Deep conditioning is an extremely important practice for many naturals
and as a result there are various ways women deep condition their hair.
But what is the proper way to deep condition the hair? Why are some
methods more important than others and what is a complete waste of time.
The purpose of this article is to sift through all of the information
to give the real truth about this process, and how to get the results
your looking for.
What is conditioning?
What you’re trying to accomplish with conditioning is to restore or
maintain the elasticity of the hair so that it’s better able to
withstand combing, brushing, cleansing etc. without too much damage.
Conditioning can also improve the appearance of the hair causing it to
appear healthy. Conditioning in general should accomplish the
following:
- Ease combing (both wet and dry)
- Increase softness to the hair
- Minimize flyaways
- Reduce the porosity of the hair
- Improve the manageability of the hair
For the most part, a regular moisturizing or hydrating conditioner is
able to give these results. However if you hair is damaged then deep
conditioning should be a part of your regimen. Damaged is any condition
where one or more of the hair structures – the cuticle, cortex, medulla,
etc. – are physically or chemically altered so much that they are
unable to return to their original state. Cuticles can become cracked
and frayed, the hair shaft can become cracked damaging the cortex and
medulla, and the hair fiber can be exposed and unprotected in extreme
cases. Common causes of hair damage include that from regular hair care
practices such as mechanical manipulation, to extreme processes like
chemical altering. Once hair has been damaged there is no way to repair
it. The only way to rid the hair of damaged areas is by cutting. What
products actually do is temporarily improve the state of the hair to
make it look, feel and perform like hair that is healthier, as well as
prevent future damage. Damaged hair typically has the following
characteristics:
- Loss of elasticity
- Breaking hair
- Dull-looking hair
- Dry and brittle
- Highly porous
- Split ends or mid-shaft splits
- A lot of tangling
What type of conditioner do you need?
The type of conditioner you use for your hair will depend on your hair
texture and the state of your hair. For example, fine limp hair will
need a conditioner that can increase body and thick, dry hair will
require a conditioner that can be used for softness and moisture.
Reconstructors containing a lot of protein should be used on hair that
is fine, limp and damaged. Moisturizing deep conditioners with a lot of
oils, emollients and moisturizers should be used on hair that requires
softening or is very dry. If your focus is on real deep conditioning
then the type of product you use will be important, as well as how that
conditioner is used on the hair. In order to get the best results enough
of the conditioning agents must bind to the hair and sufficient amounts
of active ingredients must penetrate into the cortex of the hair. This
occurs under one or a combination of the following situations:
So in the context of deep conditioning let’s take a look at the factors necessary to properly do so.
High pH
A higher pH results in cuticles that are more open. Hair is most
vulnerable in this state but it’s also a great opportunity for the
conditioner to really penetrate into the cortex of the hair rather than
if the cuticles are closed. Cuticles are typically opened when hair is
relaxed or chemically processed in some way. For natural hair, the
cuticles are typically not really open unless the hair is very porous or
damaged in some way. Using baking soda and castile soap (which are high
pH ranges) for cleaning can result in the cuticles opening. I don’t
have any experience with either one of these cleansing agents to
recommend how to properly use them and as a result, time and the use of
heat with the conditioner will be discussed in order to maximize
conditioning results.
The amount of time the conditioner is left of the hair
The longer the contact between the conditioner and the hair, the more
the conditioning agents can bind to the hair, and active ingredients can
penetrate into the cortex. Every ingredient in a conditioner has its
own ability to adsorb (adhere) to the surface of the hair and/or
penetrate into the hair. Many factors depend on the use of high or low
molecular weight proteins, the use of oils with long or short fatty acid
chains etc. The key ingredients that can stick to hair like the
surfactants, hydrolyzed proteins and polyquats will do so within a few
seconds of applying the conditioner. If left on hair for longer the more
they will be absorbed. In general the conditioning effect is present
for up to 25-30 minutes. After this time absorption of active
ingredients has reach its maximum and there is no real added benefit to
leaving a conditioner on the hair after 30 minutes.
The Use of Heat
As the hair increases in temperature the possibility of the conditioners
penetrating the cortex also increases. What temperature are we talking
about? The hair should be at about 60 degrees Celcius (about 140 degrees
Fahrenheit) which can be achieved at the medium setting of an electric
heat cap.
In Part 2 of this series we’ll take a look at the ingredients you need
to look for in an great deep conditioner and the steps you should take
to get the most out of your deep conditioning.
