Why is my Hair Frizzy?
It is really common for one to experience frizzy hair, especially if you're living in a humid country! But what exactly causes your hair to frizz? It's essential to know and understand the causes for frizzy hair in order to tame it!
So, what happens when hair becomes frizzy?
Hair contains hair cuticles, which are like minuscule shingles that protect the hair strand from the elements. Healthy hair typically has cuticles laying down smooth (refer to image). Beneficial moisture from natural sebum produced by the scalp helps keep the slates down, giving you smooth hair.
Frizzy hair on the other hand has open slates with appearance that resembles a pine cone; open, rough and prickly. When this happens, not only does moisture escape from the hair shaft, air that enters the hair causes it to swell and change shape. This results in frizzy hair.
Now that we've understood what frizzy hair is, here are some factors that contribute to frizzy hair!
HUMIDITY
It is no surprise that humidity causes frizzy hair. When living in a humid environment, hair tends to get frizzy quickly.
This happens when the hair's cuticle opens up gaps allowing moisture and nutrients to escape and humidity to enter. The outer hair layer then soaks moisture from humid air and swells. This causes the hair cuticle to become dry resulting in frizzy hair.
What you can do:
Before leaving home, use a frizz protectant such as anti-frizz serums and essential oils. That will help to coat the hair shaft preventing any extra moisture from getting in.
FREQUENT CHEMICAL TREATMENTS
Frequent heat styling is another common culprit for frizzy hair. The high heat from blow-drying, flat-ironing or hair curling can damage the hair's cuticle.
Excessive hair drying, hair bleaching and other chemical treatments or harsh hair products contributes in damaging the hair cuticles too.
Our hair produces natural oils which helps smooth and moisturise the hair. When natural oil is strip away the hair becomes dry, brittle and breakage prone. This damages the hair's cuticle causing even more frizz.
What you can do:
To avoid this from happening, go easy on the heat or take a break from colouring your hair. When you need to use heat tools, use them on the lowest setting or use a good heat protector to create a barrier against heat damage.
TUGGING ON YOUR HAIR
Vigorously drying your hair with a rough towel, brushing hair with nylon bristles and sleeping on a rough cotton pillowcase can ruffle the cuticle layer. These actions produce friction which contributes to frizzy hair.
Instead, blot your hair when drying with a towel, use gentler hairbrushes or change to a silk pillow case.
OVER-WASHING
Using harsh or aggressive hair shampoo can strip the hair of its natural protective barrier resulting in dryness, breakage, and frizz.
You can also choose a Sulfate free shampoo and avoid washing your hair every day. Simply rinse your hair with water between shampoos and only cleanse when your scalp is dirty. If your hair is dry, skip the shampoo and use only conditioner twice a week.
Always give your hair extra precautions and TLC! Understanding the factors that contribute to frizzy hair will assist you in finding the proper steps to prevent frizzy hair from happening again!
We produce and upload beauty related content on our channel weekly at Hana Story Boutique, so be sure to join us and be part of the beauty community.
We'll see you there! Additionally, you may follow our social media Instagram, Facebook or YouTube for more updates!