How to Fix Heat-Damaged Hair

Heat styling undoubtedly gives us the most flexibility to create bouncy curls or sleek, straight styles — but it can wreak havoc on our locks. While most of use aren’t immune to heat-damaged hair at some point in our lives, continual heat styling can degrade the connective bonds in hair and lead to brittleness, split ends, and breakage.

With that in mind, it’s time to break up with your styling tools, nourish your tresses with hair-loving ingredients, and give your hair some much-needed respite. Continue reading as we unveil our tips for how to fix heat-damaged hair with a holistic approach to hair care.

How does heat styling damage hair?

Prolonged or excessive heat styling can damage your hair’s internal structures. The cuticle is the outermost layer of the hair, acting as its protective shield. Beneath the cuticle is the cortex, the thickest layer that’s responsible for your hair’s resilience and colour. Both layers are rich in keratin which protects your hair against damage and moisture loss.

In healthy hair, the cuticles lay flat on the hair shaft, overlapping in a scale – like pattern. In hair with heat damage, cuticles are ‘lifted’, which leads to moisture loss and damage to structural proteins (like keratin). When this happens, hair loses its elasticity and becomes prone to breakage.

Common signs of heat – damaged hair

Signs of heat-damaged hair will differ depending on your hair type. For instance, curly hair types are more susceptible to dry, frizzy hair because curls are naturally more porous. While fine, straight hair types are more prone to split ends because strands are more delicate. However, there are some common markers of heat-damaged hair that you can look out for:

• Breakage or snapping
• Split ends
• Dullness
• Dryness
• Extra frizz
• Increased tangles
• More flyaways
• Coarser texture
• Faded hair colour (specifically in colour-treated hair)
• Change in curl pattern (looser or straighter)

Heat-damaged hair can be categorised into three levels: mild, moderate and significant.

• Mild: dryness, slightly lacklustre appearance, and some split ends
• Moderate: coarser texture, brittleness, noticeable split ends, and faded colour
• Significant: rough, coarse strands, brittleness, knots and tangles, and breakage.

7 tips to nourish heat-damaged hair

Now that you’ve identified your damage concerns, how do you fix heat-damaged hair? While heat damage cannot be reversed, there are plenty of nourishing products and practical habits you can incorporate into your hair care routine to revive weakened strands. Read on for our expert tips to tackle heat-damaged hair and future-proof your tresses.

1. Limit or avoid heat-styling tools

Giving your locks a break from heat styling is a no-brainer—especially while you’re in hair repair mode. We know that a total heat ban isn’t always feasible, but you can be strategic with your heat styling. For example, let your air-dry as much as possible, then apply the Résistance Blow-Dry Primer for Damaged Hair before blow-drying on low heat settings.

The same goes for your straightener or curling wand; when you must use a heat styling tool, opt for a heat setting of 185°C or below. And always use a heat protectant like the Genesis Anti Hair-Fall Heat Protectant Spray to minimise signs of heat-damaged hair.

2. Take a break from chemical processing

Chemical processing includes treatments like bleaching, colouring, relaxing, and perming—all of which can weaken hair bonds. When you combine chemical processing with heat-damaged hair, it can exacerbate signs of damage like breakage, dullness, split ends, frizz, brittleness, and increased hair shedding. We recommend that you take a break from chemical treatments and focus on fortifying your strands with targeted products and ingredients.

3. Switch to a strengthening shampoo and conditioner

Effective hair care for heat-damaged strands starts with your shampoo and conditioner. The Première collection has been developed to fortify damaged hair and impart a blend of glycine, citric acid and peptide to strands.

The Première Decalcifying & Repairing Hair Shampoo harnesses citric acid to gently cleanse and remove calcium from strands, while glycine infiltrates the hair’s inner layer to re-establish keratin bonds—reducing breakage and promoting stronger strands overall.

Follow with the Première Repairing Conditioner for Damaged Hair to deeply hydrate your lengths and ends. This conditioner encourages smoother, shinier, more supple hair with up to 72 hours of anti-frizz protection.

4. Incorporate hair serums and treatments

Adding a hair treatment for heat-damaged hair can help boost nourishment alongside your fortifying shampoo and conditioner.

If you have mild heat-damaged hair, opt for a hair serum that hydrates and softens hair, like the Nutritive Magic 8H Night Serum. Infused with niacinamide, iris root extract, and a blend of five hair-loving vitamins (including vitamin E), this overnight serum leaves hair visibly softer and easier to manage.

For moderate to significant heat-damaged hair, we recommend an anti-breakage hair serum like the Première Intensive Repairing Serum. Developed to seal and fill hair strands, this serum helps reinforce the hair structure from within, resulting in a smooth, supple, glossy appearance.

5. Use a hydrating mask on your lengths and ends

In learning how to repair heat-damaged hair, keep in mind that moisture loss tends to exacerbate split ends, breakage, and other concerns. By upping your conditioning efforts, you can imbue strands with some much-needed moisture.

On days where your heat-damaged hair needs some extra care, you can substitute your standard conditioner for a hair mask to give your strands a dose of hydration. Enriched with glycine and peptide, the Première Repairing Mask for Damaged Hair penetrates the hair to deliver conditioning care and strengthening benefits.

6. Be gentle with your hair

Hair with heat damage needs special care. This means being gentle when brushing and combing hair—particularly when wet. It’s also best to avoid styles that pull and create traction on the hair, as this may lead to increased breakage. Opt for loose, heat-free styles and switch to a microfibre towel to minimise friction when towel-drying. You can take this one step further by using silk pillowcases and hair scrunchies which are gentler on strands.

7. Get regular trims at the salon

With so much focus on at-home hair care and styling, you might forget another important rule: getting regular trims at the salon. When split ends are left unchecked, they split further up the hair shaft and lead to more breakage. Frequent trims at the salon help encourage growth and minimise further damage. For short styles, you can visit a salon every six to eight weeks. For longer styles, you can get trims anywhere between eight and 12 weeks.

When you’re battling heat-damaged hair, it’s important to consider how other hair habits might be compromising the elasticity and vitality of your strands. Next, study up on the effects of calcium buildup on damaged hair.