If all the bond-repair products leave you scratching your head (lame pun, I am aware): Through the wonders of Chemistry, plus a generous dose of DIY graphics and animations, I have you covered.
If you're a hard-core chemistry fan, don't scrutinize my ball-and-stick models, etc. too closely. I took some artistic license to make up for my lack of artistic talent and short attention span.
Bond-repair products can be real game-changers for damaged hair. But I think it's easier to make dispassionate assessments (not get sucked in by labels and advertising) of products if you have an understanding of what is happening, and where it is happening.
Hi Wendy, I'm a guy with short (5 - 7 cm) wavy hair and I frequently straighten my hair with a flat iron at 180°C (356°F), having previously used a heat protectant spray. Over time my hair started to look damaged, so I decided to use a bond repair treatment.
ReplyDeleteEverybody seemed to talk wonders about Olaplex and, to my surprise it did nothing to my hair. However, I tried the L'Oreal Bond repair products with citric acid and I was surprised because a cheaper product gave better results than Olaplex (not that I'm not aware that cheap haircare products can be as good, it's just it surprised me).
I think it's because heat styling works by breaking the temporary hydrogen bonds with heat, pulling the hair in the desired shape and letting new temporary bonds to form to hold the shape. And citric acid works by making more of these bonds including ionic bonds because it has both hydrogen and ionic bonding sites.
Bis-aminopropyl diglycol dimaleate, the active in Olaplex, is claimed to reconnect the disulfide bonds.
So my theory is that I didn't notice that much of a difference because heat styling damages different bonds that other straightening methods such as thio based treatments. So Olaplex couldn't fix them because they weren't damaged in the first place.
Does that make any sense?
And if you could recommend other aftercare treatments for frequently heat styled hair, I'd be grateful.
Also, do you think a perm or a keratin blowout would benefit me? I'm worried about doing a perm and once my hair grows a bit the non-treated part will be wavy and look weird, and everywhere I check it says these treatments should be done every 3 months minimum. But I don't know if that 3 months period is better suited for the longer lenghts women usually have and if I can get away with doing it more frequently due to my shorter hair length.
Thanks in advance. And keep up the good work!
Hi Sam - Olaplex isn't for everybody. The formula and your expectations matter as much as any single active ingredient. I'm going to shift gears from focusing on bonds to formulation. ---- What you'll get from the L'Oreal bond repair line is product that works very well in (or despite) hard water. It emphasizes delivering slipperiness in both wet and dry hair. It adds hydration, protects against heat-damage. There is a greater emphasis on a smooth-slippery end-feel than Olaplex. Perfect for straightening hair. ---- Olaplex probably does not repair disulfide bonds (I have a post about some lab testing that was done with Olaplex and another product). It's a rather different formula than L'Oreal. It's less slippery. Its bond-repair active ingredient is not necessarily hydrating like the Glycerin is in L'Oreal. In the "bond-repair" department, it's all going to be about which product seems to work well for your hair, in your climate and water, etc. A product that uses hydrating and organic-acid bond repair ingredients in a slippery base worked well for you. That's good information to have - a "natural experiment" (meaning you tried Olaplex and L'Oreal, you got a result, now you're filling in the "why"). --------------- A Brazilian blowout or keratin straightener will smooth your hair. When absorbed through the skin, those can have some systemic effects. There's a cost-benefit analysis to do there. A perm is often more damaging than a Keratin or Glycolic straightener - so you're still left with a "damage-control" issue, like with heat-styling. If you want to reduce wave (straighten) with a perm, that's a discussion to have with a stylist to see whether they feel confident doing that. Permed hair needs styling too. It's one of those situations where you draw up your lists of "pros" and "cons," Including daily effort, and see what wins. Bond-repair products give people who heat-style (or use chemical processes) a great tool keep hair healthy. Many of the leave-on bond repair products in this list (last one on the page) are also heat-protectants. https://science-yhairblog.blogspot.com/2024/03/hair-bonding-product-list-and-more.html
DeleteAnd this page has a list of heat protectants as well. Sometimes sprays are a little drying if they contain alcohol. Or don't cover as well as a cream or conditioner. https://science-yhairblog.blogspot.com/2012/02/how-hot-is-too-hot-for-healthy-hair.html
Exactly, I couldn't have described it any better. My hair feels more slippery and I love it. Everybody seems to complain a lot due to residue or the hair weighting down when using conditioners with silicones. And I feel kinda alienated in this regard because conditioners hardly make my hair feel nicer. And the ones that do won't last long. I have an oily scalp so I have to wash my hair every single day. And because I flat iron and style it, I have to use products like pomade or texturizing powder to hold it. And with those I can't skip a wash day either bacause otherwise my scalp is itchy the following day. I've tried many hair masks and deep conditioners, and I've tried to leave them for 30 minutes, but still no luck. One thing that makes a difference is applying them in the morning instead of at night. But I don't like waking up half an hour earlier just to have that effect. Do you know any conditioner or any other product that would fulfill my needs?
