Sunday Edit | The 9 Worst Things You Can Do for Your Hair featuring Phenix Founder and Celebrity Stylist Gina Rivera

Since the dawn of time, hair has been considered a staple of good health, beauty, and overall wellness, so it’s no surprise if you’re feeling a little lackluster when you’re having a bad hair day, week, month, or year. Hair drapes our faces and is something that we inevitably have to deal with in some way, shape, or form every day. It can also be something that we take great pride in, not to mention put a lot of effort towards, so it’s no surprise if you’re spending hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars each year on hair care and maintenance.

Even though hair is technically dead skin cells (yep!), it still can and should be taken care of and maintained. Think of the scalp as an extension of the face — it’s where the living part of the hair is. For this reason, scalp care is paramount, and recommends daily scalp cleansing (shampooing) to remove dirt, sebum, and mineral buildup — something very few of us actually do. Additionally, ultraviolet (UV), or sun, protection of the scalp, especially for those with thinning hair (both men and women) is important.

Unfortunately, many of the day-to-day habits that are incorporated into our lifestyle can sabotage the health of our hair. This can not only make it more challenging to actually achieve the results that we’re looking for, but also cause serious damage to your hair along the way. Read on for some of the worst things that people do to their hair — and what is recommended instead.