How To Keep Ethnic Hair Healthy

@aysha.sow / Design by Zackary Angeline

The natural hair movement has come a long way. From our products being kept strictly on the "ethnic" haircare aisle in the store (often in the back and hard to detect, listen y'all) to natural hair YouTubers formulating their own products and making lots of coin in the process, it's safe to say that natural hair is definitely not a trend and is hither to stay.

But caring for natural pilus? That'southward a whole dissimilar subject entirely. Natural pilus does crave a certain level of maintenance to keep information technology healthy and flourishing, merely contrary to popular belief, information technology doesn't accept to be hard or time consuming. Below, we've contacted natural hair experts to give us their meridian tips on how to bring out the best in your natural hair.

Run into the Expert

Tonya Thompson and Sharie Wilson, co-owners of DreamGirls
Jamyla Bennu, Oyin Handmade's CEO and Make Founder
Mahisha Dellinger, CEO and Founder of CURLS

01 of x

Utilise Gentle Curling Methods

Mielle Organics Mongongo Oil Thermal & Estrus Protectant Spray $thirteen.00

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The tools that make our lives so much easier can besides apace damage your hair when misused. That daily "crash-land" with your trusty curling iron tin can slowly but surely fry your ends. Even one fourth dimension that'due south too hot can damage your pilus, and so take information technology easy. Try gentler methods for providing ringlet and volume to your tresses, such as wrapping at night or satin-covered rollers. The occasional pass with a thermal styling tool should be safe, simply always use a heat protectant as a barrier between a hot iron and your hair.

Good Heat Protectants to Endeavor

Moroccanoil Perfect Defense Oestrus Protectant ($28)
Mielle Organics Mongongo Oil Thermal & Estrus Protectant Spray ($13)
Cantu Shea Butter Thermal Shield Heat Protectant ($4)

02 of x

Bleach With Circumspection

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When it comes to Blackness hair, you need to ask yourself if yous want healthy locks or to be a platinum blonde—considering you lot normally tin can't accept both. Natural hair can sometimes withstand this extreme lightening, but not without heavy and frequent conditioning. If you wear yours relaxed, choose another color; preferably one that doesn't lift your natural shade more than three levels.

Thompson and Wilson told me, "When you bleach or color your hair it becomes very frail and needs to be moisturized and treated with a deep conditioning treatment. We highly recommend the Revival Deep Conditioning Treatment ($35) to replenish, moisturize, and restore your hair without weighing it downwardly. For an even deeper hydration, we recommend sitting under a hooded dryer or a hood steamer for about 30 minutes."

03 of 10

Practice Patience with Growing Out Relaxers

If y'all're a budding naturalista who wants to grow out your relaxer, yous're going to accept to be patient. If you utilize mayonnaise to endeavour and strip a relaxer from your hair, you're not doing permanent damage, but you're not doing anything else either. But if y'all use dish detergent, harsh shampoos or products that promise to strip chemicals, yous're definitely harming your hair. Relaxers are permanent—they change the chemical structure of your hair. Retrieve about it similar cooking an egg. Simply similar you lot tin't uncook an egg, nothing will strip a relaxer.

04 of 10

Invest in the Right Products

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Heavy, petroleum-laden products are non practiced for your hair and should exist avoided at all costs. At all-time, these products may not permit necessary hydration to enter your hair shaft, and at worst, they might crusade significant build upwards and damage to your scalp. Bennu told u.s.a., "H2o is your friend. Highly textured hair loves hydration. The 'Juices' ($xiv) herbal hydrating tonics are perfect to soften and hydrate. Layer a water-based leave-in with a calorie-free application of an oil-based sealing product."

Thompson and Wilson added, "A simple still constructive regimen includes products like the Healthy Pilus Care System Starter Kit. It'due south designed for women with all types of textures to achieve good for you, natural pilus growth. This kit has v steps that walk y'all through properly treating and stimulating your scalp for optimal health. Each kit includes a TLC Comb-Out Handling to help prevent breakage when detangling, the Renewing Shampoo and Conditioner that gives an intense scalp and pilus cleanse to restore moisture, the Revival Deep Treatment to promote growth, elasticity, strength and hydration, and the True Essence Oil, which stimulates follicles to promote growth in thinning areas and bald spots."

05 of 10

Take Care of Your Ends

CURLS Huckleberry Bliss Hair Growth Oil $12.00

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Taking care of your ends is very important when you're transitioning. Dellinger gave us a iii-step plan to protecting your ends.

