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It was not my intention to publish this information in my blog so early into the journey but there has been a bit of interest in the topic recently so I have brought it forward.
Humectants: What
are they & what do I need to know?
Lots of people are asking about humectants. What are they?
How do they affect my hair? Is it something to do with weather? Etc, etc. The
whole humectant issue can be quite scientific & lead to confusion so I am
going to do my best to break it down to a need to know basis. Simply, the
absolute basics of what you need to know in relation to curly hair. There may
be a little science included just to clarify the subject but not too much as I
don’t want to create more confusion, especially to those new to the curly way
of life. I hope this goes a little more
toward your understanding of what products you need to use in your
hair. What I use in Nth Qld in my fine hair during summer could be totally
wrong for another curly in Tasmania to use in her fine curly hair regardless of
the curl pattern type. As most curlies know, the weather plays a big part in
what our hair’s behaviour will be day - to -day.
What are
humectants?
Simply put, a humectant is a substance that absorbs or helps
another substance retain moisture, as glycerol. (www.dictionary.reference.com).
Humectants are added to hair products to help retain
moisture & they actually pull moisture from the atmosphere into the hair if
it is dry & thirsty. Curly hair is inherently dry as it is more porous than
straight hair, thus it screams out for moisture & while reaching out for
more it begins to separate from its curl pattern, causing frizziness.
If you go outside on a rainy day, you will especially notice
it when there is light rain falling. Your hair doesn’t get completely drenched,
just light spots of rain……then you will notice it begin to expand & the
frizz appears. Extremely dry air can impact curly hair as well, creating frizz.
I know, it seems really confusing. How can humid air AND dry air cause frizz???
Don’t even think about giving up & going straight.
A little more science again, Tonya McKay has a great article
on naturallycurly.com, (Effects of
Relative Humidity on Hair and Humectants) detailing how, in nature, everything
strives toward equilibrium. Everything naturally wants to spread out evenly,
not clump in some areas & sparsely in others. In other words, the law of
nature says that everything should be equally spread but we know curly hair
works to defy this law! This is where humectants come in to help diffuse the
moisture evenly throughout your hair. The humectant typically tries to achieve
this balance by pulling moisture from the air into dry hair. But of course it
isn’t quite as simple as it sounds. Humectants can be your best friend or worst
enemy so read on…….
How does humidity
affect my hair?
In low humidity
(E.G dry winter air) there is very little water in the air so the air then
takes the moisture from your hair (Equilibrium, nature balancing out as above).
This effectively causes fly aways which when ruffled together cause frizz. In
this environment, you don’t want the moisture to be pulled from your hair by
the air, so the best type of protection is to use a conditioner that has very
good moisturisers in it & to use a styling product to seal that moisture in
the hair. A lot of the traditional humectants may actually assist the air in
removing the moisture, therefore sealing the moisture in is vital especially
for high porosity hair! Some effective sealers include jojoba oil, caster oil. Not coconut oil as it is absorbed into the hair shaft, a sealer will ensure slower loss of water in the hair. The frizz issue happens because of the natural need to
spread moisture evenly & if your hair happens to contain more water than
the cold, dry air, you may be robbed, that is why sealing will assist in keeping the curls in place.
There are newer humectants being developed that do assist in
extreme dry climates. Google for more information: hydroxypropyl
bis-hydroxyethyldimonium chloride & dihydroxypropyltrimonium chloride for
all you ingredient geeks out there.
In high humidity environments the opposite effect takes place: The air
has all the moisture & because of the laws of nature & the need to
spread that moisture evenly, if your hair is dry, porous & unprotected it
will stand up & scream out for some of that moisture. In the process of doing so, the open cuticles
rub against one another & cause frizz! Due to the extreme amount of water
in the air when humidity is very high, you can actually end up with an overload
of moisture in your curls & they can become tangled & frizzy & lose
their curl pattern. Curls should be kept well moisturised to minimise absorbing
too much water from the air in this type of environment by looking for products
containing lesser humectants or those with less hygroscopic ability.
(Hygroscopic: adj. Absorbing or attracting moisture from the air) Therefore, using
a product high in humectants, especially glycerin, means more water can be
attracted into your hair- not good in high humidity!
Remember, the more you really know
about your curls in relation to the weather will make living with curls so much
easier. Depending on where you live or travel to, it is very likely you will
need to change what you use in your hair along with the seasons. If there are
wide variations in the relative humidity you will need to be mindful of when to
change products, although curly hair is a reliable barometer. Don’t always rely
on what other curlies suggest you use in your hair, what works for one curly
could be totally wrong for another. The golden rule is: We are uniquely curly,
not sheeple! So experiment & play with different products, research what
products or techniques work for you but most of all, enjoy your curls. Don’t
curse them!
The following will link you to a
list of humectants as well as a full scientific explanation of what they are,
dew points & further additional information you may be interested in
reading. http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/ingredients/the-ultimate-guide-to-humectants-and-hair/
References:
Dictionary.com. 2014. Dictionary. [ONLINE] Available at: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/hygroscopic?s=t.
[Accessed 12 January 15].
Naturallycurly.com. 2007. Humidity,Humectants and Hair.
[ONLINE] Available at: http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/curl-products/curlchemist-humidity-humectants-and-hair/.
[Accessed 13 January 15].
Naturallycurly.com. 2007. What are Humectants?. [ONLINE]
Available at: http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/curl-products/curlchemist-what-are-humectants/.
[Accessed 12 January 15].
Thank you also to Melissa Stites
from Curly Hair Artistry
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