Oils able to penetrate?

[Porsche19]

We all know which oils are able to penetrate the hair shaft and which are not... I think. My question is, why is it important for them to be able to penetrate the hair?

I can understand adding extra oils to oil depleted hair, but why is it necessary for them to get into the hair shaft? Our natural sebum coats the outside of the hair... there is really no need for it to get inside of the hair.

Oils can protect hair from shampoos, make hair shinier, softer and lock in moisture whether or not they are inside of the shaft or outside.

What benefits can oils that are absorbed into the hair provide that oils on the outside don’t provide?

Do oils really belong on the inside of hair? Other treatments like protein is found in the hair, are oils naturally found INSIDE the hair?

I’m not against oil using! I’m still going to be adding oil to my hair and deep conditioners... just wondering about this.

Maybe those of you who use hot oil treatments won’t feel the need to heat them up or go under the dryer after a discussion about this.

 

[bajanplums1]

perhaps bc some oil also have nutrients and those oils must penetrate in order to get the nutirients inthe the shaft, e,g, coconut oil, wheat germ oil.

but i barely have any sebum so i'll use some oil not matter how i can get it.

 

[star]

perhaps bc some oil also have nutrients and those oils must penetrate in order to get the nutirients inthe the shaft, e,g, coconut oil, wheat germ oil.

but i barely have any sebum so i'll use some oil not matter how i can get it.

This is exactly true. These oils have nutrients especailly olive oil both on hair and inside the body.

 

[Porsche19]

Exactly what nutrients? Certainly not any that are inside the hair shaft naturally...

 

[ximenia]

Coconut oil can penetrate because it contains proteins that are compatible with the proteins inside the hair shaft. It helps strengthen and soften hair. I loved it when I was relaxed, always left my hair so soft and silky.

 

[Porsche19]

Does it?

If you look at a label it doesn't list any protein in it... at least on my bottle. Or any oil for that matter. If it does it's a negligable amount.

 

[MissM]

Does anyone remember who posted something a while ago about what oils are able to penetrate the cuticle? They had the molecular weights of different oils listed and which ones were small enough and which were too big. I want to say it was Peachtree but I can't remember.

 

[ximenia]

MissM is right. If the molecular structure is small enough, it can penetrate the hair shaft. This is from a research abstract:

Among three oils, coconut oil was the only oil found to reduce the protein loss remarkably for both undamaged and damaged hair when used as a pre-wash and post-wash grooming product. Both sunflower and mineral oils do not help at all in reducing the protein loss from hair. This difference in results could arise from the composition of each of these oils. Coconut oil, being a triglyceride of lauric acid (principal fatty acid), has a high affinity for hair proteins and, because of its low molecular weight and straight linear chain, is able to penetrate inside the hair shaft. Mineral oil, being a hydrocarbon, has no affinity for proteins and therefore is not able to penetrate and yield better results. In the case of sunflower oil, although it is a triglyceride of linoleic acid, because of its bulky structure due to the presence of double bonds, it does not penetrate the fiber, consequently resulting in no favorable impact on protein loss.

 

[Porsche19]

How do they prevent protein loss??