What is hair porosity?
You've probably heard of it before: hair porosity. Does it change anything in your hair routine? The answer is yes and we give you its explanation as well as the gestures to adopt:
Definition of porosity
The porosity of a hair is its capacity to absorb the external hydration and to preserve it in the capillary fibre. The opening or not of the scales (or cuticles) present on the surface of the fiber testify to the level of porosity. How to know your porosity level?
Low porosity: your scales are not very open
When the scales are not open, it is difficult for the moisture to penetrate the hair. The hair then remains dry despite all the moisture you give it. And when the humectant has managed to penetrate, it can take several hours to dry.
So what to do? The first tip is to use moisturizing but light products. The Boost Curl will be your best ally to penetrate hair with little porosity. We then advise you to leave your masks such as Repair Time under a heated cap or a hot towel. The heat will open up the cuticles and allow all the right ingredients to enter. Finally, a purifying treatment with the Tropical Détox will help you remove any product residue that could block the entrance of the scales.
High porosity: your scales are closed
Conversely, high porosity means that the scales are too open. Why is this a problem? Well, the products and their benefits enter the hair very easily, but leave the fiber directly. The hair is therefore neither nourished nor moisturized enough.
How do you go about it? The objective is to retain the moisture that we bring into the hair. To do this, it will be necessary to seal in the moisture, i.e., close the scales with nourishing products such as the Magic Twist for kinky hair or one of our Smoothie for coily hair.
You can also apply a few drops of our Sérum Croissance, a concentrate of plant and essential oils. Unlike hair with low porosity, use cold water especially at the end of the wash and thicker products to keep the benefits in the hair fiber.
How to know its porosity?
It is very simple, cut a clean hair without styling products and place it in a glass of water. Three possible reactions:
- Your hair sinks: you have a high porosity and your scales are very open
- Your hair stays on the surface: you have a low porosity and your scales are closed and compact
- Your hair flow gently and stagnates in the middle of the glass: you have medium porosity
A tip from the Les Secrets de Loly team
Don't panic if you have several types of porosity in your hair or if your porosity changes over the years. Our hair fibers are not set in stone and even less perfect. Learning how to take care of it requires time and adapted products. So don't hesitate to visit other articles like “Routines adaptées” or “How to find the right shampoo?” to find you happiness!