How to Properly Deep Condition Natural Hair Part 2: The Ingredients and the Methods
How do you know if your deep conditioner is good or not? Do you rely on
price? Not necessarily as an expensive product doesn’t mean the product
is good, nor does a cheap product mean it doesn’t work. So what should
you look for? The answer to this question is to become ingredient savvy.
Having an understanding of ingredients will help you determine, at
least at first glance, if a deep conditioner is going to be effective
for you or not.
Ingredients that attach onto to the hair
Remember we discussed the fact that conditioning agents ADSORB to the
hair? ADSORBING means that the ingredients attach to the surface of the
hair. This phenomenon is responsible for helping to soften the hair,
temporarily repair the hair, smooth the cuticle and reduce flyaways. The
main types of ingredients you’re looking for are cationic surfactants,
cationic polymers, emollients, oils and silicones.
Surfactants are molecules that have water-loving and water-repelling
segments. There are many uses for surfactants and they are mainly used
for their cleansing ability. Surfactants can carry a positive charge,
negative charge or no charge. However, when it comes to conditioning,
cationic surfactants - or those with a positive charge - are extremely
important. Since hair carries a relative negative charge, if you use a
cationic or positively charged surfactant it will be attracted to the
negatively charged section of the hair and bind to the surface of the
hair. The surfactants will also form a film that smoothes the cuticle
resulting in reducing static, tangling and improving softness. What are
some main cationic surfactants? Behentrimonium methosulfate,
behentrimonium chloride and cetrimonium chloride. Other ingredients that
adsorb are conditioning polymers like the polyquaterniums and cationic
guar gum. Lastly emollients such as cetyl and cetearyl alcohol, some
oils and silicones also have the ability to attach to the hair and
convey benefits.
Ingredients that penetrate into the hair
Some ingredients can penetrate into natural hair at a temperature of
about 35 degrees celcius. This corresponds to the temperature that would
be reached if you applied conditioner to your hair and covered it with a
shower cap. These ingredients include hydrolyzed wheat protein,
hydrolyzed silk protein, coconut oil, cetrimonium bromide, panthenol,
some silicones. Many can penetrate in between the layers of the cuticle
and into the cortex of the hair. Each ingredient has its own time for
penetration ranging from minutes to hours. This time can also depend on
the condition of the hair often with damaged hair resulting in faster
penetration than hair that is not damaged.
So what are the best steps to deep condition curly hair?
1. Shampoo with a product containing negative surfactants or cleansers.
Rinse the shampoo from the hair and then apply the conditioner with
positive surfactants. This is the best method for getting the most
amount of conditioner to adsorb onto the hair, while allowing the
maximum penetration of key ingredients into the hair. The reason you
want to shampoo the hair first is that high carries slight negative
charge which is enhanced with the use of shampoo with a negative charge.
Opposites attract so when hair with a negative charge encounters the
positive charge of the deep conditioner there will be more adsorption
onto the hair and better penetration of active ingredients. It’s
important to rinse out the shampoo because if not, the negative charge
of the shampoo could interfere with the ability of the conditioner to
adhere to the surface of the hair.
2. Apply enough conditioner on the hair to completely cover and saturate the hair.
Put a plastic cap over your hair and then apply heat for up to 30
minutes. The time the conditioner is left on the hair combined with the
application of heat increases the penetration of some ingredients into
the cortex. If you don’t have a heating cap you could theoretically use a
hair dryer or blow dryer or, steam or boil some towels in hot water,
carefully remove them from the water with gloves, remove excess water
and wrap your head (covered in the plastic cap) with the towels for the
required time. The point is that the warmer your hair is, the deeper the
penetration into the hair and the more effective the conditioning
treatment.
3. Rinse with cool water. Cool water helps to seal the cuticle.
After you have effectively deep conditioned your hair it should feel
softer, moisturized, shiny and more manageable. If your conditioning
treatment results in this then you’ve definitely found a product to
keep. If it doesn’t then get rid of it, read the ingredient list and
invest in a product that is really going to do something for your hair.
Beware of overconditioning!
Some women love to leave a deep conditioner on their hair for hours at a
time for various reasons. While conditioning is good for the hair, too
much of a good thing is not necessarily better. Conditioning for hours
at a time can result in softer hair and this likely occurs because of a
change in the keratin forming a different configuration than normal.
Hair that is softer will be weaker and more prone to breaking if
manipulated. This change in keratin is temporary and your hair will
return to its stronger state but you'll need to be careful how you
handle it until it does.
http://www.curlynikki.com/2012/11/how-to-properly-deep-condition-natural.html
