Why You Should Know Your Hair's Porosity

You know that situation? You follow the tips of someone with exactly the same curl type as you, but somehow it just doesn't work for you?

That can be because your hair has different porosity. It's not directly visible at first glance, but it shows up in your hair's needs and how products work for you.

In this blog post you'll learn what's behind the different porosities and how to identify yours.

Porosity describes your hair's ability to absorb moisture and retain it. Knowing it helps you understand your hair and its care needs better.

There's low, balanced and high porosity. With balanced porosity you basically don't need to worry, your hair absorbs and retains moisture well. Below we go deeper into the characteristics of low and high porosity.

LOW POROSITY: LOVES WARMTH AND LOTS OF WATER

With low porosity, the hair cuticle is closed. That means it's hard for moisture to get in, but once it's there it stays better. The goal is to support moisture absorption. Warmth and lots of water generally help. Both help open the cuticle so your hair absorbs products better. We recommend using warm water when washing and styling, wearing a shower cap for deep conditioning and applying care products on very wet or damp hair.

A clear plus of low porosity hair is shine. But it's also prone to product build-up. So make sure to cleanse intensely and don't use too much product.

Tip from our Nadine: "Before washing, I apply Afrolocke Hair Oil to my dry hair and gently detangle. When I then wash with plenty of warm water, the nutrients from the oil are already absorbed during the cleansing step of my routine."

HIGH POROSITY: LOVES LOTS OF PRODUCT

Unlike low porosity, high porosity hair has an open cuticle. Unfortunately this means it loses moisture quickly and is prone to dryness. Here you should focus on preventing moisture loss. We recommend avoiding heat and rinsing with cold water at the end of your routine to close the cuticle and keep the moisture inside. After Conditioner and Leave-In use our Hair Oil to seal in the absorbed moisture.

A clear plus of high porosity hair is that products and moisture are absorbed well. So feel free to generally use plenty of product.

Tip from our Nana: "Between wash days you can refresh and bring back lost moisture. Dampen your hair with cold water from a spray bottle and apply plenty of Afrolocke Leave-In."

HOW DO I IDENTIFY MY POROSITY

In the table below we've compared the key characteristics of high and low porosity.

HOW DO I IDENTIFY MY POROSITY © Afrolocke UG

Generally it's important to know your curls can combine several porosities. So not all tips may work for you or all the characteristics apply. Don't let that confuse you and don't despair while searching for the right routine. Curls are wonderfully individual, so is the right routine. Try things, observe your hair, stay patient and don't forget to enjoy it.

Tip from our Nadine: "I learned to adapt my hair routine to current needs. In phases when I do lots of sports for example, I skip sealing with hair oil after the Leave-In. Because I sweat a lot and have low porosity, I don't need the extra protection from oil. In winter, or when I know it'll rain a lot, I never skip the Afrolocke Hair Oil."

Image 1: high porosity (open cuticle) Image 2: low porosity (closed cuticle)