Water-only Washing And Deep Conditioning For Defined Curls

Dear naturalistas, dry, frizzy hair is not the natural state of black hair. It is the result of weeks, months, or even years of lack of moisture. The good news is that, it is completely reversible, and it is possible to achieve beautiful, springy curls no matter your texture.

One of the stealthiest contributors to the dryness of our hair is shampoo. Yes, shampoo! The problem with shampooing your hair daily, or even weekly, is that the harsh sulfates added to shampoo, which are designed to create lather, strip our hair of vital moisture that gives our hair flexibility, strength and definition, resulting in extremely dry, stiff and frizzy hair.

The culprit behind this “natural” dryness is the ineffective distribution of sebum along our hair strands. This natural oil is produced by our hair follicles and is designed to naturally “seal in” water, keeping each hair strand moisturized.

On straight hair this sebum easily travels from root to tip, coating the hair shaft to effectively preserve moisture within the hair. Often, it does too good of a job, which is why straight hair has a tendency to feel greasy and dirty more easily.

However, in afro-textured hair sebum has a more difficult time traveling down the hair shaft due to the kinks in our tightly coiled hair texture, resulting in inadequately “sealed” hair that lacks moisture. In fact, use a cleansing, sulfate-free shampoo on your hair only when it needs it, which is generally about once a month.

Instead of shampooing, maintain clean hair through weekly co-washing or water-only washing. Co-washing is, simply put, washing your hair with conditioner instead of shampoo. Currently…