DeleteThe heat protectant spray I use is the tresemme keratin smooth one. In fact, I decided to use it because I saw it in your post :) But I'll try to give creams a try
And when you say keratin treatments can have some effects when absorbed, you're saying so because of formaldehyde, right? I'm a bit worried about that, too. That's why I mentioned as a second option doing a perm. What I want to achieve by doing a perm is to reduce the amount of heat styling and making the styling easier to do. I have a question though, and I'm afraid it's a silly one haha. But if I got a perm, and I used a bond-repair product, wouldn't that be counterintuitive? If I fix the bonds of my permed hair wouldn't that make the duration of the treatment shorter and make me need to do it more frequently and thus damaging it even more?
If you haven't tried a product with protein, you might give that a try. I like the SoapBox "Let's Bond" which is a conditioner/strengthening treatment. BondBar's pre-wash spray does some power-hydration in a quick step (not protein). You might like Garnier Whole Blends Honey Treasures conditioner - the honey is very hydrating. GVP Conditioning Balm is a product that people with lower porosity hair often like for its intense softening without a lot of oils. Because your hair is not very long or color-treated, it probably behaves more like lower-porosity hair, which can be difficult to condition. ----- You can steam in a conditioner - like with a facial steamer (also comes in handy when you catch a cold) to make it more effective and work faster. Sounds improbable, works wonders.
DeleteKeratin treatments - even the ones without Formaldehyde (i.e. with Glyoxylic acid) seem to have the potential to cause problems like kidney damage. Even in healthy young people. Obviously not everybody. But these products are fairly new, and we've only scratched the surface of understanding their systemic effects from topical use. There may be some genetic susceptibility determining who is more at risk of that. As yet, we don't know who or why. ----
Perms do break some disulfide bonds in hair during the first step. The second step applies an oxidant ("neutralizer") to force them to re-form quickly. Once re-formed, they stay that way. But only *some* bonds in hair occur between sulfur groups. Bond-repair products mostly work on those other ionic and hydrogen bonds, so no worries there. That was my initial "huh?" query about Olaplex's claim that it repaired disulfide bonds, but could also be used during perms. They still discuss disulfide bonds on their website, but don't claim to repair them any longer, as far as I'm aware.
Regarding perms, the skill and confidence of the stylist matters a lot. If they do lots of perms, you're probably in good hands. Perms are great when they're not over processed, and when the rod-size is chosen just right.
Hi Wendy, it's me again! After waiting for my hair to grow up a little bit more, I've scheduled an appointment with a salon to permanently straighten my hair. Do you remembr we talked about how I was worried about formaldehyde with keratin blowouts, and that I'd like a Japanese blowout? Well, the hairdresser didn't specify what kind of straightening method she'll use. I asked her if it had formaldehyde, and she said that all of their products are formaldehyde free, and that the salon is well ventiladed so no issues for me. That answer kinda sounded strange to me, especially because she didn't say what technique she'd use. I searched if a keratin blowout without formaldehyde is possible, and if I understood correctly even though there are products in the market without formaldehyde, those may contain chemicals such as glyoxylic acid which releases formaldehyde when heated up. So now I'm worried that the hairdresser may not fully understand this, and that she may have the misconception that just becuase it doesn't have formaldehyde it's safe. Or maybe what I read online is wrong? What are your thoughts? Could you tell me what chemicals that are used in straightening products release formaldehyde when heated? Or at least which ones are guaranteed to only be used in keratin blowouts? That way I could ask her to look for those in the ingredient list.
