Naturals - How Good or Bad Is Heat For Your Hair?

O

onepraying

Healthy Hair Quest..
I've always been told that pressing, flat ironing etc. is good for natural hair. I've been told that natural hair is stronger and can take constant direct heat(like every week).

To those who press(or used to press) very often, have you experienced any stunt in growth, excessive damage, etc?

I know two naturals who NEVER wear their hair in its natural state. They wash and press (using Maxiglide, pressing comb, flat iron etc.) every week. One is transitioning (w/out cutting) and using the heat for maintenance.

The other's hair is growing, but I don't know if she is retaining as much length as she could be retaining. Since I've joined the board, she's changed her regimen and usage of certain products, but still pressing every week.

This can't be good, can it? :confused: Will this eventually lead to destruction?

I've used the Maxiglide on my Suga Mama's hair for the last two weeks and I'm just wondering if I need to revert her hair for a while or what, you know?

~op~
 
From what I've heard heat is terrible for natural hair. It can ruin your texture/curl pattern. Basically fry it. I stay away from it all together- I do not even blowdry. Ladies?
 
Last summer I tried to ween myself away from the braids and adopt a more "professional" look by going to a salon to have a press in curl ever 1-2 weeks (so much for saving money over the summer). my hair looked great (until I sweated it out) but by August I noticed that my hair definately felt thinner. And I wasn't doing anything myself besides wrapping it at night and bunning so I don't think it was a manipulation issue.
 
Heat is not really good for anyone's hair, relaxed or natural, unless steam is involved. I am natural (4a/b) and my hair grows longer and stronger NOT using heated styling tools. If you are not trying to grow your hair long, heat may not be your enemy; it will help maintain the straight look you are trying to achieve. But if you are pressing every week or two maybe you should just consider getting a relaxer and skip the direct heat, but that is just a suggestion.

Quite a few ladies have seen wonderful results from the no heat challenges, try a search...(I don't know how to post thread links) :) happy hair growing!
 
For me heat was very damaging. I was a natural not too long ago and I was flat ironing my hair way too much. That is why I opted for the relaxer. I wanted the option of wearing my hair straight without applying a lot of heat.
 
One praying!!! Didn't you read my story?!!! I am totally against heat now and will NOT be using it for a long time. I can be a disaster to your curls!!!! I HATE HEAT!!!!
 
Mmm yeah what they said. Heat is no good for anyone. I used to blow dry a lot and didn't really have any major problems but I think it made my edges thin a bit.....I would not use it very often!
 
Everyone's different. When I was natural before, I got my hair pressed every two weeks. Didn't bother my hair at all when it was done RIGHT!!!

That is key. You have to know how to manage the heat and how to take care of your hair with heat. If you don't know how to do those two things, then of course, it will break, singe, burn, get straight., etc.

It's the same with anything. Relaxers, heat, etc. You have to know what you're doing and how to care for the hair.

That's my experience, anyway.
 
From what i gather, if your main concern is just not having a relaxer and you dont plan on wearing your natural hair in it's natural state ever anyway, then i guess heat is one way to go.

Now if you have plans to wear your hair in its natural state nd only plan on using heat occasional, i would say that it's not a good idea. It only takes one time for the flat iron or hot comb to be too hot... and well we've heard all the stories.

I'm sure you can retain length while using heat but it's just too risky for my tastes. I just honestly dont wanna put myself into the situation to possibly damage my hair and have to transition again :nono:. Okay, okay...so i never REALLY transitioned :lol: but y'all know what i mean. I just dont wanna have to start over again. -- jainygirl
 
I don't remember how often my mother pressed my hair b/c it was so long ago, but I didn't experience any stunted growth when I was a little girl (at least I don't think I did). She gave me HARD presses too that would last for at least 2 weeks and I have some of the nappiest hair that I reverts pretty quickly now. I don't know if it was damaged or how long it would have grown if it wasn't pressed on a regular schedule.
 
MeccaMedinah said:
From what I've heard heat is terrible for natural hair. It can ruin your texture/curl pattern. Basically fry it. I stay away from it all together- I do not even blowdry. Ladies?
Click to expand...

same here, the blow dryer is a weapon of mass destruction for my hair :( I plan to use heat only very occasionally, I'm talking once or twice a year MAX.
 
Heat melts the hair. If the implement is hot enough (it doesnt even have to be too high a setting either) it can cook the moisture out of the middle of the hair shaft. Then the rest of the hair will dry out and become brittle and break. It can cause split ends and even cause the hair to shatter and start breaking off.

Natural hair being able to "take the heat" is a myth. It is actually the most fragile hair of all the hair types. Simply because of the nature of it. Because our hair coils, that means it has more "bends" in it. Each bend... is a point of stress or breakage. So any added stress you add to the hair...whether it be color, relaxer, heat, repeated manipulation can cause our hair to break at those bends. Using heat and using heat repeatedly is playing a game of chance.

So the more we do to our natural hair...the more length we lose.

If you dont really worry about losing your natural nappy texture and want your natural hair to appear straight then you can "thermally relax" your hair with heat. That is...use a heat element to the point of melting the hair until it loses the texture and remains straight. However that hair will also become weaker and more suseptable to breakage and that is why you sometimes hear of natural discuss damage after a "hard press".

I know my hair. It will melt like a cheap plastic spoon on a hot plate if I use a hot comb on it. I cant chance it.
 
onepraying said:
I've always been told that pressing, flat ironing etc. is good for natural hair. I've been told that natural hair is stronger and can take constant direct heat(like every week).

To those who press(or used to press) very often, have you experienced any stunt in growth, excessive damage, etc?

I know two naturals who NEVER wear their hair in its natural state. They wash and press (using Maxiglide, pressing comb, flat iron etc.) every week. One is transitioning (w/out cutting) and using the heat for maintenance.

