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Jack Martin

Styling Professional located in California who specialises in grey hair. His clients include Jane Fonda and Andie MacDowell.

Which bargain product do you swear by?

My top pick is a soft fabric towel, or even a smooth cotton shirt to towel-dry your locks. Many are unaware how much harm a typical terrycloth towel can do, notably with lightened or dyed strands. This one small change can really lessen brittleness and splitting. Another affordable staple is a large-gap comb, to use while conditioning. It protects the hair while removing knots and helps preserve the strength of the strands, particularly post-bleaching.

Which product or treatment is worth splurging on?

A professional-grade heat styling tool – ceramic or tourmaline, with precise heat settings. Grey and blonde hair can develop brassy tones or get damaged without the correct device.

Which hair trend or treatment would you never recommend?

DIY bleaching. Social media makes it look easy, but the actual fact is it’s one of the most hazardous actions you can do to your hair. There are cases where individuals melt their hair, break it off or end up with bands of colour that are nearly impossible to correct. I would also avoid chemical straightening processes on bleached or silver hair. Such treatments are often overly harsh for delicate locks and can cause lasting harm or undesired tones.

Which typical blunder stands out?

Clients selecting inappropriate items for their hair type or colour. Some overuse colour-correcting purple shampoo until their silver or blond hair looks flat and dull. Others rely too much on protein-rich treatments and end up with stiff, brittle hair. A further common mistake is using hot tools sans safeguard. In cases where you employ hot tools or dryers without a heat protectant, – notably with color-treated strands – you’re going to see brassiness, lack of moisture and splitting.

Which product, treatment or supplement would you recommend for hair loss?

Shedding demands a multifaceted plan. Externally, minoxidil remains a top choice. I also recommend scalp formulas with active ingredients to stimulate circulation and aid in hair growth. Using a scalp detox shampoo weekly helps eliminate impurities and allows solutions to be more efficient. Internal support including clinical supplements have also shown positive outcomes. They support the body from the inside out by correcting endocrine issues, tension and dietary insufficiencies.

For people looking for something more advanced, blood-derived therapies – where a personalized serum is applied – can be effective. Still, my advice is to consulting a skin or hair specialist initially. Thinning can be linked to medical conditions, and it’s important to identify the source rather than pursuing temporary solutions.

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Anabel Kingsley

Trichologist and leader in hair health services and items for shedding.

What’s your routine for trims and color?

My trims are every couple of months, but will remove split ends personally fortnightly to keep my ends healthy, and have highlights done every eight weeks.

Which low-cost item is a game-changer?

Hair-thickening particles are remarkably effective if you have areas of scalp visibility. The fibres cling electrostatically to your own hair, and it comes in a range of colors, making it seamlessly blended. It was my go-to post-pregnancy when I had noticeable thinning – and also presently during some marked thinning after having a bad infection previously. As hair isn’t an essential tissue, it’s the first part of you to suffer when your nutrition is inadequate, so I would also recommend a balanced, nutritious diet.

Which premium option is truly valuable?

For those with genetic thinning in women, I’d say medicated treatments. For excessive daily hair shedding, AKA telogen effluvium (TE), buying an retail solution is fine, but for FPHL you really do need clinical interventions to see the most effective improvements. In my opinion, minoxidil compounded with other hair-supportive actives – such as balancing elements, inhibitors and/or calming components – works best.

Which hair trend or treatment would you never recommend?

Using rosemary essential oil for thinning. It's ineffective. The whole thing stems from one small study done in 2015 that compared the effects of a low-dose minoxidil with rosemary oil. A 2% strength minoxidil isn’t enough to do much for hereditary thinning in males, so the study is basically saying they are equally minimal in effect.

Also, high-dose biotin. Rarely do people lack biotin, so using it may not benefit your strands, and it can affect thyroid test results.

What blunder stands out often?

Personally, I prefer "scalp cleansing" over "hair washing" – because the main goal of cleansing is to clear away sebum, debris, sweat and pollutants. I notice clients skipping washes as they think it’s damaging to their locks, when in fact the reverse is correct – especially if you have dandruff, which is aggravated by oil buildup. If oils are left on your scalp, they decompose and cause irritation.

Sadly, scalp requirements and hair preferences may conflict, so it’s a balancing act. Provided you wash delicately and manage wet locks gently, it shouldn't harm your hair.

What solutions do you suggest for thinning?

For genetic thinning in women, start with minoxidil. It has the most robust evidence behind it and tends to work best when compounded with other hair-supportive actives. If you then want to try other things to support minoxidil’s effect, or you choose to avoid it or cannot tolerate it, you could try collagen induction therapy (with a specialist), and perhaps PRP or low-level laser therapy.

In shedding cases, root cause analysis is crucial. Noticeable thinning usually relates to a health trigger. In some instances, the trigger is short-term – such as flu, Covid or a period of intense stress – and it will resolve on its own. In other cases, thyroid imbalances or vitamin/mineral deficiencies are the driving factor – the most common being ferritin (stored iron), vitamin B12 and vitamin D deficiency – and to {treat the hair loss you need to treat the cause|address shedding, target the underlying issue|combat thinning, focus