Is over moisturizing your hair a thing? Here's what you should know
If you ask anyone in the natural hair community for one bit of advice about natural hair, they’ll all probably say you need to moisturize your hair more often than anything else. Although moisture is one of the top things needed for your hair to flourish, have you ever considered that you could possibly be adding too much moisture?
Over moisturizing may sound unfathomable or even a little silly, but the truth is, it’s totally a real thing and very, very possible for you to do. And quite simply, it can occur easier than you think.
So what causes it and how will you know if it’s happening to your hair? Here’s a quick guide to what you should know.
It can cause your hair to experience breakage.
Also known as hygral fatigue (the back and forth swelling and shrinkage of hair), over moisturizing can cause some serious damage to your tresses. Just like having dry hair, over moisturizing your hair can cause you to experience breakage. Excessively moisturized hair will become weak and have issues retaining elasticity. Finding the right balance is key.
Check your labels.
Using products that have protein can help you decrease the risk of moisturizing too much. Products that include things like amino acids will help strengthen your hair and counteract the effects that excessive moisturizing has on your hair.
You could be doing it now and have no idea.
Do you constantly add moisture to your hair even when it’s not completely dry? If so, you may want to pull back on that a bit. Doing so could be causing you to over moisturize. Likewise, overnight conditioning, leaving your deep condition in longer than recommended, and doing daily wash and gos can all cause the issue to be prevalent, too.
There are ways to tell, but you can fix it.
Have you been having more trouble styling your hair than normal? If you’ve been suffering from reduced elasticity or limp and “gummy”/mushy hair when wet, over moisturizing could be the culprit. If this is you, don’t fret. There are ways to fix it. Aside from remembering to be responsible when moisturizing, you can add a protein treatment to your hair. Likewise, you can add pre-pooing into your routine by using an oil like our Balance Grapeseed & Avocado oil to help penetrate the hair shaft and reduce the amount of swelling your hair experiences. And last, but not least, be sure that your products dry completely every time you style.
<!-- /wp:shortcode -->
<!-- wp:shortcode -->
<ux_products columns="”3″" ids="”201″"></ux_products>
