Hair Porosity

YOUR HAIR POROSITY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN HAIR TYPE.

HAPPY PEOPLE,

How do you do?

Knowing your hair’s porosity will change your life! It’s one of the most simpleconcepts necessary for all naturals or to-be-naturals to know, yet it’s not as talked about as much as hair type is (you know, the 3A, 3B, 3C, 4A, 4B, 4C). Natural hair type doesn’t tell us nearly as much about what our hair needs as porosity does.

Hair type doesn’t tell you which moisturizing oils are best, which conditioners are best, which deep treatments are best etc. Two people can have the 4C hair type, but may need COMPLETELY different hair products for their hair. You can’t look at a YouTuber or Blogger and grab the products they’re using right away without knowing their porosity. So, as you can now figure, this is very important homies.

What exactly is hair porosity?

Porosity is your hair’s ability to absorb and retain moisture

So what’s the big deal? Well, in order to grow healthy (and long) hair that is less prone to dryness which leads to breakage, you need what…drum roll….PROPERLY MOISTURIZED HAIR. This is especially for natural black hair. In order to properly moisturize hair you need to make sure you not only ADD moisture to your hair but that it is actually RETAINED i.e. your hair keeps the moisture locked in.

There are 3 different hair porosity ‘levels’. Low, normal, and high.

Low Porosity

Hair cuticles on low porosity hair are closed and so moisture does not enter easily. A quick sign for low porosity hair is products that feel as though they are just sitting on your hair and not absorbed. See test below to figure out if this is you!

Key tips:

·        Use heat to open up the cuticles to let the moisture in. How, well, warmwater washes, and warm deep conditioning sessions. Simple! Use a deep conditioning cap or home hooded dryer to create warmth for your deep conditions and/or treatments.

·        Make sure to still close the cuticles after a warm wash by rinsing with coolwater.

·        Deep condition every wash day

·        Invest in a satin cap for sleeping

·        Best oils or products for low porosity hair: Light oils are best, such as coconut oil, sweet almond oil, grapeseed oil, jojoba oil, avocado oil.

·        Ease up on the products, your hair is prone to build up so don’t layer on product on top of product.

·        Low porosity hair is protein sensitive. Avoid using a lot of protein on your hair,  those protein treatments that look really good? Nah, not for you. Unless really necessary once or twice a year. Stick to moisture treatments.

Normal Porosity

This one is porosity goals really! You hair is not problematic. It absorbs and retains moisture well and you don’t really have a problem with dryness – unless you leave the hair for dead ofcourse  It’s obvious you still got to take care of it.

High Porosity

As you can see in the image above, high porosity hair has cuticles that are lifted and so absorbs moisture quickly but also looses it quickly. Some end up with high porosity after heat or chemical damage to their hair. Signs of high porosity hair are things like finding that your hair dries really quickly after washes or moisturizer, looks dull and feels especially dry.

Key tips:

·        Protein treatments are great – doing one once a month will do you some good!

·        Deep condition more often,  bi-weekly is advised.

·        Make sure to still close the cuticles after by rinsing your washes with coolwater.

·        Use leave-in conditioners and heavier products like butters to seal the moisture in.

·        Best oils/ or products for high porosity hair: Olive oil, Castor Oil, Shea Butter, hempseed oil, coconut oil.

·        Rinse with Apple Cider Vinegar to flatten the cuticle and seal the moisture in.

·        Aloe Vera Gel or Juice is also great – on it’s own or added to your leave-in conditioner.

·        Avoid using heat on your hair and excessive coloring.

So wait, how do you find out what your hair porosity is!!!? Simple really.

HAIR POROSITY TEST

1.      Grab a tall glass of water

2.      Extract a strand of hair from your head – must use clean hair. Hair with product is said to possibly alter results.

3.      Drop this strand inside the water and watch it for a minute or two.

Results:

Image source: frederickbenjamin.com

Ideally, hair should absorb moisture at a slow pace. The rate at which the hair sinks is basically indicative of the rate at which it absorbs moisture. The faster the hair absorbs moisture, the more porous it is. In other words, if it sinks to the bottom quickly, the cuticles are open and absorb lots of moisture immediately. If the hair floats, the cuticles are shut and are not letting the moisture in.

·        Low Porosity hair will float at the top of the glass

·        Medium porosity will slowly sink and be about halfway through the glass when you check in a minute.

·        High Porosity will have sunk to/near the bottom of the glass.

Once you know this, you may find that you have been moisturizing correctly by chance, or from intuition and knowing what works for your hair. Otherwise, if you’ve been having problems with your hair, then you’ll have to adjust your hair regimen accordingly to suit your hair’s porosity.

