By Chinwe (pictured above) of Hair and Health
Deciphering the facts from the myths can be overwhelming, especially for those just starting their hair care journey. Does braiding help the hair to grow faster? Does black hair really grow slow? Well, let’s get to the facts and bust a few myths in the arena of hair growth:
1. Kinky hair can only grow long if loc’ed
Fortunately, this myth is not as prevalent as it used to be thanks to hair inspirations like Sera. However, it still exists, so let’s bust it.
The reality is that kinky hair can grow long with the right hair care regimen. A combination of protective styling and low manipulation can help those with this hair type to achieve length retention. Again, just look at Sera’s progress. If you have kinky, or type 4b/4c hair, do not feel like you have to transition to locs in order to grow your hair long. Locs should ideally be a style one wears out of desire and not necessity.
2. Braid extensions will help your hair to grow faster
Believe it or not, this is a common myth that requires busting. What we do know is that one’s growth rate is determined largely by genetics and then diet and health. What braid extensions do allow for is length retention – not faster growth – when properly maintained. Poor maintenance of your hair while in braids can actually produce hair loss.
3. Black hair grows slow
Brace yourselves for the busting of this myth. Does black hair grow slow? No. Just look around you and on photo-sharing sites. You will not have to look too far to find black women with average or faster than average growth rates. Now some of you may be thinking ahead and asking “What about African hair”? Several years ago, there was a study (published in a respected journal) that demonstrated slower hair growth rates in Africans versus Caucasians even suggesting less than average growth rates (4 inches/year, give or take) in Africans. While the study is respectable, I have witnessed African women with average to fast hair growth rates, both online (e.g., just peruse the photo-sharing site of Sera, who is originally from Sierra Leone) and in person (e.g., my sister, who is Nigerian). All black people – and all African people – are not the same. Some of us have slow growth rates, while some of us average, and some of us fast.
4. Trimming makes your hair grow faster
If you missed this informative post by Jc, please do read it. The bottom line is that trimming does not make the hair grow faster. It does not have an effect on our growth rate. What trimming can do is cut away the damaged ends of the hair thus allowing for one to attain longer length. Length retention and growth rate are two different areas.
Well, that is it for the myths on hair growth.
What are some other myths you have heard?
Here is a link to the study mentioned in the article http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=5145476&site=ehost-live
Black hair grows slowly and it is for this very reason that we do touch ups on our relaxed hair every 6 weeks. BUSTED!!
You sound very ignorant, because its actually the very opposite. Natural hair (if your doing it the right way) grows so fast, because the heat or rather the chemicals wouldn’t break them off. Relaxers are chemicals, that burns into your head. Why would you do that to your hair? Just to fit into society? Or is it because you believe that white hair is better? Smh. Most African Americans are in the slave mentality, and your one of them. BUSTED!!!! You didn’t bust anybody but yourself.
I think you are talking about Africans who are partially mixed if you go to africa you will find that our hair does grow much slower and few people have long hair with in africa means shoulder length. Also we chemical our hair because it is hard to manage if it gets wet it tangles,if you lie down it tangles,if you blow dry it after a day or two it tangles
Relaxer doesn’t affect your hair growth..it just makes it easier to see how much hair has grown because of the different textures..and i would know because my hair is relaxed. Also people tend to take care of their hair better when it is relaxed so a lot more hair is retained.
I have to say I don’t agree. I have been relaxing my hair since I was 11 and when I was 18, I decided to take my hair out of extended braids and have my own hair. I’ve been taking care of my hair very well in the last 2 years and had some growth improvements that I hadn’t seen after a few years of relaxing.
I understand that black girls love the thought of their hair blowing in the wind like grass. But if you continually relax your hair with all the conditioning in the world, it gets stressed out, and chemically damaged. Many of my friends have not re-touched their and had twists or braids. They got sick of the breakage not helped my chemical relaxers despite expensive conditioners.
