Sea salt has many therapeutic benefits, but they aren’t as beneficial when it comes for your hair.

It may cause your scalp to become dry and rob your hair of moisture, causing coloured hair to lose its luster and shine.

So, if you have just dyed your hair and are considering a much-needed beach vacation, think about the remedies and risks of the saltwater on your hair.

sea swimming

Ocean water on colour-treated hair

The chemicals used when applying colour to your hair may be removed and stripped away by the seawater during swimming after you’ve dyed your hair.

Your hair loses its natural oils and hydration due to the salt in the water, which causes it to become dry and brittle. Your hair’s colour gets taken along when the saline does this!

If you’re going to swim in the ocean, you should wear a swim hat. However, staying away from salt water is just as beneficial and perhaps more advised.

How long you need to wait to go swimming after colouring your hair?

Nobody wants to miss out on experiencing silky sand between their toes, cool seawater on their cheeks, or breath-taking sunsets at night.

However, if you have coloured hair, you may be reluctant to accept a beach vacation invitation. After colouring your hair, you may enjoy the waves if you wait for some time.

You should generally wait 3 to 4 days before exposing your hair to saltwater as a general rule.

The colours in your hair may settle if you give yourself extra time. Your hair will appreciate it more if you wait a little longer.

Which Hair Colours Are Most Damaged by Saltwater?

Regardless of whether the hair has been coloured or not, seawater will not normally work properly with any type of hair. But certain colours are more vulnerable to damage than others.

In saltwater and chlorine water, blonde hair or bleached hair will often become dry and vulnerable to fading.

The yellow pigments may take on a greenish hue due to the blue pigments in saltwater and chlorine.

Blonde colouration is far more likely than other hues to undergo alteration or degradation. However, hair that has been coloured burgundy, blue, black, brown is likewise vulnerable to fading and damage.

How to Prevent Saltwater Damage to Your Hair

There are moments when the ocean is just too pleasant and tempting to give it a miss. If you have coloured hair, you don’t have to partake in all the fun.

Here are some tips for maintaining your hair healthy and lustrous while preventing saltwater damage.

Using Sunscreen

The majority of individuals believe that sunscreen is solely for the skin! However, that is not the case. Just like your skin, your hair needs to be protected from harm.

Try spraying some SPF at the hair roots before you go to the beach to add an additional layer of defense against UV rays and saltwater.

Similarly with your skin, don’t forget to apply SPF to your hair throughout the day. Even though your hair may feel sticky, having dry, brittle hair is certainly far worse.

Lather with some oil

Your skin and hair may become dry and damaged if you spend a lot of time in the sun, chlorine, or ocean saltwater.

But if you regularly apply oil to your hair, you may avoid the damage. Applying either avocado or coconut oil to your hair has great benefits.

Additionally, since it contains no chemicals or additives, it is a perfect way to maintain the natural moisture in your hair.

Since oil is quickly absorbed and keeps your hair sleek, moisturized, and hydrated, using it is especially crucial before you enter the water or spend the day at the beach.

Wet your hair before heading to the saltwater.

Your hair follicles quickly absorb the saline when you are swimming in salt water. Your hair may gain an additional layer of protection if you rinse it with clean water.

Once saltwater reaches your hair, this layer can reduce the amount of saline absorbed.

Go to one of the outdoor showers on most beaches and give yourself a presoak!

Maintain a dry hair

Keeping your hair dry is one simple way to prevent salt water from getting into it.

Since you might not be able to feel the ocean on your hair as much on your face, this could be a bummer. However, keeping your hair up in a bun or ponytail can prevent the salt water from getting to it and keep out saline, which absorbs the hair moisture and causes it to be dry.

Rinse your hair right away.

If you don’t thoroughly rinse your hair after swimming in salt water, it will quickly absorb the salt.

Your hair may end up with salt in it, which will take away its colour and moisture.

To get as much salt water out of your hair as possible after your swimming in the ocean, you should rapidly rinse it out with clean water once you get out of the water.

Adding a deep conditioning regimen.

Our hair occasionally requires more care than the usual shampoo, condition, and rinse regimen.

As you are spending longer time in the sun, the ocean or the swimming pool, your hair may lose its natural protein and slowly become dry or dull.

Your hair might be pleading for some life to be injected back into it. Strength and moisture can be recovered using a deep conditioner formulated with natural ingredients and protein oils.

Additionally, it can act as a protection barrier on the surface of your hair strands to keep out potentially harmful elements like sea salt.

Make use of a spray-in conditioner

When spending the day at the beach, a spray-in conditioner can come in very handy. You can carry your conditioner with you and use it whenever necessary.

A leave-in conditioner that you spray on your hair gives it additional moisture and protection.

In light of this, you might wish to use a spray-in conditioner after showering, before you enter saltwater, and throughout your beach day.

Treatments for Colour-treated, Damaged Hair

Don’t worry if the ocean ends up ruining your hair. You can fix your hair and restore its colour using several methods.

Make an appointment with your hairdresser soon.

If you regularly have your hair coloured, scheduling an appointment a couple of weeks before your trip will give you plenty of time to schedule a follow-up.

If your hair colour has faded, your hairstylist might be willing to touch it up or recolour it.

So visit a nearby hair salon to restore the colour of your hair.

Use shampoo that help to restore hair colour.

To ensure that your colour is as lasting as possible as well as to restore some of the lustre and shine lost to saltwater, using both colour-restoring and colour-safe shampoos are a great idea.

Moisturizing proteins, along with components like oils and keratin, are present in the best shampoos for treating coloured hair.

You should stay away from shampoos that contain potentially harmful substances like parabens and sulfates.

Use a hydrating hair mask.

In order to achieve a longer-lasting hair colour, it is crucial to have well-moisturized hair. When you have spent long hours in the saltwater and sun, the moisture in your hair may disappear.

However, using a moisturized hair mask with ingredients like shea butter, keratin or coconut oil can give you an added layer of strength and defense against salt water.

Take Some Baking Soda

It is recommended to try out this small tip for anyone whose hair turned green after spending the day in the ocean saltwater.

All you have to do is create a thick paste by combining a half or one quarter cup of baking soda with water.

After that, spend a few minutes massaging the paste into your scalp and hair’s ends. Make sure paste is applied and covers the whole afflicted region.

After that, rinse it out and shampoo and condition your hair. Depending on how bad the green colour is, you may need to repeat this procedure.

The Conclusion

Even if you’ve just dyed your hair, it’s still possible to enjoy a great day at the beach.

However, there are potential risks associated with having your hair colour fading and hair damage from continuous saltwater contact with hair.

Even if that occurs, there are steps you can do to safeguard your coloured hair, like sunscreen application, thoroughly rinsing your hair, deep conditioning, and applying coconut oil.

Go ahead and enjoy your beach day, but remember to protect your hair from the elements!