Moisture vs. Protein Balance for Relaxed Hair

When it comes to moisture vs. protein balance for relaxed hair, many people are confused about which one is more important. Some people believe that moisture is the key to keeping your hair healthy and strong, while others believe that protein is the most crucial factor. So, what’s the truth? This blog post will discuss the importance of both moisture and protein to relaxed hair and help you figure out which one is more important for you!

Moisture vs. Protein: What is the Difference?

It’s essential to understand the difference before we get into the debate of moisture vs. protein.

Moisture is “the small amount of water present in something.” On the other hand, protein is “any of a large group of complex organic compounds essential for all living cells’ structure and function.”

In other words, moisture keeps your hair hydrated, while protein helps rebuild and strengthen your strands.

Moisture vs. Protein: Which one is more important?

The truth is that both moisture and protein are essential for relaxed hair.

Type 4c hair is inherently dry due to its coil-like structure that prevents natural scalp oils from evenly distributing down the hair shaft. As such, moisture is crucial in keeping it healthy and hydrated. Without moisture, your hair will become brittle, damaged, and susceptible to breakage.

Protein is also vital for relaxed hair, as it helps repair and strengthens the strands. This quality is paramount if your hair experiences damage by heat or chemicals.

Moisture vs. Protein: Which One Should You Focus on?

The best course of action is to focus on both when it comes to moisture vs. protein balance for relaxed hair.

Include moisture-rich products in your hair care routine, such as deep conditioners and leave-in conditioners. These will help to keep your hair hydrated and prevent damage.

In addition, focus on protein-rich products, such as protein treatments and reconstructors. These products will help repair and strengthen your strands and prevent further damage in the future.

By focusing on both moisture and protein, you can help to keep your relaxed hair healthy, strong, and moisture-rich!

Why Does Relaxed Hair Need Moisture?

Relaxed hair tends to be drier than other hair types because chemicals in the relaxer break down the moisture barrier. This compromised moisture barrier makes it more difficult for your hair to retain moisture.

As such, moisture is crucial in keeping relaxed hair hydrated and healthy.

Moisture helps keep your hair strands lubricated, preventing them from becoming brittle and breaking. It also helps control frizz and keeps your scalp healthy by preventing dryness and itchiness.

Other benefits of moisture for relaxed hair include:

softer and shinier hair
less frizz and flyaways
better hair elasticity
improved moisture retention
makes detangling easier

How to tell if your hair needs moisture?

If your hair is dry, brittle, or breaks easily, it probably needs more moisture. Hair that is moisture-deficient will also feel rough to the touch and tangle easily.

Another way to tell if your hair needs moisture is to do a moisture test.

Take a small section of clean, dry hair and stretch it out to do a moisture test.

If the hair stretches out and:

snaps back into place easily, then it has enough moisture
breaks, then it needs more moisture

How to tell if your hair has moisture overload?

Hygral fatigue is a condition caused by moisture overload. It occurs when the hair absorbs too much moisture, causing the strands to swell and repeatedly shrink.

Moisture overload is common in highly porous hair as it has widely-spaced gaps on the cuticle layer and can easily absorb moisture from the environment. Relaxed hair tends to be highly porous since chemicals in the relaxer lift the cuticle layers.

Over time, hygral fatigue can cause the hair to become weak, brittle, and susceptible to breakage.

If you suspect that your hair has moisture overload, then you should:

reduce the amount of moisture-rich products you use
focus on sealing in moisture properly with oils and butters
reduce your shampooing frequency to avoid over-stripping of natural oils
avoid other causes of hair damage such as heat and colour treatments
focus on protein-rich products to repair and strengthen the strands

Moisturizing Ingredients to look out for in your product selection:

Water: should be first on the ingredient list as it is the ultimate moisture
Glycerin: a moisture-attracting humectant
Aloe vera: soothes the scalp and adds moisture to the hair shaft
Oils: lock in moisture and prevent water loss. Popular oils include coconut, avocado, castor, and jojoba
Butters: seal in moisture and may include ingredients such as shea or cocoa butters
Fatty alcohols: help moisture penetrate the hair shaft and add slip for detangling. Common fatty alcohols include cetyl, cetearyl, and stearyl
Honey: a natural humectant that attracts moisture to the hair

Moisturizing Deep Conditioners

Some of our favourite moisturizing deep conditioners for relaxed hair include:

Moisturizing Leave-in Conditioners

Some of our favourite moisturizing leave-in conditioners for relaxed hair include:

Why Does Relaxed Hair Need Protein?

The relaxer process causes the hair cuticles to lift, leading to highly porous hair. High porosity hair is more susceptible to damage and breakage because gaps in its cuticle allow moisture and oil to escape.

Protein treatments help to fill in these gaps and make the hair cuticles lie flat again. Filling in the gaps, in turn, makes the hair shaft stronger and less likely to break.

Protein treatments can also help to:

improve moisture retention
repair damage caused by heat, chemicals, and environmental factors
repair cuticle layer and strengthen hair strands
reduce breakage and prevent future damage
make the hair look and feel thicker

How to tell if your hair needs protein?

One way to tell if your hair needs protein is to do a porosity test. To do a porosity test, take a small section of clean, dry hair and drop it in a cup of water.

If the hair:

sinks and lies flat at the bottom, then it has low porosity (and doesn’t need protein)
floats and stands up at the top, then it has high porosity (and needs protein)

moisture vs. protein balance - hair porosity test

Other signs that indicate that you need protein may include hair that:

feels limp or mushy
has breakage & excessive shedding
does not hold its curls or shape

How to tell if your hair has protein overload?

Protein overload is when the hair has too much protein and little moisture. This protein overload can make the hair feel stiff, dry, and straw-like.

You may have protein overload if your hair is:

difficult to stretch out
brittle and breaks easily
feels hard or rough
looks dull and lifeless

To fix protein overload, you will need to remove the excessive protein by using a clarifying shampoo. Further, you will need to focus on protein-free moisture treatments and products to help moisture penetrate the hair shaft.

Remove protein treatments from your regimen as long as necessary until you restore your moisture vs. protein balance. Check all the product labels to ensure they do not contain any protein ingredients.

Protein Ingredients to look for in your product selection:

hydrolyzed protein: penetrates the hair shaft to help repair damage
keratin protein
wheat protein
soy protein
collagen
amino acids
peptides
silk protein

Protein Treatments and Deep Conditioners

Some of our favourite protein treatments for relaxed hair include:

How to Achieve the Perfect Moisture vs. Protein Balance for Relaxed Hair

The key to achieving the perfect moisture vs. protein balance for relaxed hair is all about trial and error. Start by using moisture-rich products, and add in protein treatments as needed.

Pay attention to how your hair looks and feels, and make adjustments to your regimen as necessary. Be patient, and eventually, you will find the perfect moisture vs. protein balance for your relaxed hair!