Help! What’s My NATURAL HAIR POROSITY!? Low Porosity, Medium Porosity or High Porosity (2024)

Help! What’s My 💦Hair Porosity!?💦

We know that natural hair lingo can beconfusing, but we got you covered! Once you learn the properties of your hair, you’ll be well on your way to finding products that help your hair thrive. Leggo! 😜💯

In a nutshell,Hair Porosity is the ability of the hair shaft to absorb and retain liquids, aka: the moisture crucial for maintaining the health of your strands. Learning more about how efficient your hair is at absorbing moisture will help you to create a wash day routine that works with your personal hair porosity, not against it, andwill help you to apply your products in the order that works best for you!🤗

How To Test: Simple as 1...2... 3!

To test the porosity of your hair, you’ll just need aclear glass of water, and a few strands of clean hair that are completely free of any product.

Step 1: Take one strand of your product-free, cleansed hair and drop it into the glass of water.

Step 2: Observe what your hair does in the glass of water.👀

• If the hair strand floats and stays on top of the water, that means that you have Low-Porosity Hair.
  
• If the hair strand settles near the middle of the glass and then begins to sink slowly, that means that you have Medium-Porosity Hair.
• If the hair strand sinks quicklyto the bottom of the glass, that means that you have High-Porosity Hair.

Step 3: Now that you know your Hair Porosity, read on to learn how to best care for your porosity type!🎉

@jasmcqueen11 Hair Porosity Float Test #fypシ #naturalhairtiktok #hairtutorial #hairhacks #naturalhair #hairporosity #hairporositywatertest #hairporositytest ♬ Didn't Cha Know - Erykah Badu

If your hair is Low Porosity, that means that your tresses generally have a hard time absorbingmoisture, but once it's absorbed it tends to be retained well.Your hair cuticles are most-likely very close together, which is a great indication of resilient hair, but because they are so close, it makes it difficult for water and other products to initially enter.If you have low porosity hair, you'll notice that:

• When washing, your hair takes a while to become fully saturated with water.
• Your hair products tend to sit on top of your hair, not absorbing into the strands.
• Your hair doesn't let go of water easily, taking a long time to dry.

If you have low porosity hair, regular deep conditioning with lightweight products, like The Multi-Use Softening Leave In Conditioner, while using low heat or steam to help open your hair's cuticle layer, will aid in getting moisture into your strands. Those with Low Porosity hair should also use heavy butters and creams sparingly - or in conjunction with heator steam, as thelarger molecules have a harder timepenetrating the cuticle layer.

If your hair isMediumPorosity, that meansthat your tresses generallyhave the ability to absorb and retain moisture at an average rate. Your hair cuticles most-likelyhave just the right amount of space, so that water is both easily absorbed andnormally retained. Those with Medium Porosity hair don't need to utilizeanyspecial techniques or tools in order to helphair products absorb into and moisturize the hair.If you have Medium Porosity hair, you'll notice that:

• When washing, your hair becomesfully saturated with water easily.
• Your hair productsabsorb well into the hair, not sitting on top.
• Your hair takes an average rate to dry - not too long, not too quickly.

If your hair isHighPorosity,that meansthat your tresses generallyhave the ability to absorbmoisturevery easily. However,when the moisture is absorbed High-Porosity Hair has a hard time retainingthat moisture. Your hair cuticles tend to be wide-open naturally, or can become wide-open due to chemical treatments, poormaintenance and/or wear and tear over time. Hair products that are pH balanced and help to close the hair's cuticle, products that repair broken bonds, and products that help to seal the moisture into the hair cuticle, such as lightweight oils and butters like The Melanin Haircare Twist-Elongating Style Cream, are typically very useful to those with High Porosity Hair.If you haveHigh Porosity hair, you'll notice that:

• When washing, your hair takesbecomesfully saturated with water very quickly.
• Your hair productsabsorb very quickly into the hair,seemingly "drinking up" the product and wanting more.
• Your hair lets go of water very quickly,causing the hair to all become dry very quickly.
• Your hair tangles often and appears frizzy.

Your hair's porosity begins as a genetic determination, and can change overtime due todaily wear and tear and styling choices.Low Porosity hair can become Medium to High Porosity, while Medium Porosity hair can become High Porosity. Damagethat occurs to your hair cuticle, due tomisuse of heat and chemical products, hair tools, or an unfortunate medical condition,can change your genetic porosity predisposition.

Learning your hairporosity is one of the many characteristics that you can use to define your strands and learn which products and techniques work best for you! If you want to know which hairstyles will suit your curls, coils, waves, and kinks best, you'll want toknow which Curl Patternyou are- just another important hair property you'll want tolearn in orderto finally master your natural hair!