Who does not want silky, smooth hair? It adds to your personality and makes you look perfect. However, you do not need to search hard to find why your hair is so dry. The simple reason is that your hair becomes dry and appears lifeless, dull, and frizzy when it does not receive enough moisture. Your hair is healthy only when it has sheen and luster, but both men and women can have dry hair due to many different reasons.

Why Is My Hair so Dry?

Your hair has three different layers, and the outer layer gives protection to the inner layers. You see the shine in your hair when the natural oils in the outer layer reflecting light. If that protective outer layer breaks down, this exposes the inner layers and makes your hair look dry and dull. However, there may be other answers to your question, "Why is my hair so dry?"

Several conditions can have a direct impact on your hair. For instance:

1. The Weather 

Overexposure to the sun during the summer can make your hair dry. Similarly, overheated indoors and extremely cold outdoors in winter can leave your hair dry and parched.

Swimming too often and using products with alcohol can also dehydrate your hair. Use a humidifier in winter and protect your hair from the sun in summer to prevent dry hair.

2. Frequent Smoothing Treatments

You may end up having super thirsty locks if you do too many smoothing treatments close together. While these treatments help smooth out your hair, doing them too frequently will lead to the buildup of protein on your hair. This weakens your hair and makes it look extremely dry.

3. Hormonal Changes

Why is my hair so dry? The answer may well be in physiological shifts you experience during pregnancy and menopause. These conditions can change levels of hormones in your body and leave adverse effects on your hair. Taking birth control pills may also leave your hair dry and brittle.

4. Wrong Shampoo

Your dry locks may well be the result of using wrong shampoos. Keep in mind that not all shampoos are the same. In most cases, it is better to rinse your hair a few times using water instead of using drying shampoo. Look for shampoos specifically designed for dry hair. Ensure they do not contain alcohol and other drying agents. Use a moisturizing conditioner after shampoo.

5. Bad Brushing Habits

Your hair will become dry and brittle if you continue to brush it when wet. Wet hair is susceptible to breakage and makes the ends brittle. If you really want to brush wet hair, do not use your regular brush. Buy a specifically designed brush that does not pull or yank. Similarly, you should avoid going for heat styling too often or you will end up asking, "Why is my hair so dry?"

Medical Conditions

The way you brush and shampoo your hair always has an impact on the overall health of your hair, but you may sometimes have dry hair because of an underlying health problem.

1. Malnutrition

You may have dry hair because you are not providing your body with enough nutrients. An inadequate diet always leads to malnutrition, but it also happens when you have problems with absorption or digestion. While most people do not expect malnutrition to be the reason why they have dry hair, it is usually as common as chemical and heat damage.

What you can do: Talk to your doctor or dietician to design a well-balanced diet. You should also bear in mind that many organic foods are now grown in nutrient-depleted soil, so they may not help a lot in dealing with your nutritional deficiencies. Taking a supplement may make more sense in this situation.

2. Anorexia Nervosa

This eating disorder makes people obsessed with the idea of losing weight. They often end up losing more than is considered healthy and this leads to nutritional deficiency. When you have dry hair and skin, you may also have anorexia.

What you can do: The most important thing is to understand that you do have a problem. Many people with anorexia refuse to believe that they have any disorder. Knowing it will help you design and stick to a diet loaded with all the nutrients vital to keeping your hair and skin healthy. Talk to your healthcare provider to find a treatment option for anorexia. Joining support groups may also help.

3. Menkes Syndrome

Why is my hair so dry? This could be because you are suffering from Menkes syndrome, also known as steely hair disease, kinky hair disease, or Menkes kinky hair syndrome. You develop it because of a gene defect. Due to this genetic defect, your body fails to absorb copper, which in turn affects the structure of your skin, bone, blood vessels, hair, and nerve function. Dry hair is among many other symptoms associated with Menkes syndrome.

What you can do: As it is a genetic disorder, you cannot do much to fix the problem. In fact, many infants who have this disorder do not live more than a few years. Be sure to talk to your doctor immediately if your toddler or infant has notable dry, kinky hair with rosy cheeks and unusual irritability.

4. Hypothyroidism

There are butterfly-shaped glands in the front of your neck called the thyroid gland. The gland produces thyroid hormone, which tells your body how to process proteins and energy. With hypothyroidism, your body does not have enough thyroid hormone, which causes several problems including dry hair. You will notice other symptoms as well, such as weakness, depression, fatigue, obesity, and muscle pain.

What you can do: If your dry hair is due to thyroid problem, you should talk to your doctor who will recommend natural supplements. This helps provide your body with electrolytes, amino acids, and other key nutrients to improve hair grown and fix other problems caused by hypothyroidism.