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Hair Porosity 101: Caring for Low, Medium, and High

Is your hair dry and damaged? Does it take many hours to air dry your hair or does it dry within an hour? Do you find that products often lay on top of your hair instead of being absorbed or that products are absorbed immediately? All of this relates to the porosity of your hair. Many would say that porosity is the most important characteristic of your hair to understand and care for. This comprehensive guide will break down the different hair porosities, offer personalized care tips, and guide you toward managing your dry and damaged hair. Let's get started!

What is hair porosity?

Hair porosity defines how open and tightly coupled your cuticles are. Cuticles are the outermost layer of hair that protects the hair shaft and determines your hair’s ability to absorb and retain moisture.

Hair porosity comes in three stages: Low, Medium, and High. Porosity is determined by genetics, however, hair coloring, bleaching, and extensive heat styling can make your hair more porous. The curlier your hair is the more porous it tends to be.

No matter your hair porosity, we recommend that you follow the Natural Hair Journey, embracing your natural beautiful hair by avoiding damaging ingredients among others.

Low Porosity

Your hair cuticles are tightly packed together. This makes it difficult to absorb hydration and allow moisture to penetrate the hair shaft. Low porosity technically means that your hair is healthy and less damaged, however, your hair can be dry due to the difficulty of absorbing moisture.

For low porosity, products tend to sit on the hair surface and don’t absorb easily. It takes a good amount of water to make your hair completely wet, and many hours to air dry your hair.

Caring Tips

Heat is your savior! The reason why is that heat can lift your hair cuticles such that the moisture can enter the hair shaft. Before applying conditioner, rinse your hair with warm water. For ultimate hydration, deep condition 1-2 times a month by applying a hair masque, wrap your hair in a shower cap and towel or a heat cap to create warmth, and leave it on for 30 minutes. This will open the hair cuticles and give the hair masque time to penetrate.

Styling Tips

Air dry your hair or blow dry on maximum medium heat - we recommend never going above medium as it can damage your hair. When refreshing curls, use warm water such that the products don’t just sit on top of the hair. If your hair becomes dry between washes, then add a moisturizing oil like almond, coconut, or apricot oil - not too much as it can easily build up on your low porous hair.

Medium Porosity

Your hair cuticles aren’t too close together nor too open. Your hair is able to take in moisture easily and hold it for longer. You got the best of both worlds! In general, medium porosity requires less work compared to the other levels as it is easier to manage. But that doesn’t mean that you should neglect your hair. All hair needs attention!

Caring Tips

Experience with the caring tips from the two other levels. Rinse with warm water before applying conditioner. Deep condition 1-2 times a month by applying a hair masque, wrap your hair in a shower cap and towel or a heat cap to create warmth, and leave it on for 15 minutes. Finish off with a cold rinse to close the hair cuticles and preserve the moisture.

Styling Tips

Air dry your hair or blow dry with the medium heat setting - we recommend never going above medium as it can damage your hair. In case your hair becomes dry between washes, then add a moisturizing oil like almond, coconut, or apricot oil, OR moisturizing-sealing oils like argan, avocado, or olive oil.

High Porosity

Your hair cuticles are open and more spread. Moisture can easily be absorbed into the hair shaft and as easily run out again, making it difficult to retain moisture. Your hair is particularly dry and more prone to breakage.

For high porosity, products are easily absorbed into your hair. In just a few seconds, your hair can get completely wet and air dry in just 1-2 hours. Your hair tends to be frizzy, dry, and break easily.

Caring Tips

Hydration is key! So never skip your conditioner. Deep condition every week with a hair masque, wrap your hair in a shower cap, and leave it on for 5-10 minutes. Experience with a hair masque containing medium-larger proteins like wheat, oat, soy, and quinoa. These proteins will essentially fill the gaps between the hair cuticles and strengthen the hair. Try to not wash your hair in too warm water as this will lift the cuticles even more. The final step in your wash routine should be a cold rinse. This will close your hair cuticles (as much as possible) and retain the moisture you just added from conditioning.

Styling Tips

Lock in moisture with the “LOC Method” = Leave-in conditioner, Oil, and Cream. On soaking wet hair, apply in sections a leave-in conditioner, sealing oil like castor oil or jojoba oil, and curl cream. Experiment with styling products containing protein, but be aware of not getting protein overload. Always air dry your hair to protect the moisture in your hair - your high porosity hair will dry fast anyway. If you must blow dry then use the cold or low heat setting. When refreshing curls, use cold water to close your hair cuticles and retain the moisture from the products. Moisturize your hair between washes with a moisturizing-sealing oil like argan, avocado, or olive oil.

How to find my hair porosity?

You can easily assess your hair porosity using a simple at-home measurement technique. Get our Compar App and meet your personal AI hair care advisor, who can guide you in identifying your hair porosity, recommend products, perform in-depth ingredients analysis, and how to take care of your unique hair.