Hair porosity – what is it?

Have you ever wondered why some cosmetics work better for your hair while others only weight them down or treat without any spectacular results? It all happens due to the fact that there are various hair types. You can compare that to different car makes. Would you ever try to use a truck tire to an Audi? The same thing happens when it comes to your hair. For a specified type of hair, only especially designed cosmetics will bring tremendous effects. It all depends on the porosity of your hair which means that the overall condition of your hair is taken into consideration.

We can distinguish three types of hair:

1. Low porosity hair – those are usually the healthy and thick ones. They have the cuticles tightly closed, what makes the hair thick and heavy. Thanks to this, they also keep the most of the nourishing ingredients inside. What is more, they are never frizzy or static during winter time. They absorb moisture slowly and consequently, the time for drying is a lot longer that with other types of hair. When it comes to damaging, that king of hair is resistant to most of the harmful factors. The only disadvantage of such hair is that the process of styling takes longer and is more difficult. They are definitely not easy to cooperate with.
2. Medium porosity hair – those are classified somewhere between low porosity, healthy hair and high porosity, of rather weak condition. Medium porosity hair are probably the most popular ones. In general, that kind of hair is not difficult to style and is rather susceptible to any treatment. However, it is very easy to weaken them by harsh styling methods (such as dyeing, perm, straightening, or even too often blow-drying with hot air). Additionally, inappropriate products can cause drying, overweighting or even intensify seborrhoea. Usually, they are soft and glossy.
3. High porosity hair – those bring more worries, because of the requirement of intensified care. Their cuticles are wide open, which is why they are frail and thin. The problem of static occurs very often. Unfortunately, they break easily and have the tendency to split ends. Because of the fact that they do not lock in any moist, they tend to over dry too quickly which leads to greasy scalp. In this case, the need of more frequent, stronger nourishment and protection is urgently required. It is very important to always remember about the appropriate amount hydration.

You cannot forget the fact that, all hair types, after each damaging hair treatment (at the salon or at home) and a variety of chemicals (for example ammonia) as well as the environmental factors (strong sun) can have a dramatic influence on the condition of your hair. Women who do not take a good care of their medium porosity hair, can damage their structure even to the point where they will become the high porosity hair. Due to the fact that the ends are the oldest parts of the hair, and have went through so many different kinds of harmful treatments, are considered to be the most damaged parts. Remember to put more emphasis on their regeneration.

There are situations where quite healthy hair begin to weaken. Initially, low porosity hair start to lose their good condition. The porosity increases especially at the ends or sometimes even from the mid- length hair.

How to take a good care of a specific type of hair?

First and foremost, be cautious. It is broadly known that high porosity hair must be properly moisturised and provided with a large amount of emollients that are included, for example in natural oils. Applying hair oil overnight is one of the best ways to take care of such hair types. All kinds of masks and conditioners will have tremendous effects. In contrast to high porosity hair, low porosity would not appreciate such amount of products. Only a light conditioner and oils for example jojoba or coconut oil will do their jobs just fine. Sometimes, it is more than enough to simply apply a drop of one of those oils into the ends.

Medium porosity hair also do not require so many heavy masks, however, it will surely become good friends with light oils such as jojoba, linseed or macadamia oils. The key is not to overuse any hot styling tools such as hair straightener or a curling wand and after every wash protect the ends with a drop of a serums or oil. When it comes to blow-drying, try using only cool air and can be sure that your hair will remain in good condition.