If you have low porosity hair, you must know how hard it is to get moisture to penetrate your hair strands. Low porosity hair care can get a little challenging. But the good news is, once you know what to do, keeping your hair moisturized does not have to be complicated.
All you have to do is follow a few simple steps. Then you will be on your way to beautifully moisturized hair. Your dry brittle hair days will be put behind you for good.
Knowing the dos and don’ts for low porosity hair care is the key to beautiful hair.
So what is the best way to care for your low porosity hair? Caring for your low porosity hair includes a few simple steps. The list below will go over the dos and don’ts to caring for your low porosity hair. If you incorporate these techniques in your daily regimen, you will have less frustration dealing with your low porosity hair in the long run.
Take a look at the list below. It will give you some great tips for low porosity hair care. If you make it your mission to incorporate these techniques into your daily regimen, you will have less frustration dealing with your low porosity hair in the future.
Let’s jump right into the dos and don’ts for low porosity hair care.
Don’t use heavy oil on your low porosity hair.
Oils such as Castor oil, coconut oil sit on top of your hair and do not go past the cuticle layer of your hair. You need to use light oils that can easily penetrate all the layers of your hair. Use sweet almond oil, jojoba oil, avocado oil, argan oil etc…
Don’t use too many different products.
Layering products on top of products is only keeping your hair from absorbing necessary moisture. Find what works for you and stick to it. You already know that your low porosity hair is prone to product build up. Don’t use a bunch of products on your hair all at once and expect them to work. They will just sit on top of your hair and not do the work.
Don’t use a lot of protein in your hair.
Low porosity hair is protein sensitive. So the less protein you use on your low porosity hair, the better off you will be. Since finding out my hair is low in porosity, I have avoided protein based products like the plague. And I can see the difference in how my hair behaves. Next time you are shopping for hair products, read the labels. If protein is part of the first 5 ingredients, put it back on the shelf. It is not the best product for your hair.
Keep in mind that you might need to incorporate a protein treatment from time to time. But unless you really feel it necessary, do yourself a favor and lay off of the protein.
Don’t apply moisture to wet hair.
Instead, apply moisture to damp hair for best results. You want the product to fully penetrate your hair. Applying moisture to wet hair will alter the process. So when you get out of the shower, or after you wet your hair, use a towel or cotton t-shirt to remove excess water. Once this is complete you may proceed with applying your moisturizer.
Check out this list of products that work well for low porosity hair.
Now that we’ve covered the Don’ts of low porosity hair care, let’s go over the Dos.
Do wash regularly with clarifying shampoo.
As a person with low porosity hair, you need to make sure your hair is free of build up from the products that you use. Because low porosity hair is hard to absorb moisture, products tend to sit on top of our hair which in turn usually makes it harder to absorb moisture. For that reason, you need to make sure you use a clarifying shampoo to get rid of all those build ups in your hair and allow moisture to penetrate your strands.
How often you clarify is completely up to what you feel works best for your hair. Personally, I clarify my hair weekly just because I can see that my hair needs it.
Do use lightweight products
lightweight products are easier to penetrate your hair strands. So when buying hair products, consider buying those that are lighter in consistency to allow easier penetration and moisture retention.
Do use heat when deep conditioning your hair.
When deep conditioning your low porosity hair, you should always use heat. Heat opens up your hair cuticles and allows moisture to penetrate your strands. If you deep condition without heat, you are pretty much wasting your time. Your hair cuticles are not opening up to allow the moisture in.
The easiest way to do it is to apply your deep conditioner, cover your hair with a plastic cap and sit under a hooded dryer for 15 to 30 minutes (not more than 30 minutes). Read more about deep conditioning your hair here. You can also use a steamer or a blow dryer.
Do use hot water to wash and rinse your hair.
I’m sure you’ve heard that you should use hot water to wash, but cold water to rinse your hair. This method is not efficient for low porosity hair. You should begin and complete your wash with hot water always. That is because people with low porosity hair have tightly closed cuticles and the hot water aids in opening those cuticles up and allowing the moisture to penetrate. It is similar to using heat when deep conditioning your hair.
Do use products design with your hair in mind.
