What Is Hair Porosity and How Do You Test for It?

The key to drawing out the best of your curls is comprehending the science behind them.

So you identified your hair type, currently what? Prior to getting any type of items for your curls in the hair aisle, it is very important you take a hair porosity test. By understanding the framework of your hair, whether it might be healthy and balanced, completely dry, or harmed, you will save many irritating hrs (as well as well as some money). Now you could be assuming, What is hair porosity? To place it merely, it\’s your hair\’s capacity to take in and also maintain wetness. Your hair follicles might be desire hydration, but you\’re feeding it protein. Or vice versa.

It\’s complicated, we know. That\’s why we reached out to curl experts Ona Diaz-Santin (also referred to as the Hair Saint), who is the CEO of 5 Hair Salon Health Facility, and Pekela Riley, an Ulta Beauty pro team member as well as creator of True as well as Pure Appearance, to assist limit the dos as well as do n\’ts for the 3 kinds of hair porosities-high, tool, and also low-along with the product recommendations they advocate for each.

How to Do a Hair Porosity Test
One of the most reliable means to establish your hair\’s porosity is with a strand test, also known as a float test. Take a hair of tidy hair (this can likewise be from your brush), and also place it in a glass of water. Riley can\’t highlight enough the value of a tidy hair strand. \”Any kind of item accumulation left on your hair will not determine the outcomes properly.\” If your hair sinks to the bottom of the glass immediately, you have high-porosity hair. If the strand floats at the top, you have low-porosity hair. And also if your hair drifts someplace in the middle? You\’ve obtained medium-porosity hair.

You might see similar results in your shower. Ever discover for how long (or otherwise) it takes your hair to obtain entirely soaked? Do your swirls quickly soak up the water? Or does it take your curly hair a while, also totally under the shower stream, before it comes to be soaking wet? Depending upon your hair\’s porosity level, your hair follicles might be tighter or looser. Maintain reviewing to get more information about each porosity level as well as what your hair could be attempting to telling you.

Low-Porosity Hair
If you have low porosity hair, similar to the drifting hair at the top of the water glass, it indicates your swirls experience troubles absorbing dampness. This is said to be real for not only water but also oils, gels, and also creams. Diaz-Santin describes these cuticles as tightly bound, which makes it difficult for anything to permeate inside effortlessly. Your hair most of the time looks shiny and also slick-similar to the follicles themselves. Given that product absorption isn\’t easy for low-porosity hair, you might experience item build-up as well as grease, as products are sitting on top of the cuticle rather than permeating the hair shaft.

\” Attempt applying hair items in the shower before marching to allow for better absorption,\” Riley recommends. \”I likewise advise making use of vapor or warmth for deep-conditioning treatments consistently since warm permits the follicle to raise.\”

Medium-Porosity Hair
\” Maintenance isn\’t as complicated for medium-porosity hair,\” states Riley. Your hair can soak up and preserve moisture well, as the structure of the hair cuticle is not as well tight, like low-porosity hair, as well as not also spaced out and open, like high-porosity hair. Although you see little to no prompt damages when coloring or using warm to your curls, with time, equally as with any type of hair kind, damage as well as damage can take place.

Item suggestions rely on exactly how high or reduced your hair leans (or floats in a glass of water). If your hair floats closer to the top of the glass, Diaz-Santin recommends protein-rich items. If your hair of hair floats closer to the bottom, choose a buttery, oily item like Bumble and Bumble Stylist\’s Invisible Oil Mask.

High-Porosity Hair
High-porosity hair is super absorptive, so much so that you have actually possibly discovered it\’s hard for your swirls to retain moisture, states Riley. With your commonly spaced as well as increased cuticles (which frequently equates to tangles, damage, and also frizz), the benefits of hydrating products don\’t have a tendency to last long. You can chalk this as much as continual warmth designing or coloring, but straightforward genes might also be the reason.

With high-porosity hair, the very best thing to feed your swirls is healthy protein and also an excellent hair oil. Why protein over hydration, you ask? Healthy protein includes residential properties that help in reinforcing and reviving or else brittle hair cuticles. Adhering to that with a fantastic oil will certainly aid secure the voids in your hair\’s cuticles as well as supply a safety barrier from additional destructive aspects. Below are a few of our curly professionals\’ favorites for high-porosity hair.