Help! What’s My 💦Hair Porosity!?💦
We know that natural hair lingo can be confusing, but we got you covered! Once you learn the properties of your hair, you’ll be well on your way to finding products that help your hair thrive. Leggo! 😜
In a nutshell, Hair Porosity is the ability of the hair shaft to absorb and retain liquids, aka: the moisture crucial for maintaining the health of your strands. Learning more about how efficient your hair is at absorbing moisture will help you to create a wash day routine that works with your personal hair porosity, not against it, and will help you to apply your products in the order that works best for you! 🤗
How To Test: Simple as 1...2... 3!
Step 1: Take one strand of your product-free, cleansed hair and drop it into the glass of water.
Step 2: Observe what your hair does in the glass of water. 👀
- If the hair strand floats and stays on top of the water, that means that you have Low-Porosity Hair.
- If the hair strand settles near the middle of the glass and then begins to sink slowly, that means that you have Medium-Porosity Hair.
- If the hair strand sinks quickly to the bottom of the glass, that means that you have High-Porosity Hair.
Step 3: Now that you know your Hair Porosity, read on to learn how to best care for your porosity type! 🎉
Low-Porosity Hair
If your hair is Low Porosity, that means that your tresses generally have a hard time absorbing moisture, but once it's absorbed it tends to be retained well. Your hair cuticles are most-likely very close together, which is a great indication of resilient hair, but because they are so close, it makes it difficult for water and other products to initially enter. If you have low porosity hair, you'll notice that:
- When washing, your hair takes a while to become fully saturated with water.
- Your hair products tend to sit on top of your hair, not absorbing into the strands.
- Your hair doesn't let go of water easily, taking a long time to dry.
If you have low porosity hair, regular deep conditioning lightweight products, like The Multi-Use Softening Leave In Conditioner, while using low heat or steam to help open your hair's cuticle layer, will aid in getting moisture into your strands. Those with Low Porosity hair should also use heavy butters and creams sparingly - or in conjunction with heat or steam, as the larger molecules have a harder time penetrating the cuticle layer.
Medium Porosity Hair
If your hair is Medium Porosity, that means that your tresses generally have the ability to absorb and retain moisture at an average rate. Your hair cuticles most-likely have just the right amount of space, so that water is both easily absorbed and normally retained. Those with Medium Porosity hair don't need to utilize any special techniques or tools in order to help hair products absorb into and moisturize the hair. If you have Medium Porosity hair, you'll notice that:
- When washing, your hair becomes fully saturated with water easily.
- Your hair products absorb well into the hair, not sitting on top.
- Your hair takes an average rate to dry - not too long, not too quickly.
High Porosity Hair
If your hair is High Porosity, that means that your tresses generally have the ability to absorb moisture very easily. However, when the moisture is absorbed High-Porosity Hair has a hard time retaining that moisture. Your hair cuticles tend to be wide-open naturally, or can become wide-open due to chemical treatments, poor maintenance and/or wear and tear over time. Hair products that are pH balanced and help to close the hair's cuticle, products that repair broken bonds, and products that help to seal the moisture into the hair cuticle, such as lightweight oils and butters like The Melanin Haircare Twist-Elongating Style Cream, are typically very useful to those with High Porosity Hair. If you have High Porosity hair, you'll notice that:
- When washing, your hair takes becomes fully saturated with water very quickly.
- Your hair products absorb very quickly into the hair, seemingly "drinking up" the product and wanting more.
- Your hair lets go of water very quickly, causing the hair to all become dry very quickly.
- Your hair tangles often and appears frizzy.
