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Does High Porosity Hair Need Protein?

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Hair is a complicated thing. On the surface, it may seem that caring for hair is pretty basic but I can tell you that there is a lot more to it than that.

Every single person’s hair on the entire earth has to be treated differently from the next person. No matter how similar your hair may seem to the next person I can almost guarantee you there will be differences.  This includes if you have natural hair or chemically processed hair.

You need to take into consideration your hair’s porosity, elasticity, density and oil levels. There are other things that can be a factor as well but for the most part, these are the most important.

Today we are going to be looking at hair porosity and if high porosity hair needs protein.

 

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Does high porosity hair need protein?

 

What Is Porosity?

Porosity is all about how porous your hair is. The porousness of your hair is all about how well your hair does or does not absorb moisture and retain it.

Generally, there are 3 types of porosity. Low porosity hair, which means that the cuticles of your hair are tightly closed. This means that moisture finds it difficult to penetrate into the hair strand leading to dry hair.

High porosity hair means that the cuticles are too open. This means that you have highly porous hair.  When this happens it is very easy for moisture to penetrate but difficult for your hair to hold onto it.

Normal porosity (medium porosity hair) hair means that your hair is well balanced and that your hair is able to absorb and retain moisture very well.

 

What Is Protein?

Your hair is made up of something called keratin protein. Keratin protein is basically found in your hair and nails. Proteins are made up of amino acids which go on to form the keratin protein.

Keratin is what gives your hair its strength but it is also what can make your hair dry and brittle as well if it is in excess.

There are many different types of proteins in your hair. These include keratin as already explained, collagen, elastin and many others.

The percentage of protein in your hair can variate from person to person. On average the average person’s hair is made up of  70-80% protein.

That must mean that protein is good for hair right? Let’s take a closer look at it.

 

You need to take into consideration your hair’s porosity, elasticity, density and oil levels

 

Is It A Case of The More Protein The Better?

As we have already seen, our hair is made up of a high percentage of protein. Does that mean that we can simply throw more protein at it?

An excess of protein in hair can cause damage and it can also cause your hair to become very dry, brittle and break.

To simplify it, your hair actually needs a very delicate balance of protein and moisture in order for it to thrive.

Although protein will strengthen your hair, too much will make your hair dry. To prevent your hair from becoming dry you need moisture. That moisture can come in the form of a deep conditioning treatment like this one.

What your hair actually needs is a delicate balance of the two. You can read more about protein, moisture, balance here.

 

Does High Porosity Hair Need Protein?

Now we know all about hair porosity and protein we need to address the question of does high porosity hair need protein?

The answer to this question is yes it does but not excessively.

As the cuticles of high porosity hair are widely open, it means that moisture finds it difficult to lock into the hair strand. When this happens your hair becomes prone to dryness and therefore breakage.

To help prevent your hair from breakage your hair needs a little more strength. This comes from an additional protein treatment

Even having said this, protein without balancing it with moisture simply will not work. Both protein and moisture need to go hand in hand in order for it to be effective. You can pick up a really great protein deep conditioner here.

 

How Do You Know If You Have High Porosity Hair?

There are a few simple tests that you can quickly do to find out if you have high porosity hair or not. You can read about those here.

There are also simple telltale signs that you will notice in your hair too, such as:

  • Your hair feels dry and straw-like
  • Excessive tangling
  • Your hair air-drying extremely quickly
  • Hair not being able to retain moisture very well

These are just some of the signs that you will notice in your hair. You may also find that your hair is quite damaged if these signs have been going on for a long time.

 

How Do You Care For High Porosity Hair

If you find that you do have high porosity hair it needs to be looked after in a particular way.

The most important thing that you need to do is to make sure that your hair can retain some of that moisture once it receives it.

You can achieve this by using oils and butters to help seal in moisture. If you want to know more about sealing in moisture you can read about it here.

 

Hair Products For High Porosity Hair

Mielle Organics Babassu & Mint Deep Conditioner with Protein

 

 

tgin Honey Miracle Hair Mask Deep Conditioner With Raw Honey & Olive Oil

 

 

Continuous Water Mister Spray Bottle 

 

 

What Helps With High Porosity Hair?

The best thing you can do for high porosity hair is to make sure it is adequately moisturised. Set yourself up with a schedule for moisturising if you have to.

You can have your weekly ways of moisturising your hair but you can also have daily ways to moisturise your hair too. This can include slightly spritzing your hair with a mixture of leave-in conditioner and water daily or every other day to help with moisture levels until you are ready to wash your hair.

 

Final Thoughts On Does High Porosity Hair Need Protein?

In answer to the question, does high porosity hair need protein? Yes, it does but not in excess and it definitely has to be done in conjunction with moisture.

Remember every head of hair is different so you may have to tweak your routine to find out what works best for your hair. You may need more moisture than protein or the other way around. There really is no hard and fast rule on this.
Some people may find that they are protein sensitive.  If this is the case then you will need to adjust your routine again to factor that in.

How have you found your hair reacts to protein?

 

Related posts:

6 Signs you have high porosity hair

How to grow healthy high porosity hair

Does your hair really need a protein treatment?

 

 

High porosity hair