Trim Your Ends - Dellinger told u.s.a., "Patently [trimming your ends] volition change your bottom line at the end of the yr, but a strong baseline will aid you lot retain growth. Weak ends can accelerate breakage. See a professional to get a custom recommendation for how much to trim, but generally, good for you hair can maintain a routine of trimming roughly three/4 inch, every four months, or more for damaged pilus in demand of repair."
Oil Your Ends - "Protective oils can serve every bit a barrier around the hair shaft. This provides a layer of protection from ecology and tactical styling damage and preserves previously moisturized strands. Be certain to oil the ends after applying a hydrating moisturizer to your strands," says Dellinger.
Muffle Your Ends - And finally, she recommends, "Cover those ends in a basic protective style. The key is for the ends to be curtained, not revealed. Hide, put them away, and opt to wearable these types of styles more often than not."

06 of 10

Avert Not Shampoing Frequently Enough

Oyin Handmade Ginger Mint Co-Wash $12.00

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Unless yous walk around wearing a hat all day long, your hair is subject to dust, dirty air, grime, and pollution. While yous shouldn't wash your pilus every 24-hour interval, it needs to see some water more oft than not. Not shampooing and letting dirt build upward volition not grow your hair. At least one time a week is a practiced schedule to follow for shampooing but consider your lifestyle, likewise. If yous practice frequently, you may need to incorporate co-washes into your regimen.

Thompson and Wilson add, "Co-washes are good, however they should not be done back to dorsum. Co-washes should but be done in between your main wash. If done back to back, this tin cause build upwardly in your scalp. Information technology's of import to wash your hair every 2-3 weeks to detox and remove all buildup off your scalp so that it can exhale."

07 of 10

Steer Clear of Tight Ponytails and Buns

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A hairstyle shouldn't hurt, and if yours does, or causes tiny bumps to develop at your hairline, (although hopefully information technology doesn't,) it's as well tight. Also many people have painful hairdos that aren't necessary. Instead, focus on protective styles that won't harm your edges. Bennu says, "Low-manipulation styles are great ways to avoid breakage and increase length retention."

Dellinger adds, "Protective styling is the all-time type of styling when on a hair growth programme. Enjoy the #bunlife or use protective manner updos with twists and loose braids. Yous can too fashion your hair in long-term extension styles. No matter what style you cull, make sure the tension is minimal, your scalp can exhale, and that you lot practise not go out your pilus styled beyond the expiration appointment."

08 of 10

Stop Overprocessing Your Hair

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By now, you probably know not to apply relaxer to previously processed hair, but with and then many people applying chemicals at home, it'southward withal piece of cake to make this mistake. Add together permanent color to straightened hair and yous often accept a recipe for maximum breakage. To avert this outcome, it's all-time to encounter a stylist for relaxer and color applications.

09 of 10

Put a Finish to Rough Detangling Sessions

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All hair gets tangled at some point, just it'south how you handle information technology that determines whether you retain your pilus or whether you lot pull information technology out. Instead of yanking at tangles, piece of work through them with your fingers outset, and then with a wide-tooth rummage. If you're in a hurry, save your untangling for when you're non—it's when nosotros're in a rush that we most ofttimes pull roughly, instead of working through gently. "To detangle your hair we recommend using our TLC Rummage-out Treatment ($30) with a wide toothed comb to help detangle and shine out your strands with less stress. This volition likewise help foreclose breakage," say Thompson and Wilson.

x of 10

Cut Off Dissever Ends

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Ladies who are trying to abound longer locks often have a hard time with this one, just cutting away split ends is essential for healthy pilus. Would y'all rather take a lengthy mane with thin, see-through sections where it's broken off? Or would you rather start off shorter, simply with strong, thick locks? Unfortunately, some people cull the first selection and walk around with blatantly unhealthy pilus. Dissever ends don't fix themselves—you lot have to trim them away as needed to prevent the the divide from traveling further up the pilus shaft and splitting the hair even more.

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Zhou Y, Rigoletto R, Koelmel D, et al. The issue of various cosmetic pretreatments on protecting hair from thermal damage by hot flat ironing.J Cosmet Sci. 2011;62(2):265-282.
Khumalo NP, Stone J, Gumedze F, McGrath E, Ngwanya MR, de Berker D. 'Relaxers' damage pilus: evidence from amino acid assay.J Am Acad Dermatol. 2010;62(three):402-408. doi:10.1016/j.jaad.2009.04.061
Cleveland Clinic. Is there any style to make your hair grow faster? Updated Feb 27, 2020.