Expert advice for dealing with split ends, fried locks, and more.

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The Culprits

The battle for beautiful hair is not easy. It's ironic that the very things we do to add color, shine, and texture to hair can ultimately damage and destroy it. Here, the most common hair wreckers -- and how-tos for damage control:

• Double-dipping. Doubling up on chemical processes such as highlighting and relaxing, or color and perming.
• Cleaning frenzy. A major misconception is that hair must be shampooed daily. Just because hair is clean, doesn't always mean it's in good condition.
• Beat by the heat. Tools like flat irons and curling irons need to be used sparingly, as overuse will fry not only ends, but also the entire length of the hair shaft.
• Uncut = Unhealthy. Uncut locks mean split ends and dry, damaged hair. For optimum hair health, hair should be cut every 8 to 12 weeks.
• Colorful personality. While changing your hair color often might be fun, the process of applying, taking out, and redepositing pigment on the hair is damaging.
• Product overdosing. Overdosing on styling products -- gels, sprays, pomades, and finishing creams -- can result in buildup that makes hair dull.