Companies are now designing products with different hair porosity types in mind. So before you buy a hair product, make sure it was designed with your hair porosity in mind. Some companies like Shea Moisture have lines dedicated specifically to low porosity hair. See my recent review for the Shea Moisture low porosity line here. You will see a big difference once you once products for your hair porosity level.
Alright, ladies, this is it for the dos and don’ts for your low porosity hair care. If you practice all these tips, I guarantee you your low porosity hair will react a lot better and look a lot better than you can imagine.
If you’re looking for the best products for low porosity hair, click here to check out this list.
What about you, what do you do to your hair to keep it looking healthy and moisturized? Is there anything you’d like to add to this list? If so, don’t hesitate to do so below in the comment section ⇓.
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Ah..hair..my nemesis! I seem to have done it all, but nothing works..you name it, I’ve tried it. Now l just keep it shaved and as of two weeks ago, pure shea butter and coconut oil. Love your hair! 🙂
I haven’t deep conditioned my hair in weeks. I really just need to sit under the dryer for 10 minutes, then let it stay in another 20 minutes.
Joyce, deep conditioning is very important for your hair. Mine can’t do without it.
Thanks for these tips. My girls have two totally different textures and my youngest has low porosity. I’ve been trying the same things on both of them and now I see why it isn’t working.
Good to know this is helping you Anitra. You should try the products I mentioned here http://misscoilyhair.com/shea-moisture-low-porosity-line-review/ for your low po girl. They also have a high porosity line as well. Let me know if you do and how they work out.
Thanks for these tips. I need to make sure to pay attention. This whole series has been great for my hair. I think I knew about the protein. I hate hard hair and that certainly does it for me.
I agree Kendra. Hard hair is annoying. Thanks for stopping by!
I definitely learned some new information. One of my daughters has low porosity hair so the one thing I have don’t in the past was rinse her hair with hot water. I will now.
Thanks for reading Elle, You should see a change.
This is great information. Just wondering how you can tell if your hair has low porosity? I’m learning how to style my 2 year old’s natural hair and just trying to learn everything that I can. Great post by the way!
Thanks Ashlee. Finding out is easy. If take a strand of hair from her comb or brush, put it in a cup of water. If it stays at the top, she has low porosity hair. If it sinks, then she has high porosity hair. Here’s post that should better guide you: http://misscoilyhair.com/1-thing-every-newly-natural-should-know/. I hope that helps.
I think at one point I had super low porosity hair it was so frustrating. I realized I had to cut the rest of my colored strands out to make it healthier as well.
Right Kiwi, dyeing your hair does change the porosity level. I’m glad you figured it out 🙂
What does low porosity mean? I have dry hair, any product recommendations?
Hi Tiffany, thanks for the question. Low porosity means that it is hard to get moisture in your hair. You have to do a little bit more work to get you hair moisturized. I have a post that goes in details about it here: http://misscoilyhair.com/1-thing-every-newly-natural-should-know/. And this post will show you what products have been working for me. Check it out: http://misscoilyhair.com/shea-moisture-low-porosity-line-review/. Please let me know if that helps.
These are some great tips for low porosity hair. I think people think more products and oil is best, but not always. Sometimes it can keep the hair from absorbing the moisture.
Thank you Jonna!
These are some awesome tips. I’ve been trying to find the right regimen for my hair and there’s so much info out there on what your should use and what your shouldn’t. As I’m learning more about my hair type I’m figuring out some of the more common suggestions may not be the best for me. Thanks for the great article!
Thanks Andrea. I’m glad I can be helpful 🙂
I used the Low porosity line from Kriya Botanicals. These products give my hair hair so much moisture it’s been lacking.
I definitely have to say i appreciate this info and i will be doing this thanks much sis
Why didnt I read this when i was wearing my bradis? 7 weeks of oiling my scalp every other day and washing every other week….NO GROWTH. My guess is that my scalp was too saturated and air wasn’t able to pass thru the follicles. This blog helped alot. I only found out that I have low porosity hair last week and had to switch up a few things in my regimen. My old products, esp my deep conditioner, would just sit on my strands and they’d be desert dry.