The Caring and Keeping of High Porosity Hair

Keeping your hair strong and glossy is a top priority for most of us, and moisture plays a major role in maintaining your hair’s health.

If you have highly porous hair, you know how difficult it can be to keep your locks moist and hydrated. Highly porous hair often leaves you with dry, dull, and frizzy hair that looks anything but healthy.

To help you achieve the glossy, hydrated locks of your dreams, we’ve curated this list of simple steps you can take to revamp your hair care routine.

Stay away From Sulfates

It’s important to read the ingredients list on the products before you buy them, as they have a huge impact on your hair’s health. Ingredients lists on haircare products can be long and confusing, but there’s one you should avoid at all costs.

Marisa Garshick, M.D., a board-certified dermatologist, tells Good Housekeeping that she recommends avoiding sulfates as they can dry out the hair even more. Opt for a sulfate-free shampoo that focuses on hydration to revitalize your tresses.

Don’t Shampoo Too Often

While having clean, silky hair is the ultimate haircare goal, washing your hair too often can actually have the opposite effect. Overwashing your hair will strip it of its natural oils, which are essential to keeping it soft and helping it retain moisture.

Instead of washing every few days, cut down your hair-washing sessions to just once or twice a week.

Avoid Products With High Alcohol Content

Alcohol is another ingredient that quickly dries out hair and could lead to even duller, drier locks. It absorbs moisture from the scalp and hair, which you want to avoid if you want healthy, hydrated tresses.

Avoid products and sprays with high alcohol content, as highly porous hair needs more moisture to thrive than other hair types.

Invest in Moisturizing Products

Invest in products specifically curated with moisture in mind to boost your hair’s hydration. High-porosity hair is thirsty, so investing in moisturizing products will keep your hair strong and prevent it from breaking.

Joyce Park, M.D., a board-certified dermatologist, tells Byrdie that Jojoba oil closely mimics the hair’s natural oils and is a top-notch product for boosting hair’s hydration. Citric acid is another excellent ingredient as it closes the cuticle, helping the hair retain the oils, butters, and other moisturizing products for longer.

Get Regular Trims

Highly porous hair is much more prone to split ends and breakage. Booking yourself in for regular trims will eliminate any damaged hair, stimulate new hair growth, and keep your tresses looking thick and healthy.

If you’re trying to grow your locks, let your hairstylist know and ask for a slight trim to remove any dead ends while keeping most of your length.

Use the Right Shampoo

The products you use have a major effect on the overall appearance of your hair. Make sure you’re using a shampoo that specifically mentions hydration and moisture, as this will give your locks a much-needed boost of moisture.

Brandie Devillier, a certified color educator at Elevate Hair, recommends using a damage repair shampoo to fix issues like breakage and split ends.

Cut Down on Heat

Styling your hair is a fun way to express yourself, but certain tools should only be used occasionally. Styling tools that use heat, like curling irons, hair dryers, and straighteners, all damage the hair. The more often you use them, the more damage you’ll be left with.

To give your locks a break, opt for heat-free styling tools like leave-in curlers, curling rods, braids, and head wraps for healthier, shinier locks.

Use a Moisturizing Conditioner

Conditioning is the final step after washing your hair and one of the most important if you suffer from dehydrated locks. When shopping for the right conditioner, watch for one that mentions hydration or moisture to restore your hair’s soft, hydrated state. Leave-in conditioners are a must-have since they provide extra protection and boost moisture.

Coconut and sea buckthorn oil, manuka honey, argan oil, vitamin E, and shea butter are the top hydrating ingredients to look out for.

Try a Protein Treatment

Protein treatments address major issues like hair breakage, dryness, and dullness. They’re typically made with essential ingredients like collagen, keratin, or silk — all key ingredients that help nourish the hair and replenish any lost protein.

If you’re struggling with extremely dehydrated hair or breakage, a monthly protein treatment is an easy way you can revitalize and strengthen your hair.

Use a Detangler

Porous and dry hair tends to tangle more easily, leading to breakage and snapping when it’s time to brush those pesky tangles out. Use a detangler to help ease and moisturize hard-to-brush tangles to keep your locks in the best shape possible.

Brush your hair gently and slowly from the bottom to the top of the scalp to prevent further damage.

Use a Hydrating Mask

A hydrating mask should be a staple in your haircare arsenal and routine. Adding weekly treatments will promote healthier tresses by restoring moisture. Put on a hair mask, wrap it in a cap, and leave in the mask for 15-30 minutes.

Then, rinse your hair with cool water to close the cuticle and lock in the moisture.

Avoid Tight Hairstyles

Tight hairstyles like sleek ponytails may be stylish, but they’re not the best for keeping hair strong and healthy. Styles that pull on the hair or require tight elastic bands create tension in the hair, leading to breakage and even more damage.

Highly porous hair is delicate, so it’s important to be gentle and sport hairstyles that are good for its overall health.

Sleep on Silk Pillows

Silk pillowcases are another essential haircare must-have you won’t want to skip out on. They cause less friction and breakage to your hair than standard cotton pillowcases. While cotton pillowcases are typically cheaper, they tend to dry your hair even further.

Swap your regular pillowcase for a silk or satin pillowcase to protect your locks and keep them in the best shape possible overnight.