Hair Damage and Length Retention
Damage to our hair is cumulative, meaning it happens over time. Think of your hair like a piece of clothing. It gets older and more worn out with time. And the more you do to it, the more quickly it gets to that point. Likewise, the more you do to your hair, the shorter the life span. Our hair is not like our skin, which has the ability to heal or repair itself when it’s damaged. Therefore, If we are trying to retain length it is important to understand that damage to the hair is irreversible. If you are serious about having healthy hair, you must be proactive!
HEAT DAMAGE
Heat Damage - This is probably one of the most talked-about source of damage in the natural hair community. Extreme heat has the ability to break the bonds in our hair over time. Heat damages the cuticle layer. The extent of the damage is based on the intensity of the heat used and or how frequently it is done. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen videos of naturals showing how their hair reverted back to its curly state. This is NOT AND I REPEAT NOT an accurate way to determine whether your hair has been damaged by heat. You can not tell by simply looking at your hair how much of the cuticle layer has been lifted away or damaged after using heat. The only way to determine how much damage has been done would be to look at your hair under an electron microscope. If you get a silk press and your hair reverted back, all that means is the heat you used was not enough to break the bonds that are responsible for your hair curling or kinking. However, it does not mean that the heat did not inflict some level of damage to the hair cuticle. That is why using a heat protectant is important. Heat protectants contain silicones which are good at reducing damage from high direct heat. Also, prior to and after using heat, it is a good idea to do a protein treatment. The proteins will help fill in the gaps in places where the cuticle layer has been completely chipped away or damaged. Please note that it will not repair the hair but it will act as a band-aid over those areas and slow down further damage. Eventually, that damage will show; but, it will slow down the process and help you to retain your length for a longer period of time.
DOES THAT MEAN THAT YOU SHOULD NEVER USE HEAT?
No it doesn’t! As a matter of fact, there are some hair types that actually benefit from using low or gentle heat. If you have very tightly coily or kinky hair, heat can be your friend. I know this is contrary to everything you have read about natural hair, so let me explain. Hair that is very kinky and or tightly coiled or curled is the most delicate hair type and it has a tendency to shrink up significantly. This shrinkage often results in the tendency for it to form knots and tangles making it more difficult to detangle. In the cosmetic science world, there is a term used called combing forces. When a company markets its product as being anti-breakage they are usually referring to the product’s ability to reduce combing forces. What that means is the amount of force necessary for you to pass a comb through your hair strands. A reduction of combing forces results in less hair breakage. High combing force results in greater hair damage. One of the reasons it is more challenging for people with 4c hair to retain length is the combing force that is required to comb or detangle this hair type. Using gentle heat to stretch type 4c hair will result in a lower combing force and reduce breakage. When the hair is stretched, it will form less tangle and knots, and when it comes time to comb or detangle, less force will be needed. Loser hair can also benefit from gentle heat, but depending on the density of the hair, braids, threading, bantu knots etc may stretch the hair adequately to reduce these problems.
Mechanical Damage
I have touched on this a little in the previous paragraph when I talked about combing force. Mechanical damage happens from friction. Friction occurs when our hair strands rub against each other, our clothes, pillowcase, or from combing. Friction is unavoidable. However, we can reduce friction by using oils to keep our strands lubricated. When our strands are lubricated it reduces the friction from them rubbing against each other which helps the cuticle stay intact longer. Another way to reduce friction is to wear protective styles. Every time you have to comb your hair you are using friction. The friction comes from the comb going through your hair strands. The higher the combing force, the higher the level of friction. Most of the damage done to natural hair comes from combing. It is why I have heard many naturals say that when I had a perm my hair seemed healthier or why people have been natural for years but feel like their hair still isn’t growing. If you are a natural who loves wearing your hair in curly or coily puffs or wearing wash and go’s , when it comes time to detangle your hair you are going to require high combing force which results in greater hair breakage particularly at your hair ends. This is why protective styles help with length retention. You are combing your hair less and this reduction in friction helps to protect your hair cuticle. If you were to follow type 4c naturals, particularly those who have long hair, you will notice that they keep their hair stretched and wear their hair in twist, braids, etc for weeks at a time. This reduces the need to comb the hair and reduces the knots and tangles that form when we allow our hair to remain in its shrunken state.
Damage from Cleansing the hair
I don’t know if I should call this damage. I think wear and tear would be a better description. We all have to wash our hair. Terms like sulfate-free, co-washing and hygral fatigue have been floating around in the natural hair community for some time now. Whether you choose to shampoo your hair or co-wash, you will first saturate your hair with water. When water is allowed to freely and quickly flow into the hair shaft, it forces the cuticle to swell and lift quickly. Every time the cuticle layer swells quickly it weakens this protective layer. Think of the cuticle layer like a door in your house that is constantly being open and closed. The hinges become affected over time, you may start having problems with the doorknob and there is just general wear and tear that occurs. One of the reasons that pre-pooing became a thing was to reduce the damage that comes when water rushes into the hair shaft too quickly. Today, there are a lot of oils recommended for doing a pre-poo; However, it is important to know that coconut oil is the only one studied. There are many other oils like olive oil etc that do penetrate the hair shaft however they do so more slowly and not completely. Babassu oil and coconut oil have a similar fatty acid composition and belong to the same palm family. These oils fully penetrate the hair shaft. When you use a penetrating oil before cleansing the hair, the oil prevents water from rushing into the hair shaft. Yes , water does enter but it is a lot gentler on the hair. Coconut oil also binds to the hair’s natural proteins and prevents them from being washed away during the cleansing process. There is protein loss whenever you wash your hair and coconut oil has been shown to reduce this protein loss. If you are going to do a pre-poo, one of the things you need to remember is that it must be done at least 12 hrs prior to washing your hair. This is the amount of time necessary for the oil you use to penetrate the hair shaft. If you do so right before, the oil will only help keep the shampoo from stripping your hair of its natural oils. I must confess that I don’t do a pre-poo in the traditional sense. Because I use a product to moisturize my hair that contains a penetrating oil, Babasssu, I don’t worry about hygral fatigue. If you use a product to moisturize your hair that contains a good enough amount of penetrating oils, you don’t have to worry about it either. My wash day prep is focused on me removing as much shedded hair. This is important because it means I do less in the shower when my hair is wet and in its weakest state and susceptible to damage.
What if my hair is already damaged?
Once hair is damaged, protein treatments can help by filling in the gaps where the cuticle layer has been chipped away and silicones(for those who use them) and other conditioning agents can add softness and shine to improve the appearance of damaged hair. Think of them as make-up for your hair, or a band-aid that temporarily conceals wounds or blemishes. They do not and cannot repair your hair! Don’t be fooled by marketing claims! Also remember that your hair is always growing. Implementing good hair practices will help your new growth stay healthier longer and will help reduce breakage in hair that has some level of damage.
Less is More
Natural hair needs love and care but that doesn’t mean that you need to do a host of things to it. Less is more!
Less Combing- so you reduce breakage (choose protective styles more frequently)
Less products- The more products you use, the more build-up you will tend to have.
Less Heat- Don’t use high heat frequently and use either low heat to stretch your hair or other stretching techniques.
Finally, best of luck on your hair journey! keep things simple and watch your hair strive!