The Better Blog

Spring is in full swing! We love the longer days and warmer weather, but with the seasonal shift comes the seasonal allergies we don't love. 

We know that the uptick in pollen, mold and ragweed in the spring can cause sneezing and itchy, watery eyes. But did you know that seasonal allergies can also affect your scalp and hair, causing itchiness, flakiness and even hair loss? Yikes! 

Keep reading as we answer your biggest questions about seasonal allergies and hair loss, scalp allergies and even how your hair itself can have an impact on your seasonal allergies.

If your hair has lost its shine, it can put a damper on your look. Glowy hair not only draws others’ eyes to you, but it can instantly make you feel more confident while it’s swishing around your head. This is why we’re letting you in on our favorite secrets to shiny, healthy hair. While heading to the salon for a glossy hair treatment is one way to boost your hair’s shine, there are things you can do right at home, too. In fact, the secrets to naturally glowy hair that’s glossy and shiny are all pretty easy to incorporate into your routine—and if you do, your aging strands will thank you.

The first step to getting coveted shiny hair? Pick out products to make hair glossy. While this is a not-so-secret secret to shiny hair, it’s one that many people don’t even realize they should do. Select shampoos and conditioners that are formulated with natural ingredients that can help you out if your hair has lost its shine. And if you already have shiny hair and just want to maintain it? Using products to make hair glossy can help you do that, too. The secret to great hair is taking care of it, which is what we’re here to help with. Your secret to shiny hair can be found right here.

Sometimes reading product labels can feel like reading a foreign language. There are numbers and dates that seem random, along with ingredients and terms we're unfamiliar with. Even terms we do know can be unclear. 

Should we avoid specific ingredients in our hair products? What's the difference between "unscented and "fragrance-free?" And how can we break down the label itself? 

We sat down with Dr. Debra Lin, Chief Scientific Officer at Better Not Younger, to get the 411 on how to read hair product labels. Keep reading for answers to the most common questions related to reading labels, plus a handy list of terms typically found on beauty and hair-care labels to help you decode them like a pro and make the healthiest hair product choices.

"There's a reason why 40, 50 and 60 don't look the way they used to, and it's not because of feminism or better living through exercise. It's because of hair dye." —Nora Ephron 

Recently, the internet was buzzing about a meme that pointed out that the cast of The Golden Girls were the same age during filming as the cast of And Just Like That…, the Sex and the City sequel series.  

People were flabbergasted that both shows depicted women in their 50s. The stark difference in the appearance of these women—and their vastly different storylines in each series—highlights a broader cultural shift in how society perceives aging women. (And, more importantly, how aging women perceive themselves!) 

We welcome this shift because youth has been made synonymous with beauty and desirability for generations. 

And we're over it. 

For far too long, society has had a skewed picture regarding what women "should look like,” "should want” and "should be doing" at certain ages. The media has finally started to recognize that women don't disappear or lose value after 40. Slowly, we're seeing more complex roles for older women in Hollywood, and we're seeing older women in advertising more often.  

They're finally learning what we've known all along: Older women are beautiful, vibrant and multidimensional. Women are aging better than ever today because we are pushing back on the outdated idea that we're past our prime at 50 or 60.  

Read on to learn more about why women today are only getting better with age!

We've all been caught in a downpour with no raincoat or umbrella to protect our makeup and hair. We finally arrive at work or an event and we look like we showered with our clothes on! Let’s be honest, even a light misting of rain can set back our look by undoing all the hard work we put into styling it.

 

Aside from being super inconvenient—not to mention frustrating—we also have to wonder, what does rainwater actually do to our hair? After all, rainwater isn't filtered and treated the same way as our tap water, so there's potential for it to have unknown pollutants, especially in locations with more air pollution. But beyond being exposed to pollutants in rainwater, what else can rainwater do to our hair, especially aging hair?

 

Read on to learn more about the effects rainwater can have on your hair and how to rain-proof and refresh your style when you're caught in the rain!

When we talk about "clean products," there's often not a set definition. Sometimes we’re referring to a product that’s made with organic, all-natural or no unpronounceable ingredients. Other times the words ethically sourced, mindfully created and no harmful ingredients are part of the conversation. And what role does transparent labeling play in it all? The real definition can be hard to pin down. 

So when we say "clean hair care," what does this mean? 

At Better Not Younger, it means that our products prioritize safety and efficacy. This means non-toxic ingredients that are safe for people and the planet—with efficacious and certified-safe plant-based and synthetic ingredients being the active drivers of results. We know that older women are savvy shoppers who pay attention to the labels on their hair and beauty products, which is why we’re transparent about our ingredients. And we know that hair products without harmful ingredients are imperative. That's why our founder, Sonsoles Gonzalez, built Better Not Younger as a clean hair-care line dedicated to women over 40. 

