There are many reasons people choose to dye their hair. Some simply wish to mix up their look, while others aim to reduce signs of aging, in particular gray hair, which can add years to one's appearance. But while these efforts can be attempts to look more youthful, they can also cause their own problems. 

In order to understand how hair dye works, one must understand the basic structure of hair. A strand of hair contains three primary layers: the cuticle, the outermost layer of hair that protects what's within; and the cortex, an inner layer made from thin keratin fibers.

Typically, when dyeing hair, one does not just add it directly to your existing tresses, but first removes whatever is there. This is absolutely necessary when making major hair transformations, such as going from dark hair to platinum blonde. (This, it should be noted, should never be done in a single sitting.) People achieve these effects using ammonia and peroxide, which open up the hair shaft through the cuticle so that dye can reach the centre of the hair shaft.

However, while these processes may help restore the appearance of your hair, they also can damage your hair follicles, visibly impacting your appearance in the long term. The critical step is in re-sealing the hair cuticle once new dye has been introduced into the cortex. If the cuticle is not properly re-sealed, the effects of peroxide on hair proteins can weaken the hair overall, even potentially impacting hair growth in the long term. 

Though it is often primarily associated with skin, collagen is equally important to strong, healthy hair. Collagen is a protein that occurs naturally in the body. At its healthiest levels, studies show, it is abundant – collagen makes up 70 percent of the dry weight of the skin. Indeed, collagen is an essential ingredient to the composition of our hair, skin, nails, and connective tissues, providing the structure that gives our bodies solidity and firmness. 

The body's natural collagen production slows as we age, first becoming visible as we reach our early thirties. This can affect our skin in especially visible ways, such as increased fine lines and wrinkles. But it can also affect the look and feel of our hair, leading to hair loss and thinning or other forms of damage.

As the body's natural collagen synthesis starts to slow, many turn to collagen supplements to help restore our collagen levels to their youthful peaks. Beyond providing new collagen to the body, these products stimulate the natural production of collagen, creating a longer-term solution to protecting skin and hair. 

Many supplements on the market are marine collagen, also known as peptides, hydrolyzed collagen, or absolute collagen. Absolute collagen is packed with amino acids including the following:

• Arginine
• Isoleucine
• Leucine
• Threonine
• Methionine
• Tyrosine

By providing these amino acids, collagen helps promote the production of keratin, the main structure of the hair's cortex. 

Because oral collagen peptide supplements are so effective in supporting the synthesis of new collagen in your body and stimulating hair growth, they can be an excellent solution for those who are seeing the damaging effects of hair colouring. Indeed, many of the benefits of absolute collagen are perfectly suited to those with treated hair. Absolute collagen helps to shield the hair from the potential damaging effects of hair dye and facilitate healthy hair growth. Indeed, daily collagen can help prevent thinning hair and promote hair growth instead. 

Fortunately, for those looking to improve the condition of treated hair, there are many collagen-infused hair products designed to specifically do that. There are a variety of products on the market that can be used topically to strengthen the hair and help prevent hair loss. These are easy to incorporate into your daily routine; oftentimes they are called colour-protecting shampoos and are meant to replace the ones you normally use.

For even deeper benefits of collagen, one can turn to supplements, including Supermood's own line of collagen products. These tasty, easy-to-use supplements help strengthen hair proteins and surface lipids to keep your hair smooth and shiny (and plentiful). By regularly introducing collagen into your system, you'll be creating an ideal environment for hair growth.

If you are treating your hair using dyes or other chemicals, it's important to take preventive measures to ensure that your natural hair is protected. 

Here are a few expert-recommended tips:

• Keep the natural tones in your own hair in mind. As mentioned above, it's not always easy to achieve every hair effect. Taking very dark hair to a white-blonde requires several treatments. This means it's very important to set expectations accordingly and take precautions ahead of time to protect your hair. 
• Don't overdo it. Chemicals and dyes are, perhaps needless to say, unnatural, and introducing them too frequently can keep you from maintaining a healthy environment for your hair. This means keep the visits to the colourist to a minimum.
• Listen to your hairdresser. It's easy to get ambitious about the new look you hope to achieve, but not everything is going to be possible for every hair type. If your hairdresser is recommending against a particular process or treatment, take their advice seriously – after all, you won't be happy if your dye job isn't what you were hoping for. 
• What you consume is as important as what you use on the outside. This is why collagen supplements can be so effective at supporting healthy hair even if you are treating it.

Are you ready to restore your treated hair to its shiny, healthy, youthful best? Start your collagen regimen today.