Friday, May 28, 2010

Silicones

African American women are known for having dry hair. If you are natural then you should know that although your hair maybe be stronger, it is susceptible to breakage at every point the hair bends. The coils of the hair makes it almost impossible for the sebum from the scalp to reach the ends of the hair. The looser the coils makes it alot easier for the sebum to nourish the ends of the hair, thus maintaining a balanced pH. Those that choose to relax their hair also have to worry about the end of their hair being nourished along with the overall strength. The chemicals in relaxers not only weaken the hair, but it also dries it out. So what does breakage lead to? It leads to the notorious split ends. Everyday we are bombarded with ads that claim to mend split ends. Alot of products that is said to mend split ends contain silicones.
When most of us hear the word silicone we think of them as being used on the body. However, silicones are used in some of our everyday hair products, especially in those claming to mend split ends. Anyone that knows how hair grows and functions also knows there is no way to repair damaged hair. Once the hair has broken it will remain that way until those scraggly ends are chopped off. Silicones act a glue, and temporarily seal the split ends of the hair. The silicone causes the hair to look healthy, because it not only falsely mend the ends but it also give the hair shine. Once the product wears off the breaking ends will fall off, and sustain damage. The best way to prevent damage is to keep the end moisturized. If you get split ends just get rid of them, because it improve the overall health and appearance of your hair.