Can anyone recommend any products or methods for avoiding or minimizing tangled hair?  Or does anyone have any recommendations for untangling hair once its already tangles?

My 6-year old daughter has lots of hair and it's long (all the way down her back).  I spend 30-60 minutes each evening combing (or trying to comb out) the tangles.  I know it's uncomfortable for her because as gentle as I try to be, I occasionally (accidentally) pull her head to get thru a particularly nasty knot.

It seems to be worse in winter.  I went to the section where you all have frequently asked questions posted and it mentioned winter haircare and using a humidifier.  I've been running a humidifier in her room at night for over a week and it isn't really helping.

Any help/advice is greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

Caramia

Edited to correct spelling error.

After enduring a childhood of very painful brushing I learnt to,

Comb through hair before washing

Use a leave in conditioner and keep hair well conditioned in general

Leave hair plaited, finger comb each night then re-plait

start combing hair at the very ends and work your way up very slowly

comb hair in small sections

Hope that helps!  Obviously your child may not want their hair plaited everyday but if it does have a tendency to tangle then it really is the best thing to do as the tangles will cause damage, even if it is just plaited while getting dressed etc this will help.  I never wear my hair down as I can't bear the thought of the pain!

Thank you all for your replies! 

I don't pile her hair on top of her head when washing.  I just scrub her scalp and leave the rest of her hair hanging down her back and let the suds slip down.  We don't even towel dry.  We just totally air dry so as to not tangle any more of the hair.  I comb her hair from the bottom up in small sections.

I found the John Frieda silicone spray and will try that tonight.  I'll try to find the Mary Kate and Ashley stuff again - 1st glance around my local Walmart and I couldn't find it.  I've tried Infusium on my own hair in the past but my hair felt sticky after it dried.  I'll put the No More Tangles spray on my "to purchase" list as well.

Thanks for your support - I'll let you know how it goes.

Caramia

If she's 6, a good style is to put it into side-by-side "pigtails". Braid it all the way down and secure it with a fabric covered elastic (which come in all sizes). You could also bring it back up and secure it kind of like a loop. She'll probably be very happy to have her hair out of the way as she plays and a bonus will be that she no longer gets tangles!

You could also secure it in different ways with ribbons. The fun thing is buying a lot of ribbons that can match her clothing everyday.

Or, easier, but IMO better for older girls, one long braid down the back with a ribbon braided into it.