All hair is made up of the same material. Keratin. What makes it different is the shape of the shaft coupled with the shape of the follicle below the scalp. Sebaceous glands below the scalp secrete an oily substance which travels down the shaft of straight tresses making it shiny and locking the moisture in. With curly locks the sebaceous oil does not make it very far, this is why curly and kinky locks tend to be dry, frizzy and prone to breakage.
A curly and kinky mane requires extra care and attention. Because of its dry state, it will be brittle and quite fragile. Deep conditioning is easily one of the most important aspects of the curly and kinky care regimen.
So what is a deep conditioner and why do you need it? Strictly speaking, a deep conditioner is any type of conditioner left on the hair for 20-30 minutes (sometimes overnight). For the deep conditioner to be truly effective, it is important that heat is used along with it. Heat allows the shaft to swell and the cuticles to open and allow the conditioner inside. By promoting elasticity, deep conditioning improves the strength of the strands making it more resilient which helps in length retention in the long term.
All hair types can benefit from deep conditioning but for black tresses, this is an absolute must! As it is dry by nature, deep conditioning restores the moisture balance which stops breakage. Deep conditioning should be done straight after a shampoo especially if a shampoo with a sulphate is used as they strip the strands leaving them dry.
The type of deep conditioner used should depend on the condition of the mane. If the locks feel mushy when wet and stretch a lot before breaking then a protein conditioner is required to restore strength. If however, the strands feel brittle and just snap when any tension is applied; the locks are in need of a moisturizing conditioner. The aim is to get it to a stage where the locks are both strong but have a certain degree of elasticity. Too much protein will make it go hard and too much moisture will make it mushy.
Moisturizing deep conditioners should be used in conjunction with protein deep conditioners in the care regimen to maintain a healthy balance. You may find that to begin with you may just want to alternate between light protein and moisturizing conditioners with every wash (assuming you are washing twice a week) then adjusting your regimen according to how the strands feel.
It is better to err on the side of moisture with natural black tresses. It is already pretty strong as none of the bonds have been broken by chemical service but it is likely to be dry. Some naturals also report being protein sensitive which is to say that protein tends to make their strands feel hard. In this instance, a light protein should only be required once per month.
With relaxed black locks some bonds have been broken during the chemical service so is quite likely to require protein to strengthen the strands but moisture will also be required as chemicals only aggravate the dry condition of the hair.
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