nails and then rinse off with some warm water. Dry your nails and repeat this conditioning treatment on a daily basis.

But, better than all of these remedies is Oolong tea!

Tea? How in the world does tea help hair and nails?

Well, Oolong tea contains a high amount of antioxidants which fight free radicals.

Free radicals arise from things like air pollution, poor diet, radiation, cigarette smoke and herbicides. All of these can spawn free radicals to form in your body.

Normally, the body can handle free radicals, but if antioxidants are unavailable, or if the free-radical production becomes excessive, damage can occur.

Of particular importance is that free radical damage accumulates with age.

In order to keep your body healthy from the inside out and continue fighting against these free radicals on a daily basis, drinking Oolong Tea is super important!

It’s so easy to simply brew up two cups per day and know that you are doing your body good!

But, make sure you are only drinking PURE, PREMIUM Oolong tea with NO pesticides, NO GMO’s, NO artificial flavors/colors, NO soy or corn and NO fillers. 

How can you be sure you are drinking this kind of tea? 

Be sure to purchase from a company like Okuma Nutritionals, who continually tests their tea to ensure these harmful additives are nowhere to be found in your tea cup.

Just take a look at what has been found in popular grocery store brand teas.

Our Traditional Wu-Long Slimming Tea ranks high on the charts for polyphenols and antioxidants and is perfect for strengthening your hair and nails all year long.

But, if you want to up the ante with even MORE antioxidants than our AMAZING Wu-Long, try out our delicious Kenyan Oolong SlimTea with 3x the amount of antioxidants – the highest antioxidant tea on the market. 

Our Kenyan Oolong is DELICIOUS on it’s own, but it’s even better in our Pumpkin Spice Oolong Latte!

Click here for the recipe and enjoy the tastes of fall in this antioxidant packed beverage!

Do you have any home remedies for dry, brittle hair and nails this time of year? If so, I’d love to hear about them in the comments below!

Yours in Health & Happiness,

Chrissy

{{cta(‘1b59c6fd-1324-40de-bc3a-ccb0d56d83e3’)}}