How Hair Straightening Works
Many of us have probably tried hair straightening before and have almost definitely heard of the heat damage it entails. There are many ways to straighten our hair such as hair rebonding or thermal reconditioning, the most common and easiest one being the flat iron. Let’s look at how hair straightening works and the science behind it.
The Basics
Our hair is made up of a fibrous structural protein known as keratin, these are long chains of amino acids. The strength of our hair can be attributed to the special property of keratin, which are made up of a large number of sulfur-containing amino acids. Sulfur molecules, from contiguous chains of keratin, bond together to form disulphide bonds which makes the strands strong. These extra bonds also ensure and fix the shape of our hair structure.
When heat is applied to our hair, it breaks apart the hydrogen bonds in your hair. While this may sound scary, this process actually happens every time when we wet our hair. So, there’s no need to worry, you’re not damaging your hair. The hydrogen bonds then start to reform as your hair dries and take on whatever shape your hair is in.
Is Hair Straightening Bad for Your Hair?
Excessive heat styling definitely isn’t great for your hair if you want to keep it in a pristine condition. The heat from these treatments other than causing split ends, can damage your cuticle (outermost protective layer), making your hair dry and dull.
With a damaged cuticle, you’re also more likely to damage the internal cortex layer which could affect your hair’s strength, making your hair loses elasticity and prone to breakages. These hydrogen bonds can be permanently damaged, so you have to be careful with the numbers of heat treatments you put your hair through.
How to Protect Your Hair?
The best way to protect your hair from excessive heat damage is to limit the heat styling, whenever you can. If you have to get it done, a deep conditioning treatment for your hair after heat styling is crucial to smooth the cuticles and sealing in the moisture to prevent further damage. Heat protectant products can be a good alternative as it can absorb some of the heat damage.
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