The other's hair is growing, but I don't know if she is retaining as much length as she could be retaining. Since I've joined the board, she's changed her regimen and usage of certain products, but still pressing every week.

This can't be good, can it? :confused: Will this eventually lead to destruction?

I've used the Maxiglide on my Suga Mama's hair for the last two weeks and I'm just wondering if I need to revert her hair for a while or what, you know?

~op~
Click to expand...

Ok, so I was the heat queen but constant use of heat will fry up your hair and it will get really dry. After a while the hair just looks tired especially if you're not using heat protection first. Also the ends will break off over time, so length won't be retained as much as if you were wet setting and hood drying the hair or just wearing a wet bun.

I think it's important for the heating appliance eg flat iron not to be excessively hot as this can permanently damge the hair.

I think the key is to make sure the hair is clean before using heat and well protected with some kind of heat protecting product to reduce chances of heat damage. :)

Products containing silicone really help in my experience.
 
Just like everything else in this world, a little heat in moderation ain't neva hurt no one. I plan on blowdrying my hair every 3 months, just to see how long it has grown. One thing you may want to do is opt to use electric straighteners versus the marcels or traditional pressing combs which require either fire or the little stove.
 
Okay, I have NEVER had a relaxer in my life. When I was younger, I got my hair pressed about once a month if that, and my hair was long thick and healthy. When I wash it, it still curls up. My hair does well with heat, so I think it depends on the hair you have and who does it.
 
Bublnbrnsuga said:
Just like everything else in this world, a little heat in moderation ain't neva hurt no one. I plan on blowdrying my hair every 3 months, just to see how long it has grown. One thing you may want to do is opt to use electric straighteners versus the marcels or traditional pressing combs which require either fire or the little stove.
Click to expand...


I totally agree with this. I rollerset/straighen my hair maybe 3-4 times a year and never had any problems. I will always use electric appliances to straighen - I just don't trust those little stove things.
 
Bublnbrnsuga said:
Just like everything else in this world, a little heat in moderation ain't neva hurt no one. I plan on blowdrying my hair every 3 months, just to see how long it has grown. One thing you may want to do is opt to use electric straighteners versus the marcels or traditional pressing combs which require either fire or the little stove.
Click to expand...

I would have agreed with this years ago but I have heard horror stories where people blowdried or lightly pressed their natural hair ONCE and it was permanently damaged.

-Ebony
 
I've never had a relaxer. However, from ages 3 to about 16, I used to get my hair pressed weekly. I did not retain much length. My hair was probably about neck length. When I was 16, I decided that I didn't want to subject my hair to weekly pressings and I wanted to show my natural texture. Back then I used to get my hair pressed about monthly, and then it went to bi-monthly, and then just 4 times a year. I noticed that I was retaining some length even though I heavily relied on the blow dryer.

Nowadays, I rarely use heat on my hair, and my hair thanks me for it. I blow dry my hair about 3 times a year and I don't press it at all any more. Blow dried hair is "straight" enough for me.
 
It all depends on the head that the hair is on. Believe it or not, when I got my hair pressed every 2 weeks, my hair grew like weeds. I greased ny scalp and wrapped my hair on the regular. I have NEVER had heat damage either.
 
My hair grew longer and healthier when I stopped pressing it weekly and stopped hot curling it daily. So minimizing heat was better in my case.

I do still press my hair occasionally, but I can honestly say that heat never helped my hair to grow.
 
Everyone's natural texture is different. There are some who can press their hair regularly and their curls pop right back when they wash. That was not the case for me. I had my hair professionally pressed about 3/4 months after my "little chop" and I assume the heat was too high. When I washed my hair, there were straight ends in several places that looked like I had remaining perm (although I hadn't seen a SINGLE straight piece since my chop)!

I'm sure I'll straighten again but currently trying to learn how to properly straighten it myself by controlling the heat and eliminating the blow drying. Until then, I'll just keep rockin' my natural curls.
 


Heat is a definite no-no in my book. I haven't used any form of heat in over 2 years since I went natural, and my hair loves me for it.

I've heard waay to many horror stories of a press-gone-bad to try and be bravestar and think that "Maybe it won't damage my hair". :-( No sirree. I'm not taking that chance, especially when I know I can achieve a "straight" look through other non-heat methods e.g. banding.

K.
 
hi I'm natural .and i use a blow dryer when i want to if I'm where my hair out.of braids. it helps soft my hair as i have mainly thick 4b hair.

I've been natural for 4 years.its really help .stops me running back to a relaxer.

i would just say .use the lowest heat setting. put grease or cream in your hair to protect it. and dont do it more than three times a month. and dont leave the blow dryer on the hair for more than a few seconds

http://public.fotki.com/BETTYTOO/
 
I don't have too much of an issue with heat. right now i'm not using heat because of my transition. When i was natural last time I didn't suffer any bad heat damage because i only got my hair pressed maybe every 3 months and i didn't use a blowdryer. To me, the key is not to use heat on a very regular basis and to have a controled temperature when using a pressing comb or flat iron. Some ppl use way too much heat when pressing and like another poster said, its all about knowing what you're doing!
 
My hair has been able to retain all of its length and it's more healthy since I severely cut down on the heat. I use heat twice a year at the most now.

I had an unhealthy, broken mess on my head from using heat constantly before.
 
I've been transitioning my daughter for the past year and she's 75% natural but she only wants to wear her hair straight. So why not keep the relaxer? I wanted to get away from chemicals. Her hair gets heat once a week and we keep it wrapped around when she's just hanging around the house and before bed. Once her hair starts to revert, it's in a bun until the next wash day. I make sure to not blow dry/ flat iron on the highest setting either. So far, so good.
 
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