Hair porosity: the basics that every natural should know

If you’re struggling with exactly what hair porosity is, don’t worry. You are not the only one.

I recently discovered for myself what hair porosity is and what the porosity of my hair is. If you know what the porosity of your hair is, you can shop more specifically for hair products and you can adjust your regiment according to your needs and thus gain a better understanding of the effect of porosity and natural hair.  

So what exactly is hair porosity?

Hair porosity is your hair’s ability to absorb and retain moisture such as water and water-based products. Hair porosity is genetically determined but can change due to excessive heat treatments and/or other chemical processes performed on the hair. Knowing the porosity of your hair makes it a lot easier to buy and use the right products. It gives you more insight.

“Porosity is your hair’s ability to absorb and retain moisture.”

How do you determine the porosity of your hair?

Your hair can be low, medium or high porosity. It is very easy to find out what the porosity of your hair is. All you need is a glass of water and a lock of hair. Put your lock of hair in the water and wait a few minutes to see the result. If your lock of hair floats, your hair is low porosity, and if it sinks all the way down, it’s high porosity. Somewhere in the middle, your hair has medium porosity.

Low porosity

If your hair has a low porosity, it means that it does not absorb moisture easily. Low porosity hair is considered healthy for the most part because the hair cuticles lie flat. The best products for low porosity hair are water-based products such as a leave-in conditioner and/or deep conditioners.

Medium porosity

The cuticle of medium porosity hair is slightly opened making it easier to care for than low porosity hair. It absorbs moisture faster and also retains it. Moisturizing deep conditioners are best for medium porosity, but occasionally it can benefit from a protein deep conditioner.

High porosity

High porosity is usually considered damaged hair, but as mentioned before, hair porosity is genetic. So it can also be inherent. The hair cuticles are completely open, so that it absorbs moisture very easily, but also releases it. This makes the hair look messy and dry. If you have high porosity hair, it is best to use leave-in conditioners to bring moisture into the hair and finish with a butter or cream to retain that moisture. Protein deep conditioners can make hair less porous but not much because it doesn’t replace the moisture the hair needs. It only temporarily repairs the damaged parts in the hair cuticles.

I hope that you have learned something and that you have benefited from the information I have given you. Stay tuned for more information on natural hair care.