Life & Beauty Weekly

Lemon juice may seem like an easy, natural way to brighten your hair color, but it could do more harm than good.

Lemon juice is highly acidic and can cause a chemical reaction that dries out hair and messes with your existing color in an unpredictable way. In other words, you may not achieve the shiny, natural-looking, multifaceted highlights you probably want. Instead, your natural color could turn orange, brassy or bleached. Or if you have dyed hair, the juice could strip the pigment, leaving behind lighter but duller streaks.

A better and equally easy way to bring out your hair’s natural highlights is with an in-shower glaze treatment. Free of ammonia and peroxide, many products contain gentle, natural extracts like chamomile or cocoa that subtly impart highlights. They also contain conditioning agents that keep hair shiny and moisturized. Use them regularly for best results.

Your Expert

Riccardo Maggiore is a celebrity stylist and the owner of the Riccardo Maggiore salon in New York City. He recently worked with Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis and Cynthia Nixon on the set of Sex and the City 2. His work has also appeared in such magazines as Cosmopolitan, Self and Shape.