The Significance of pH Balance and Healthy Hair

The quality of a product ingredients and protein content are not all that’s important when it comes to maintaining gorgeous healthy hair. pH balance is another important dynamic in keeping your tresses healthy. Let’s look into the reason pH balance plays an essential role in the overall health of your hair.

What is pH and how does it effect hair?

pH  is the scientific measurement for the level of acidity and alkalinity a solution has. The pH scale ranges from 0 to 14. Zero is the most acidic and 14 is the most alkaline. Neutral solution pH levels are 7.  Solutions that has a pH greater than 7 are considered alkaline, while those that are lesser than 7 are considered acidic. The natural pH level of human hair is approximately 5.0 (range 4.5-5.5). When hair is at it’s natural level of pH it is typically strong and healthy.

Strong alkali solution (greater than 9) can cause damage to your tresses and give you scalp burn. They also have a tendency to make your hair appear dull, and feel rougher. Both lye and no lye relaxers are high alkaline. Hair relaxers pH ranges from 9-14; they must enter into your hair cuticle into the cortex to break or modify your hair structure for reshaping. Permanent dyes ranges from 8-10; they work to open cuticle to transform the color of your hair.

Shampoos typically are made to be neutral or slightly acidic.  Conditioners are usually more acidic since their created to close cuticle and to help make hair smoother, softer and more manageable.

If want to achieve optimum healthy hair and growth, avoid any products on your hair that are too close to either side of the scale. Remember – alkalies open the hair’s cuticle and acids close the cuticle; hair is it’s strongest when the cuticle is closed.

How To Test the Total pH of Your Products

You can purchase pH strips to test the level of pH in any products you put on your hair like shampoo, conditioner, or styling lotion. Again, the natural pH of hair is 5, therefore this should be your target number for the type of solution you use on your hair. In order to achieve this, you can take the total pH number from the combined products you put in your hair, and divide this by the number of products you used. For example, if your shampoo has a pH of 4, your conditioner a pH of 5, and your styling lotion a pH of 3, you would get a total pH of 12. Next you would take the number of products you used, in this case 3, and divide by the total pH of 12. This would give you a pH of 4, which means you would need to raise the pH slightly.

Baking soda raises the pH, because it has a pH balance around 8 or 9. On the other hand, apple cider vinegar lowers the pH, since it has a pH balance around 2 or 3.

Understanding how to keep your hair cuticle shut can make a significant change within your hair’s durability and how well it looks. Naturally, black hair has a tendency to remain open due to the fact of all the bends and coils. Therefore, it is especially critical for black women and men to understand the pH amount for the products they use contain. If you maintain the pH balance of your natural black hair, you will notice you hair is more resilient and shinier.

Where To Buy pH Balance Strips?

If you’re serious about examining the pH of your respective hair products and mixes, pH strips are available at most local pet stores typically in the aquarium area. You can also get them at a pool supply store or water testing plant.