Read on to learn why making the switch to clean hair products is so important and how Better Not Younger stays at the forefront of clean hair care!

Curly hair, while gorgeous, can be a lot to manage. It calls for a delicate balance of time and products to maintain healthy curls, but knowing what works for your hair can make everything a bit easier. Vegan curly hair products are packed with natural ingredients that will show your hair so much love, especially as your hair ages. These vegan hair products for curly hair are formulated with nourishing oils, butters, vitamins and more that will bring moisture into your strands and seal it in, too. Because curly hair is prone to dryness and breakage, it’s important to use products that will stop that from happening or fix it once it has. 

Opting for some of the best natural ingredients for curly hair, like olive oil and shea butter for curly hair, and two of our favorites, argan oil and murumuru butter, will show your curls the love they deserve. Most importantly, when considering your hair-care routine, incorporate these ingredients throughout all the vegan curly hair products you use—this includes a vegan shampoo for curly hair, a moisturizing conditioner for curly hair, a curly hair serum or boost spray and even a restoring mask. The best natural ingredients for curly hair are found in a number of vegan hair products for curly hair, you just have to know what you’re looking for. Here are some of our go-tos.

At Better Not Younger, we know that beauty isn't tied to age. So what does ageless beauty mean? When we think of ageless beauty for hair, it means timeless, confident style and hair that is strong and healthy. 

If you're like us, you probably put your hair through a lot in your youth! (Remember the ‘80s?) From heat styling with no heat protectant to harsh dyes to ignoring scalp care, we were rough on our hair. 

But by the time we're into our 50s and 60s, we've moved past those poor choices. We know what works for our hair, and we have a better sense of our own personal style. Now we're focused on timeless looks and maintaining the healthiest hair possible because we know that healthy hair is gorgeous hair! 

As women, one of our most common concerns is hair thinning with age. But thin hair doesn't have to be something we accept or feel insecure about! We can fight back by supporting our hair from root to tip. Read on to learn more about combating age-related hair thinning and other top hair issues we face with age, so you can achieve better hair today than in your 20s!

Having fine hair can definitely be a double-edged sword. Sure, fine hair often means we have smooth, silky locks. But we also find our hair falling flat, appearing greasy and being super prone to breakage, damage and flyaways. 

Fine hair can be temperamental. So how can we best care for it? 

Better Not Younger dug into the specifics of fine hair care and produced this guide to caring for your fine locks. And if you’re dealing with fine, damaged hair, we have the products to help you protect and repair it, too! Read on to learn how to best care for your fine, aging hair, plus the difference between fine hair and thin hair!

Hair porosity is a hot topic right now, and for good reason! Tons of factors can affect our hair's porosity, from environmental exposure to bleaches and dyes to hair texture and genetics. Understanding your hair's porosity is important so you can tailor your hair-care regimen to better address your hair issues.

 

Hair porosity is tied to the integrity and tightness or looseness of your hair cuticles and simply refers to how well your hair can absorb and retain moisture. Generally speaking, low porosity hair struggles with absorbing moisture but excels at retaining it, while high porosity hair readily absorbs moisture but struggles to hold it in.

 

So how can you tell whether you have low, medium or high porosity hair?

 

Better Not Younger compiled 10 signs of high porosity hair, along with tips and tricks for dealing with some of the most frustrating symptoms of highly porous hair!

As women, we put up with a lot of opinions about our hair, and this (often) unsolicited advice only increases as we age. We all know that age bias exists, and our hair is no exception. There's ageism in hair care, in advertising and in much of the media we consume. 

So many "shoulds" are piled onto women, especially after 40: We should wear certain hairstyles "appropriate" for middle-aged women, we should cover our grays and we should chop off longer locks—and many of these have permeated the workplace as well. 

If there's no one drowning out the judgment, this can feel overwhelming! 

At Better Not Younger, we get it. Our company was founded specifically to push back on the belief that there's no market for quality, aging hair-care products. Newsflash: Women don't simply disappear after we hit menopause! 

We compiled a list of past and present hair biases, including aging hair-care biases, that women have been hearing for far too long, plus our take on these false, outdated myths!

If you've watched hair-care videos on TikTok, you've definitely seen influencers swearing by rice water for strong, shiny hair. It's trendy right now, and devotees claim that rice water makes their hair stronger, healthier and shinier. 

But can rice water really build stronger hair? 

Better Not Younger has the 411 on the rice water craze. Read on to learn more about the science behind rice water's benefits for hair, potential side effects of rice water on your hair and scalp, and why rice bran oil for stronger, healthy hair may be the better option for your delicate, aging tresses!