Why is moisture so vital to hair retention... oh wait... it's NOT!!!???!!

[msa]

And I'm definitely not saying that moisture is a BAD thing.... I'm just saying that perhaps, and again it's just a theory, not neccessarily fact, that when it comes down to the BARE ESSENTIALS of hair retention, water based moisture on the hair shaft that has already come out of the scalp may not be essential... and maybe some of you are taking this too literally because I'm not talking about wtaer needed to wash/rinse/deep condition the hair, I'm primarily talking about water - based and humectant - heavy sprays, leave - ins, moisturizers, etc

Hmmm.

My only moisturizer is water itself. If I feel like my hair needs moisture, I rinse it. I usually rinse my hair every day or every other day. Then I seal it with something.

So, I think I might actually agree with you on this point. I don't need "water-based" moisturizers because I just use water. For almost everything else, I use oil (evoo to detangle, coconut oil to "moisturize", castor oil for sealing).

I know my hair needs water, plain water. I know it doesn't need "water-based" moisturizers, sprays, leave-ins, etc.

 

[Artemis]

Jeezy pete how on earth did I miss THIS thread??!!
Gym, if I could bake, I'd send you some cookies cuz chica you are holding it down in here

I'm jumping in cuz I scanned the thread briefly...I'll come back and read the whole thing when I'm done with my psyc homework...

Moisture tends to be mentioned more often b/c it's more likely for black women to have 1) inherently dry hair, 2) dryness due to a lack of deep conditioning and moisture maintenance, or 3) both. This is regardless of whether the hair is chemically or mechanically altered. That variable just adds to the drama.

Furthermore, the protein/moisture balance isn't automatically 50/50 for every type of hair, so for some of us it's 60/40 or 30/70, etc. That is just going to depend on so many factors, we could start another thread on it but basically the fine v. coarse, thin v. thick aspect of hair plays a huge part.

More likely than not, if you typically need more protein, it's because:
1) Your hair retains more of its moisture more (ie, you don't suffer from inherently dry hair) to the point where you have to cut back on moisture DCs (remember the "baggy" backlash, anyone?)
2) Your hair is heavily styled (chemicals, heat, combing, etc)
3) You're abusing something in your regimen
4) Your hair is naturally delicate (fine stranded chicks rule!! )

So since that doesn't cover every single head, it's a bit difficult to make such a bold statement, OP. Kudos for you to put it out there, though

Bottom line: Protein is important, moisture is important. Heck, oil is important (pliability and protection is also a component of elasticity, which sebum, oil, and ceramides provide). Just how important each component is to each head is what will always be relative, and always be up for debate.

Great thread y'all...

 

[Artemis]

Oh and I forgot to add, that while regular moisture is beneficial for the hair, those of you who feel like you HAVE to moisturize your hair everyday or else it'll break off...I'm sorry but you should look deeper into your regimen. Unless you have a natural deficiency in your body as a whole (in which case you'd have much more issues than dry hair--you'd be ill!!) you should be able to safely moisturize less. Hair shafts in the thinnest diameter at minimum should be able to hold 10% of it's inherent moisture...and longer than 24 hrs...

Just a thought...

 

[ebonylocs]

Moisture tends to be mentioned more often b/c it's more likely for black women to have 1) inherently dry hair, 2) dryness due to a lack of deep conditioning and moisture maintenance, or 3) both. This is regardless of whether the hair is chemically or mechanically altered. That variable just adds to the drama.

I was going to mention the bolded in my other post, but it was already looong enough.

Bottom line: Protein is important, moisture is important. Heck, oil is important (pliability and protection is also a component of elasticity, which sebum, oil, and ceramides provide).

I remember in a thread some months ago, I said that some people's hair needed lubrication more than it needed moisture. THis was a thread on what qualified as moisture, and some were trying to say that oils were moisturising because their hair liked it better than humectants. My opinion was, no, just because your hair likes oil doesn't mean the oil necessarily moisturises your hair (in the technical sense of the word). What is means is that that your hair needs added lubricants more than it needs added moisture. Oils and other lubricants have their function.

 

[msa]

I was going to mention the bolded in my other post, but it was already looong enough.


I remember in a thread some months ago, I said that some people's hair needed lubrication more than it needed moisture. THis was a thread on what qualified as moisture, and some were trying to say that oils were moisturising because their hair liked it better than humectants. My opinion was, no, just because your hair likes oil doesn't mean the oil necessarily moisturises your hair (in the technical sense of the word). What is means is that that your hair needs added lubricants more than it needs added moisture. Oils and other lubricants have their function.

I just discovered this about my hair recently. My hair needs lubricants to avoid damage. Less breakage and almost no knots when I use oils, especially on my ends.

 

[Qualitee]

Your hair cant survive without protein moisture balance. Some people need extra protein, some need extra moisture, and some need extra or none of both. Everyones hair is different, regardless to the fact of how much water or protein hair is made up of.

 

[me-T]

that got me lost now, cause i'm relaxed, and got the nerve to be protein sensitive(why is that?).
so what, should i skip the "hydrolyzed cotton proteins" and such, and use collagen or what? idk.

eta:another question,
so if i used heat more often would i start needing more moisture or more protein?

 

[gymfreak336]

Oh, and another thing, Gym... if protein is only vital when ingested orally, then what would explain the great succes of Mega Tek? Isn't it protein based? And yet, so many women have had incredible results with it! In fact, now that I think of it, I'm not sure I ever heard of ANY effective growth aids being heavily moisture based...

The growth from that product come from the mucopolysaccharides, not really the protein. On reason growth aids tend not to be moisture based is because moisture based products have more water which evaporates. You would be reapplying all day if something was more water based.