Food for thought: Hair Porosity – How can we control it?
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As people constantly search for hair care information I am sure you have met lots of it. Usually topics keep recycling, so you will probably see various scenarios of the same theme but what about porosity? Porosity is something that gets more attention these days than it used to, and that is a good thing!
We often hear “seal in the moisture, close down the cuticles, cold water rinse for shine, high porosity, low porosity” and the sayings go on and on. In the midst of all these articles and YouTube videos there is something you might have missed to hear or think of. How much control do we have over our hairs porosity?
In the course of the years we have heard what “opens” and “closes” our hair cuticles.
Here are some things that “open” (elevate) our hairs cuticles:
- Alkaline solutions, often meaning solutions with a Ph higher than 7.
- Heat
Some things that “close”/flatten it :
-Acidic solutions, often meaning solutions with a Ph less than 7.
- Cold
There have been many contradictions to whether cold or hot water makes the hair cuticles swell and lift or not, as the hair is not a living cell of its own. I choose to believe that is does affect it somehow, I personally feel a difference on my hair when I use cold opposed to hot water. Till a formal research debunks the potential myth it is good we remain cautious.
Of course hair damage can also occur due to various hair treatments and other components that affect the state, behaviour and/or appearance of our cuticle scales.
Of course hair damage can also occur due to various hair treatments and other components that affect the state, behaviour and/or appearance of our cuticle scales.
We can control the acidic or alkaline solutions we put on our hairs but there is one thing we can not control and that is our hairs response to the environment. Specifically, I am talking of the combination of the temperature and the dew points.
The cuticles' behaviour and moisture levels seem to be linked to our porosity. If our cuticles get opened by heat, that means on a summer or hot seasons it will be hard to maintain closed cuticles or our hair's moisture.
If on the other hand our cuticles close by cold temperatures, that means on winter months or cold seasons it would be hard to get the moisture into the hair but at the same time hard to get the moisture out of the hair. That is a simple assumption, if we add in dew points into the mix, these scenarios can have a total different spin into them. A high dew point in a hot weather accompanied by the use of a humectant could result to the hair feeling hydrated for longer time instead of dehydrated. Because humectacts attract moisture from the environment.
If the weather really affects the elevation or flatness of the hair cuticle as much, that probably makes our ACV (apple cider vinegar) rinses, LOC (liquid - oil - cream) or moisture - sealing less effective or futile. Knowing our hair's porosity helps us understand why the moisture stays longer or less on our hair, also why some days our hair seems easier or harder to moisturize and keep hydrated.
In result to that my question to you is how much and for how long can we control our hairs porosity or hydration with all the methods to seal in moisture? How can we have more control?
Please do not copy or re-post without permission.
written by Glorious Angel for http://beautybookworm.blogspot.com
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