All The News On Dew Points and Naturally Curly Hair

Have you been having troubles with your naturally curly hair? We often refer to humidity as the culprit of our bad hair days but have you considered dew points as a factor to blame as well? Below I have broken down alllll of things to consider about dew points, when and how to utilize this information to have the best hair days going forward.

1.Dew Points (temp at which vapor begins to condense AKA the temp that the air has to be cooled to reach 100% humidity AKA the lowest temp when water droplets start to form):

a) High Dew Points (>60F)

i) Want to use anti-humectants/firm styling gel and emollients (oils) to seal hair cuticle and prevent water from being absorbed

ii) Skip leave in condish

iii) DO: hard hold gel, anti-humectant, lightweight moisture, humidity resistant ingred, emollients

iv) AVOID: humectants, heavy moisturizing products, maybe leave in condish

b) Low Dew Points (<30F)

i) DO: use leave in cond, light hold products, emollients, fatty alcohols, keep curls well hydrated

ii) AVOID: use humectants with caution

c) Med Dew Points (40-60F)

i) Use humectants here!! They function best at this area; you can use emollients, medium hold products and always keep hair moisturized

ii) This range known best for giving you the best curls

iii) Some emollients build up so need to clarify

d) Mid Range Dew Points (30-40)

i) Usually b/w seasons so have to experiment

2) Humectants

a) Ingredients that reduce the loss of moisture by attracting water molecules

i) Glycerin

ii) Agave nectar

iii) Honey

iv) Algae extract

v) Hydrolyzed collagen

vi) Propylene glycol

vii) Butylene glycol

viii) Hyaluronic acid

ix) Sorbitol

x) Glucose

xi) Fructose

xii) Hydrolyzed proteins: elastin, collagen, silk, keratin

b) Film Forming Humectants

i) Form flexible barriers that retain water in your hair

ii) Safe to use in Low Dew Points cuz of the film cast formed

iii) Flaxseed

iv) Okra

v) Aloe Vera

vi) Hydroxyethylcellulose

vii) Xanthan gum

viii) Marshmallow root

ix) Pectin

x) Slippery Elm

xi) Nettle leaf tea

xii) Netal extract

xiii) Panthenol

xiv) Hydroxypropyltrimonium honey

xv) Carageenan (also known as an Irish Moss or seaweed extract, sea emollient, sea algae, sea vegetable)

3) Emolients and Anti-Humectants:

a) Usually hydrophobic oils that seal in the hair, like plant oils = so they repel water.

b) However, these can cause buildup

i) Argan oil

ii) C12-15 alkyl benzoate

iii) Grapeseed oil

iv) Cetyl esters

v) Mango butter

vi) Sunflower oil

vii) Coconut oil

viii) Cocoa butter

ix) Jojoba oil

x) Shea butter

xi) Avocado oil

xii) Olive oil

xiii) Emulsifying wax

xiv) Peg 8 beeswax

4) Humidity Resistant Ingredients

a) To help hair tolerate excessive moisture in the air

b) Many of the ingredients do build up so need to clarify your hair regularly

c) Often these are hard hold gels

i) Polyamide 1

ii) Polyquaternium 4

iii) polyquaternium 10

iv) polyquaternium 69

v) Polyquaternium 11

vi) PVA/VP copolymer

vii) VP/DMAPA acrylates copolymer

viii) Polyacrylate acid

ix) Polyacrylate 2 crosspolymer

Gosh, I hope all of this information really helps. I know I use dew points to determine what products to use. Experimenting anymore is just so annoying and we live in an age where someone out there knows (is my thought) so why must this be so hard!? Hopefully you find this information helpful :)

** I will be adding some more tips and tricks on to this later. Please like/share if you found this helpful.