Issue link: https://www.ahpindiestylist.com/i/1547346
Explore your benefits at ahphair.com 51 UNSPLASH ere are four main causes of hair damage: • Chemical damage comes from relaxers, permanent color, lighteners, and perms, all of which work precisely because they break critical hair bonds; a relaxer permanently rearranges disulfide bonds, and bleach oxidizes pigment and protein alike. • Environmental damage comes from UV light, chlorine, hard water minerals, and weathering over time. • Mechanical damage comes from friction and force—aggressive brushing, dry detangling, tight hairstyles, rough towels, and cotton pillowcases that create friction and sap moisture. • ermal damage comes from flat irons, curling wands, and hot dryers, which at high temperatures can boil the water inside the cortex, blister the fiber, and degrade keratin. Unfortunately, because hair is not living along the length of the fiber, it can't be permanently repaired once damaged. A split end can't be sealed shut forever, and a broken disulfide bond in relaxed hair is permanently rearranged. But recovery can prevent further damage. THE PROTEIN-MOISTURE BALANCE Protein and moisture balancing applies to all hair types and textures. But textured hair's tendency toward dryness means that a deliberate moisture strategy is not optional—it's required. e perfect moisture strategy is a matter of maintaining the critical protein-moisture balance in the hair. Protein provides structure, rigidity, and tensile strength, while moisture provides elasticity, flexibility, and the ability to bend the hair without breaking it. A strand needs both, in proportion, and virtually all breakage traces back to a deficit on one side of that critical equation. e classic mistake is reaching for protein at the sign of any breakage or weakness. And you can't really blame anyone because that's precisely how protein-rich products are marketed: "Hair breaking? It must need strength, right?" Well, not always. Wetting the hair helps us truly assess the balance. Hair that feels strong and supple when wet is balanced. Balanced hair gently stretches and resists breakage. Conversely, hair that feels gummy, mushy, or weak or snaps while wet is moisture- burdened and protein-deficient. It desperately needs strength and structure. Hair that barely stretches at all when wet, feels rough or brittle, and breaks without much provocation is moisture- starved in comparison to its protein strength. It needs hydration to restore its flexibility. Wet hair always tells you which kind of treatment the hair needs next. Can't tell? Reset the slate with a clarifying shampoo. Importantly, moisture in this framework means water. Moisture is hydration, not oil, silicone, or butters. Clients in the textured hair community are oen taught early that natural oils and butters (like coconut oil and shea butter) moisturize the hair. And it's not difficult to see why people are confused. Entire What we call "repair" is really patching, reinforcement, protection, and intelligent management of a nonliving fiber.