Revealed: The new treatment that turned my fine menopausal frizzy hair into a thick, sleek bob in just 20 minutes
Sitting in a salon chair waiting for my hair to be exposed to ice crystals might seem like an odd thing to be doing at this time of year.
And, no, I’m not just about to stick my head out of the door into the bracing winter cold for a few minutes. In fact, I’m about to try the hottest (or coolest) new treatment around.
Hair.TOXX is essentially cryotherapy for hair and it’s just launched in the UK, rolling out to select salons nationwide.
Fans of the treatment claim it can transform any hair into a sleek barnet. So after months battling my winter midlife frizz, I’m willing to brave the freeze.
From cold water swimming to ice rolling your face, cryotherapy has seemingly touched every aspect of health and beauty in recent years. The scientific reason behind this craze? Put simply, lowering temperatures reduces inflammation.
But how does it work on hair?
‘Wet, I can feel that my hair is smoother, but once dried, I am astonished. It looks and feels thicker, but is like a soft, shiny curtain rather than a halo of dry frizz’
Well, apparently freezing your locks can seal in nourishing active ingredients and smooth the cuticle. This will deliver a very specific-sounding 264 per cent more shine and hydration in a single session as well as improving thickness.
Even better, the products used promote hair growth by delivering active ingredients to the scalp and follicle.
This time of year and time of life aren’t great for hair. Mine is permanently frizzy; the lethal combination of a lack of moisture in the winter air and blasting central heating leads to dehydrated hair, which is more likely to be brittle, static and unmanageable.
In addition, lower oestrogen in midlife means the scalp produces fewer natural oils, resulting in hair that is less hydrated from within. The growth cycle is also slower but with more frequent shedding so hair may look both frizzy and fine at the same time, which is a cruel duo.
Enter Hair.TOXX. I’ll be honest, I have little truck with treatments which use any sort of ‘tox’ suffix. It feels like a marketing ploy to sound like the anti-wrinkle treatment Botox. The one thing my hair doesn’t have is wrinkles.
What Hair.TOXX does have in common with Botox is that it’s fast-acting, which is a relief. I loathe spending hours in the salon or weeks waiting for effects to materialise. Another bonus is that it doesn’t use harsh chemicals or heat – both of which can further damage hair.
The treatment was tested independently in Brazil (home of the famous hair-straightening blow dries) using virgin (uncoloured and untreated) human hair under controlled lab conditions. Shine and hydration levels were measured before and after a single application.
‘The hand-held attachment looks like straightening irons, but emits a chill blue light. As Haug applies it to my hair, the crystals of ice which have formed on the tongs stroke down the hair shaft so that it looks as though snow is falling lightly on my head’
‘It looks and feels thicker, but is like a soft, shiny curtain rather than a halo of dry frizz. Even better, the next time I wash it, it retains this softness’
Desperate to address my 50-something frizz, I head to Haug London Haus, where co-founder Philipp Haug, a previous London Hairdresser of the Year, is introducing me to the treatment.
Rather smugly, when I walk in, I feel as though I’m having a good hair day. I washed my hair the night before and blow-dried it carefully. It does look a little messy (let’s say tousled) no matter how much I brush it and on the train to London from Bath, where I live, it frizzes slightly. Even so, I think it’s looking not too bad.
Haug washes my hair and then applies a mask containing moisturising actives: antioxidant acai berry oil, which is rich in omega-6 and fatty linoleic acid, hyaluronic acid and avocado butter, as well as propolis, a resinous compound from bees which promotes hair growth, reduces follicle damage and strengthens roots. Since the treatment doesn’t change the structure of the hair, it’s also great for hydrating curls without losing the natural shape.
It’s well known that giving your hair a cold rinse adds shine. I have no intention of making mornings even more onerous by turning down the heat in the shower, but the ice used here – the star element of the treatment – is targeted and it seals nutrients into the cuticle as well as sealing broken bonds caused by heat and colouring.
In the corner of the salon is the hi-tech looking hair-TOXX machine, which has been sitting cooling to minus 16C for a good hour, ready to ice my hair. The hand-held attachment looks like straightening irons, but emits a chill blue light. As Haug applies it to my hair, the crystals of ice which have formed on the tongs stroke down the hair shaft so that it looks as though snow is falling lightly on my head. In the warmth of the salon, the ice rapidly melts, so my hair is just left damp but absolutely freezing to touch.
It only takes about 20 minutes to cover my whole head, and although the strange tongs don’t touch my skin, I do feel some chill on the back of my neck. I wouldn’t say I’m cold but I’m relieved when it is all washed off and a spritz of the range’s leave-in conditioner is applied.
Wet, I can feel that my hair is smoother, but once dried, I am astonished.
It looks and feels thicker, but is like a soft, shiny curtain rather than a halo of dry frizz.
Even better, the next time I wash it, it retains this softness. Haug says this should last between colour treatments – so every six to eight weeks, and ideally used as a boost after highlights.
Now, if only there were a way to cryopreserve midlife hormones and also hasten the beginning of spring. That would make life a whole lot easier, whatever the state of my hair.
£140, hauglondon.com, hairtoxx.co.uk
If you can’t HairToxx just yet…
There are masses of at-home hair health treatments for encouraging growth, boosting volume and combatting frizz. I massively rate these brands…
- l Nanogen Hair Growth Serum, £29.95 (nanogen.com) is a serum which contains clinically proven ingredients to stimulate hair cell production and extend the growth cycle.
- l Revitalash Thickening Conditioner, £37 (revitalash.co.uk) makes hair feel instantly thick and luxurious and nourishes the scalp.
- l Philip Kingsley Density Starter Kit, £93.75 (philipkingsley.co.uk) includes
- Density Preserving Scalp Drops, containing peptides, which are clinically proven to slow hair loss.
- l Fab thickening shampoos for midlife hair include Swedish brand Maria Nila Pure Volume range, £23 for the shampoo (marianila.co.uk). For fighting the frizz, I love Neal and Wolf Glow Super Shine Spray, £15.50 (nealandwolf.com).
