Yes, you can do a thing with it!

Frizzy fringe? Thinning locks? Whatever your worries, Rosie Green has the cheats and treatments to give you healthy hair for good

Fried, fluffy, crispy – all great adjectives for a potato. Not so much for your hair. Yet this is what many of us face in the mirror each day – along with the equally joyless challenges of lank, limp, dull and dry. Need I go on? As the years pass, thanks to hormones, colouring and ageing, our silken locks turn to wire wool and we try valiantly, sometimes fruitlessly, to tame them into submission with serums, oils, masks and conditioners.

The good news is there are some astounding new products and treatments that make a real difference. Haircare skinification (ie, brands using the same active ingredients and level of focus to create hair products as they do for face formulas) means there are some extremely effective compounds to address our hair woes. Look for niacinamide to boost keratin production and fortify hair; squalane to increase shine and reduce breakage and hyaluronic acid to hydrate and help tame frizz.

Scalp care is increasingly popular too – Space NK reports a 196 per cent increase in that category. I was always sceptical of brands marketing hair-thickening products that claim to increase scalp function, as the effects were so marginal, but I’ve come to learn that incremental gains are valid. But if thinning hair is causing distress, I’d recommend seeking the help of a trichologist or dermatologist who can give you a prescription-strength product.

I asked cosmetic doctor Sophie Shotter for her three favourite treatments for happier hair. After all, it’s the only thing you wear every day.

‘For scalp exfoliation and hair-growth support,’ says Dr Shotter, ‘there’s Hydrafacial Keravive. This treatment uses a three-step system to exfoliate the scalp and infuse it with growth actives. I see really nice results from it [from £450 by Dr Shotter at illuminateskinclinic.co.uk or go to hydrafacial.co.uk for your nearest practitioner].

‘Next, for encouraging thicker hair, there’s EXO/E, a new type

Ouai Hair Gloss, £30, theouai.co.uk This multitasker uses hyaluronic acid and rice water to smooth, add shine, protect against damage and prevent breakage. of regenerative therapy. It combines microneedling of the scalp with an infusion of plant-derived exosomes, and the improvements are good. There’s credible data regarding its effect on hair growth and lots of beforeand-after examples [from £300 for the day complex system, illuminateskinclinic.co.uk].

‘Third, for growth-promoting scalp care at home, I rate Monpure products, which boost hair growth and thickness. I’ve really noticed a difference in the rate of hair shedding, and the formulations smell lovely [from £36 at monpure.com].’

I’ve tried and tested many, and these are my picks for reviving colour while delivering gorgeously glossy hair. All work post-shampoo. Apply from mid-length to ends, comb through, wait five minutes and rinse off.

Glaze Glaziplex Super Bond Repair Treatment, £19.99, superdrug.com Repairs and improves damaged hair from its inner core using amino acids and hydrolysed protein.

Paul Mitchell Clean Beauty Shine Enhancing Treatment, £27.90, sallybeauty.co.uk A feelgood hair fix that uses organic botanicals to deliver next-level gloss.

Fix oily roots/dry ends: Elvive Hydra Pure 72H Purifying Shampoo, £7, boots.com.

Lose build-up: Living Proof Clarifying Detox Shampoo, £27, spacenk.com, from 23 January.

Boost hair thickness: Virtue Flourish Conditioner, £44, cultbeauty.co.uk.