Rice water

My dear naturalists, we have another Holy Grail product for our hair…”Rice water”. Now I know some of you might be like, wait, what… another regimen to add to my hair regimen…I ain’t got time for this. But if you want your tresses to work, work, work, work, work then trust me, this additional regimen is for you and the prep time is not bad… it really isn’t.

Why is Rice Water so effective and what makes it a Holy Grail product???

It’s a Holy Grail product because it has been proven to work for centuries not just years, but CENTURIES. Asian women for centuries, have been using rice water for their face, body and hair (to promote length and strength). Specifically, the Yao ethic women from the Huangluo village in China are in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s longest hair village, it is believed that they have an average hair length of 6ft. Yeap it’s the rice water.

Now you are probably wondering, hmm Asian women’s hair texture is so different from black women’s hair texture. Sisters please, just because it works for them does not mean it will work for us black women and besides their diet, environment and weather also as an effect on their hair. You know what, you are right, their diet and environment contributes to their hair’s well-being. But, rice water works for ALL HAIR TYPES unless you are sensitive to protein…yeah that’s the catch. Rice water is very rich in protein. It is consider a protein treatment. Let’s get into it.

Why is Rice Water So Beneficial to all Hair Types??

·        It has Inositol, a carbohydrate that can repair damaged hair and protect it from damage.

·        It Increases hair elasticity, making the hair more flexible.

·        It helps define the hair’s curl pattern – can my 4C coily hair sisters give praise.

·        It decreases the hair’s surface friction, by helping to smooth out the surface of the hair. The hair strands will glide past each other without resistance and with less friction so less knots and tangles.

·        It contains amino acids which strengthen the hair roots, adds volume, sheen and makes the hair silky smooth.

·        It stays inside the hair and work, work, work, work, work, (Rihanna’s song plays in my mind), even after rinsing out the rice water. So you will see improvements after the first use.

·        Fermented rice water, rice water when fermented has additional benefits.  Fermented rice water is rice water left to ferment and has gone slightly sour (yeah does not taste right). It is rich in antioxidants, minerals, B vitamins, and vitamin E. Also, fermented rice water is good for the face and skin but I am just here for the hair benefits.

·        Fermentation of rice water lowers the pH of the rice water and this is similar to our hair’s pH, which is slightly acidic. The slightly acidic pH plus the added nutrients through the fermentation process helps restores the hair’s pH balance, nourishing hair follicles to promote healthy hair growth and improve overall hair condition. HOLY GRAIL!!!

·        Rice water  works as an excellent conditioner

·        It contains natural saponins, so it can also be used as a mild cleanser.

·        Rice water can build up on hair over time, especially used with hard water. Adding natural clarifiers, such as apple juice, green tea, lime juice, lime peel powder, amla powder or shikakai powder, to rice water, will help remove any build up and make your hair soft and shiny. Add about 1 tsp in one cup of rice water and use as suggested.

·        It is used in treating hair loss. Some people use rice water along with green tea as it helps add extra shine and strength to your hair. Plus, green tea is also useful in reducing hair loss.

How to Make Rice Water

There are three methods of making rice water, Washing, Fermenting and Boiling. They all have benefits but personally I think the fermenting is the way to go because of its enhanced benefits. Please note, you don’t need that much rice (1/2 a cup is fine with 2 to 3 cups of water). If you gonna cook rice for dinner or lunch use the regular amount you use and save the water.

The Wash Method- Rinse the rice with water to remove any dirt. Place the rice in a container then cover with water. Make sure the water covers the rice and then let it soak for 30 to 40 mins. Swirl it around a few times to release the mirco nutrients into the water and after 30 to 40 mins make sure the water is cloudy then strain the rice water into a separate bowl then use.

The Fermented Method (the best method to me) – To get the enhanced benefits you need to ferment the rice water. So you just use collected rice water from the wash method and place/ store it in a dark room temperature to warm area (microwave or cabinet) till it is slightly sour. The sour taste indicates the rice water has begun to ferment; it takes about a day or two. The warmer the room the faster it ferments. If you want to stop the fermenting process and store the rice water, boil the rice water. You can even dilute the rice water with water if the rice water is too potent for your liking because fermented rice water is very potent. #Tip: Use more for dry hair and less for oily hair.

How to use Rice Water Rinse 

#Tip: Use rice water on clean and product build-up free hair

·        Wash Hair

·        Coat hair and scalp with rice rinse (brush it in because if the rice water is not coated properly/evenly in to the hair it will cause flakes so use a kinky friendly brush)

·        Put a shower cap on and let it sit for a few minutes (3 to 5 mins)

·        Rinse it Out

·        Move on to conditioner (optional)

Rice water has a high amount of protein, 16% of Protein. It is considered a protein treatment so, if you are protein sensitive proceed with caution. Try it, it might work for you.