Silicones in hair care. Should we fret?

I bet, you’ve wondered a million times what you should do to help your hair look better. I’m sure you’ll find some answers here and I’m talking now about the conscious use of silicones. How should you apply them correctly so as not to ruin hair? How can silicones enhance your strands?

What are silicones?

Silicones are film-forming substances. To clarify, they create a coat that prevents hair from damages and losing water. What may be surprising, silicones neither regenerate nor condition strands. What they do instead is just improve the look of hair but only when you apply them. To sum up, thanks to silicones, hair looks healthier, is more glossy and smooth.

Types of silicones

We distinguish the following types of silicones:

• volatile silicones, which are the ones that easily changes into a gas – they are the easiest to remove, they neither leave hair clumpy nor overburden it;
• removed with water – are easy to take off from hair surface;
• removed with gentle shampoo – those of you who wash hair every day or take care of the strands by following Curly Girl method should use this type of silicones wisely;
• removed with deep cleansing shampoos – they are hard to remove and frequently create build-ups on hair. When used excessively, this type of silicones leave hair clumpy and overburdened which may lead to increased hair brittleness

Good and bad sides of silicones

Silicones appear in many beauty products. Thanks to them hair becomes:

• smoother, defrizzed and glossy,
• protected against water loss and external aggressors.

Sadly, silicones have their drawbacks too. Here they are:

• their excess makes hair clumpy, flat and brittle;
• they slack natural hair curl;
• they don’t condition hair but just give immediate and one-off effect.

Silicones: Guideline

If you want to have stunning hair and use silicones safely, follow the below rules:

1. Don’t use shampoos containing silicones.
2. Regularly cleanse hair using a good quality shampoo (with detergents).
3. Use hair serums with silicones.
4. Don’t apply silicones to scalp.
5. Don’t apply hair masks with silicones prior to hair washing.
6. It’d be hardly possible for you to grow long hair without using silicones.