Not everyone is on the “never use silicones” bandwagon. After all, products containing ample amounts of silicones are often the best and most cost effective when it comes to detangling, conditioning and getting rid of frizz with application. And while silicones certainly don’t deserve the insanely bad rep they receive in the hair care world, they are still not water-soluble, meaning they still aren’t good for your hair. If you are still on the fence, though, about whether or not to use or toss out your silicone-trodden products, here are the top 10 reasons you should get ingredient snobby when it comes to your hair.
10 Reasons to Avoid Silicones
1. Sulfates
To be fair, it isn’t actually the use of silicones that is so bad for your curls. It is the fact that because they are not water soluble, you must use sulfates in order to rid your hair of them so they don’t weigh it down and cause frizz (Surprise, silicones are just a frizz band aid!”>. Sulfates are what produces suds in our products including in shampoos. Sulfates, though, dry out your hair, strip it of its natural oils and cause frizz and over all damage in the process.
All in all, the less you use silicones, the less you need to use any type of sulfate. Cool.
2. Short-Term Solution
Silicones are nothing more than a quick solution for a potentially temporary problem: frizz. Frizz is the bane of existence for many curlies (though it was fashionably this past fall on the runway”>. It isn’t so much the frizz itself that is hated, but the lack of curl definition. This comes from dehydration – of your hair. Frizz is caused when your hair begins to seek moisture elsewhere, unwinding your curls. Many products, especially silicone-based products, attempt to solve this issue by providing a layer of protection over the hair shaft that won’t allow outside elements to disrupt the curl pattern. However, these products do not address the real issue. Yes, the smooth out the hair and make it all shiny and that is cool and great, but these products are not strengthening your hair and they are definitely not getting to the root of the problem. By using oils and deep conditioning treatments on a regular basis, you can actually strengthen your hair and hydrate it, eliminating frizz in the process without having to use products that cause build-up.
3. Length
When it comes to Type 4 hair, length is often a high priority. Because Type 4 hair shrinks so much, even long coils can look short. For those of you using silicone-based products, a word of warning: you’re going to need to head to your hair dresser more often. That’s right, using silicone-based products and thus having to remove them with a sulfate will dry out your hair and cause more split ends than would naturally occur. Type 4 hair is already very delicate and by adding this additional stress to your coils, you will only shrink them even further.
4. Pattern
While silicone-based products work well on days one and two, as the week trudges on and the build-up adds up, your curls will be weighed down. For women with Type 2 or Type 3 hair, this often means that their curls will straighten out a bit. But, for Type 4 hair, coils don’t straighten out so easily. Instead, your hair will loose its definition and your curl pattern will take on a different design than that you are used to. This is caused by the weight of the product being built up on the strands. Keep true to your coil pattern and drop the silicones now.
5. Triangle Head
Not only will your curl pattern change as your use silicones, but you’ll begin to notice a triangle head effect. This issue is one of the many #curlyhairproblems that women with straighter hair just don’t experience. Yet, women with Type 4 hair are generally lucky enough to bypass the issue altogether as well given that Type 4 hair has a tendency to stand out rather than fall down. If you are unfamiliar with triangle head, it is when the top of your hair lays flat while the rest of your hair volumes out as usual. This issue is often caused by an overload of silicone-based products that are weighing the hair down at the scalp. Naturally, Type 4 coils can avoid this, but using silicone products will up your chances of it occurring.
6. Product Overload
Because coils are more tightly wound than any other curl pattern, women with type 4 hair often need to deep conditioning more often and apply oils more regularly. There’s no bad reason behind this. Instead, it is simply the law of gravity: the natural oils form your hair have a harder time making their way down the hair shaft because of all the twists and turns. Natural oils naturally hydrate your hair. When your hair doesn’t have them, your hair is drier. This is why shampooing is such a no-no as it rids your hair of these oils. Most women with type 4 hair are already using a leave-in conditioner and an oil or two to soften hair, keep it healthy and keep it hydrated. Adding a silicone-based product to this mix will off-set the effects of other products, especially oils, and you will not get their full benefit.
7. Keep It All Natural
That said, keep it all natural! If you are following, or are wanting to follow, an all natural regimen, silicone-based products have got to go. Oils like jojoba are good replacements for the frizz-reducing qualities of silicone-based products and detangling can be achieved with a co-wash rather than a regular conditioner.
8. Curly Girl Method
For those of you wanting to try out the curly girl method which encourages staying as far away as possible from sulfates, then your silicone-based products are out. The only way to rid your hair of silicone build up is to use a sulfate (aka a shampoo that suds”>. The Curly Girl Method is strictly against this and many women have seen an insane amount of success with defining their curls, controlling frizz and adding length simply by no-pooing, co-washing and being aware of the products they use otherwise.
9. Lack of Luster
Silicone-based product build-up dulls your hair. That is just a fact. Build-up will cause frizz over time, but the lack of shine will start to kick in on the third or fourth day. Products that claim to add shine are often also silicone-based. These work temporarily, but like with the frizz issue, they are not the answer to the bigger problem at hand. Work on getting healthy hair rather than finding a temporary solution.
10. Overall Health
Finally, the best reason to not use silicone based products is simple: your hair will be healthier for it. And, because your hair is healthy, you will have reduced frizz, increased shine and added length all without the aid of any products. Other benefits? Longer lasting hair styles, better wash-n-gos, bigger ‘fros, more meaningful big chop grow outs and the reduction of ever having to big chop again (unless you want to of course”>.