DeletePS, I tried to use the conditioners you told me about, but sadly I'm in the EU and those aren't sold where I live. But as you said I should try a product with protein, I tried the elizavecca cer 100 protein treatment, and so far my hair is super silky yay!!!! :D
Hi Sam! Hairstylists are well trained in how to use their products and services, but they rely on their suppliers for chemical safety information. A manufacturer can claim a product does not contain formaldehyde if none was added. There would need to be additional regulations in place for formaldehyde-releasing ingredients to be disclosed. ---- All hair "smoothing" products will probably release formaldehyde. Keratin, Brazilian, Japanese... Ventilation is very important - but the stylist and client are still exposed. You'd need the up-to-date product labeling. Looking for Formaldehyde, Formalin, Methylene glycol. Glyoxylic acid can be converted to Formaldehyde. Glycolic and Glyoxylic acid can be absorbed systemically and transformed into oxalic acid - which can harm the kidneys in rare cases. ---- ----A "lye" or Sodium hydroxide relaxer is very effective at straightening hair, but it can irritate the skin, and it takes a lot of skill to get it right and not cause too much damage or "over-straighten." No formaldehyde, though. A permanent wave is also formaldehyde free.
DeleteThe Elizavecca product is a great compromise - silky hair is easier to style. There are some straightening creams that can do a lot of the work for you. Like Color Wow's One-Minute Transformation Styling Cream. Check into those - I know there are some good versions in the EU market, but you'd want to read reviews and ingredients carefully. Maybe find some travel or trial-sized products?
Well, I tried to talk to the hairdresser. She said I would get a Japanese straightening, but I told her about my worries and first she told me that "all products have keratin in them and it's silly to avoid it". I explained to her that it's not keratin itself what I'd like to avoid, but formaldehyde based straightening methods that are called keratin or Brazilian blowouts. She then insisted that their products have no folmadehyde. I then asked her if she could tell me the ingredient list of the products she uses to straighten hair, and she said she has no access to it..... How is that even possible? I asked her why and she said the bottles have no ingredients list and I asked her the brand and she told me they have no labelling, and that the bottles come from Japan...... So I told her I'm not interested in getting a perm done by her. I honestly couldn't trust her. How can she deny her clients access to the ingredient list? I don't even think that's legal. And if it's true she has no access to them, it's even worse because she may be telling people they're getting a Japanese straightening while in reality it's a Brazilian blowout..... I'm speechless
DeleteI contacted another salon, and they kindly told me the product they use and the ingredient list. They use the Schwarzkopf Strait Styling Glatt Staightening Cream and Neutralising Balm. Here's the ingredient list:
Straightening cream: Aqua (Water, Eau), Ammonium Thioglycolate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Ammonium Hydroxide, Ammonium Bicarbonate, Propylene Glycol, Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein, Dimethicone, Dimethiconol, Laureth-23, Sodium Cetearyl Sulfate, Hydroxyethylcellulose, Ethanolamine, Etidronic Acid, Parfum (Fragrance), Linalool, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Citronellol, Benzyl Alcohol
Neutralizer: Aqua (Water, Eau), Cetearyl Alcohol, Hydrogen Peroxide, Etidronic Acid, Dimethicone, Cetrimonium Chloride, Polyquaternium-37, Ceteareth-30, Sodium Hydroxide, Propylene Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate, Dimethiconol, 2,6-Dicarboxypyridine, PPG-1 Trideceth-6, Citric Acid, Sorbitan Oleate, Cyclomethicone
So judging by the ingredient list, is this a thio based straightening method free from formaldehyde and other formaldehyde releasers?
I haven't flat ironed or heavily styled my hair for a month now. I want it to be as less damaged as possible for the day I take the perm. The only thing I kept doing from my old routine is using the L'Oreal bond repair line I talked you about. When I use it I feel my hair gets stronger for a few days. It's longer now, and it's harder to dry too. When it was shorter I would let it air dry or I'd gently tap it dry it with an old t-shirt. But that doesn't work now, so I have to blow dry it, but the cold setting at the lowest fan speed gets the job done.
The Schwarzkopf Strait Styling Glatt Staightening Cream and Neutralising Balm looks like "perm" ingredients to me. A perm won't make hair smooth, but it will straighten out curl. Whereas the smoothing treatments you mentioned do some de-frizzing as well.
DeleteSo a completely different direction to go in - or something to add if the perm leaves your hair straighter-but-frizzy is a hair gloss or glaze. There are "clear" ones as well as colored ones. These are at-home treatments that are easy to use. They are temporary - lasting for quite a few washes. They add shine and have a smoothing effect on frizz. Keep it in mind. Good luck! -W
I've never heard of hair glosses or glazes. Can you recommend me one to use in case my hair gets frizzy after the perm?
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