Deep Conditioners: What are they? Why are they important?
So let’s start at the beginning. What are deep conditioners and why are they important for the health of our hair?
Deep conditions have a few “aka” names, such as hair masks, hair treatments, conditioning packs to list a few. All of them are mixtures of intensive moisturizers and protein, that penetrate into the cuticle layer of the hair when a heat source is present.
The type of deep conditioning needed will always be determined by the integrity of the hair, your hair type, and texture. Those with curly-fine hair will benefit from protein-filled treatments, while someone with curly-coarse hair would benefit from moisturizing treatment. Clients with chemically treated-fine hair would benefit from protein repair treatments, while on the other hand, a client with chemically treated-coarse hair would benefit more from a hair mask.
Whether your hair is natural, chemically treated, you wear your natural hair out, or keep it in a protective style, deep conditionings and/or steam treatments are vital for the health and longevity of the hair. Everyday life wears on your tresses more than you think, causing our strands to become dry, brittle, tangled, dull-looking, flat, stiff, split, and so on. When people sit in my chair and say their hair isn’t growing there are 3 questions I ask them:
What’s your diet like and how much water do you drink?
When’s the last time you had a trim?
How frequently do you condition your hair with a heat source?
9 out of 10 times the answers I get are no surprise and the lack of drinking water, trimming and conditioning are usually the reason their tresses are at a standstill.
To backtrack a little, hair grows from the scalp. The oldest hair on your head would be the ends. The ends are what we harm the most, from brushing, twisting, braiding, wrapping in ponytails/buns, over-processing from chemicals/flat irons, being outside and etc.! Not conditioning and trimming these ends when needed hinders your hair from retaining length, therefore making it seem as if the hair isn’t growing. Hair is always growing - it has no choice too - the problem is it’s not retaining its length.
Secondly, hair out of the follicle is considered dead. What this really means is that naturally speaking, moisture is not its friend, therefore we have to do our part in making sure we keep our strands hydrated by drinking water, preferably alkaline based (especially since the body is 80% water) and moisturized by using the right products for our hair type/texture.
Thirdly, I’m sure you heard the phrase ‘You are what you eat! Don’t get me wrong genetics play a major role in how fast a person’s hair grows and the strength of the strands but diet is a much larger factor. If you’re not replenishing your body with healthy nutrients and water, how do you expect your strands to thrive? It’s like driving a car that needs premium gas and you constantly use regular gas. At some point, the car will give up and not run at its best. It’s the same with your hair, without the proper care at some point it’s going to give way and stop thriving.
Are you still asking what’s the importance of deep conditioners? Well, why do we use lotions or body butters/creams on our skin after we bathe or shower? Because MOISTURE and HYDRATION are what keeps our skin from chapping, peeling, feeling dry, and looking ashy. The same is with our hair. Rinse-out conditioners and leave-in conditioners are great but they do not penetrate the way a deep conditioner does simply due to the size of the molecules. Deep conditioners are formulated to penetrate underneath the cuticle layer, which is the layer of hair we see with our bare eyes. When we sit under a hooded dryer with heat or use a plastic cap to trap in the heat that naturally radiates off of our scalps, we are allowing the cuticle layer to swell/open which allows the molecules of the deep conditioning product to penetrate and deposit hair-goodness into our strands. We are replenishing what has been lost from either everyday wear and tear or from being hidden by a protective style.
So how often should someone deep condition their hair? On average, I would say deep conditionings should be done a minimum every 3 weeks since the hair grows between 1/4” - 1/2” monthly. If you’re one who keeps your hair in a protective style, such a box braids, twists, cornrows, or extensions, for more than 4-5 weeks at a time then it’s an absolute must that you deep condition every time your style is removed, and honestly, you’re the client that should be getting steam treatments (since it’s hard to moisturize strands while in a true protective style).
Basically, what I’m trying to deeply express to you is that Drink water, Eat your greens, Trim your ends and Deep Condition your Hair on a Regular, your strands will love you, and thank you for it!
Oh… For oil Lovers, oil is not a moisturizer but a sealant that should be used after a moisturizer has been applied to the hair.
You can thank me later!