29 May All About Hair Porosity

Some days it feels like no matter how much product you apply or how thoroughly you try to work it into your hair, it just sits on top of your curls taunting you and causing gunky buildup. On the other hand, maybe your hair readily absorbs product and moisture, but when 3pm rolls around, it’s begging for more. Most times you can chalk these situations up to your hair’s porosity – but what does that mean?

What is Hair Porosity?

Hair porosity describes how easily your hair accepts and retains water and moisture. This characteristic is determined by your cuticle, or your outermost layer of hair. Your porosity usually results from genetics, but can also change with chemical processing, environmental damage and rough styling.

Generally, we can classify porosity in three categories: low, medium (normal), and high. When learning to care for your natural hair, it’s important to determine your hair porosity, to help you better care for it and achieve shiny locks no matter the weather.

Determining Your Hair Porosity

Hair Porosity tests can be done at home quickly and easily. Depending on the time and resources you have on hand, you can test your porosity one of two ways:

Float Test

Take a clean strand of your hair (can be from your brush or comb) and place in a cup or bowl of water. After letting it sit for a few minutes, check to see the position of your hair.

• Floating on Top – Low Porosity
• Somewhere in the Middle – Normal Porosity
• At the Bottom of the Glass – High Porosity

 

Slip Test

Take a strand of your hair (still connected to your scalp) and run your fingers up the shaft – towards the root. If you feel little bumps, then the cuticle is rising, and you have high porosity hair. If it feels smooth, then you have low porosity hair.

How to Care for Your Hair Porosity

Low Porosity

Low porosity hair has a very tight cuticle which makes it hard for water and moisture to enter your strands. However, once the moisture enters, the tight cuticle will hold onto the nourishment, so your hair is less likely to dry out.

Naturalistas with low hair porosity are more likely to have product build-up from unabsorbed creams and oils. Some products will benefit you more than others:

• Stay away from protein-rich deep conditioners and moisturizers that will sit on top of your hair. Instead, choose protein-free products, hair milks, and moisturizers rich in softening agents like jojoba and coconut oil, shea butter and mineral oil.
• Apply product to wet hair. Continue to work product in in smaller sections, using water to dilute the moisturizers and increase the chance of them entering the cuticle.
• Sit under the dryer or use a steamer to help open the cuticle and maximize the level of moisture. Be careful not to dry your hair too much or it will stop absorbing moisture.

Normal Porosity

Medium porosity hair easily takes in and holds moisture. If you have normal hair porosity, then luckily you have the easiest job the it comes to maintenance. However, chemical treatments and excessive heat can loosen the cuticle and lead to higher hair porosity. Periodic protein-based deep conditioning treatments can keep your hair moisturized but protein should not be a regular ingredient in your daily routine.

High Porosity

Just as easily as high porosity hair accepts moisture, it loses it, making you more susceptible to dry, brittle hair and breakage. The cuticle is characterized by large gaps and holes which allow a lot of water to come in and increase frizzing – especially in humidity (here’s looking at you, fellow Floridians).

Swimming, bathing, and shampooing can all cause damage and breakage due to the large amounts of absorbed water, but knowing the products to use on your hair may help you tame your mane year-round:

• Deep condition weekly or every other week with a protein-rich conditioner to help strengthen your cuticle.
• Use leave-in conditioners and moisturizers to provide nourishment throughout the day. Hair butters and creams may help fill in some of the gaps in your cuticle to stop moisture from escaping.
• Always apply a sealant at the end of your routine to hang onto the moisture that you are adding
• Anti-humectants like shea butter or coconut oil will stop your hair from absorbing the moisture in the air in more humid climates.

While knowing your hair type or curl pattern is a good place to start for hair care, knowing your hair porosity will allow you to take styling and care to the next level during every season. Using the best products and applying them correctly for your hair type and porosity will allow you to start seeing results in length, shine, thickness, and strength.

At Salon Brazyl, we aim to not only help you leave the chair #curlspoppin, but also to educate you on how to best care for your hair between visits. Book an appointment or a consultation with us today and start discovering your best hair.