Anti-Hair Loss Shampoos
Anti-Hair Loss Shampoos : Rub-a-Dub Dub – But Gently PleaseOne easy-to-try option is a shampoo specifically designed to increase the health of existing hair and to reduce the rate of hair loss in both men and women. There are several sources to investigate specific shampoos, research studies which can be accessed to determine the effectiveness of many of these products. Good professional sources include dermatologists and licensed cosmeticians who see hair loss conditions frequently and have had the opportunity to observe the efficacy of a variety of shampoos. As well, an Internet “Google” search will provide hundreds of products, complete with testimony and small research studies.It’s easy to get confused when investigating the hundreds of shampoos available. With some background knowledge of what has shown to be effective in larger, previous studies, however, you can make more intelligent choices about the shampoos you choose for experimentation. And that is the great thing about shampoos – they are relatively inexpensive in this maze of hair loss/regrowth methods, so you can try lots of them without breaking your budget!1. Surfactants: People feel good when their shampoos lather up nicely. Lather, however, is just for psychological effect. Somehow we believe that the more lather a shampoo produces, the cleaner our hair must be getting. Hogwash! The ingredient that causes lather is call a surfactant and does not have cleaning properties. Other ingredients in shampoos actually do the cleaning. Surfactants are, however, pretty harsh, and, for someone who is experiencing more-than-normal hair loss, surfactants should be avoided. There are lots of shampoos out there without it – try some.2. Herbal Ingredients: The most notable herb with some success in hair loss difficulty is Saw Palmetto. Shampoos with this ingredient are certainly worth a try. Saw Palmetto seems to inhibit the production of DHT in men, for example, and DHT causes hair follicles to shrink and close up.3. Nettle and bay have also been helpful to some people. Shampoos which include these might help you too.4. Essential Oils: These oils are concentrated ones which come from plants such as lavender. From ancient times, these have been used to stimulate healthy hair and to decrease the rate of hair loss. We know that we have much to learn from early medicine men and healers. Perhaps this is another example.5. Tea Tree Oil: Many swear by this ingredient, and there are several brands of this on the market. So popular are these shampoos, you can find them at most any drug store as well as health product retailers. As an aside, tea tree oil has also been found to be effective in the prevention of head lice infestations.There are no definitive studies to show that shampoos can actually result in regrowth of hair that is caused by what we all “permanent” conditions, largely the result of heredity and hormones. However, early prevention is important, and experimenting with shampoos during these early stages may provide invaluable help in reducing the rate of loss.For more information visit: http://www.provillus.com/?aid=650822
Somali people are not of Arab decent at all, they aren’t even related genetically also they have all hair textures, and are ethnically and linguistically distinct. Just because they are muslim don’t make that connection its foolish. Also Ethiopia has so many ethnic groups with a diversity of looks. Do not speak for people you don’t know. In addition, I cannot speak for Egypt it has been conquered 100s of times by foreigners. Aside from that Africa is the most diverse place on earth, don’t be deceived there are many looks, that aren’t the product of admixtures.
If you take good care of your hair, stop chemically treating it, or giving it heat damage from blowdrying, and have a hair care regimen that is uniquely your own your hair should grow have patience.
“Somali people are not of Arab decent at all.”
THANK you. Attibuting African diversity to foreign admixture is really patronizing.
The biggest myth, I believe, that is not mentioned here is that washing is bad for retaining length in black hair. Having done it all from locs to the flat iron and everything in-between the common denominator for periods of great growth has been WATER. The more often I wet my hair, the more growth. WATER=MOISTURE=LESS BREAKAGE=GROWTH. The times I took bad advice and only wet my hair every two weeks or so caused intense breakage.
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wow….your not ignorant its true and just because you relax your hair doesnt mean you want to obtain”white hair”and you called her ignorant im half black-mom and half asian-dad i look asian i look white but i still want a relaxer and btw u also mentioned trying to fit in correct?well idc all i have to say is people just might want a cleaner look for themselves
It doesn’t matter what your race is. A cleaner look? Yep. That’s what society has made us into. Making us feel like natural hair is unruly and ugly, because during slavery they called us ugly the entire time. And over time we grew to believe it.
“Slavery causes black people to hate their hair therefore getting bad weaves, wigs, relaxers that damage the natural hair in turn making black hair shorter. Slavery causes short hair”
One of the most “ig-nit” things I’ve heard.
Also slavery has been abolished for some time now. It’s sad to hear people blame the hatred of “nappy” hair on slavery when I’ve seen white people compliment coily hair and other black people mock it.
It seems people today blame salavery for all the problems more than the people who were actually enslaved. Its an insult to them.
Lol that’s so true. It seems most ppl who hate black hair are black. I am mixed, I wish my hair looked a bit more “black.” It’s still curly but not as curly. I do sometimes hear out of pocket comments. Like this white lady at the store told me her hair became more curly after having kids. I told her mine seemed to lose some of its curl. She said “well that’s good, right?” And I said “no, I like curly hair.” It’s true I never straighten because I like curly hair and my husband who is Mexican and has straight hair, he loves my curly hair. On the occasion I used to flat iron he griped to no end. My mom is white and has always permed her hair curly. I guess I got my admiration of curly hair from her. My hair was naturally straightish for years and then literally overnight it transformed into hair that was naturally dry and very curly.
Does black hair make its own oil? Becomes oily from own oils.
Thank you for any other informative site. Where else could I am getting that kind of information written in such a perfect approach? I’ve a venture that I am simply now operating on, and I have been at the look out for such information.
massage your hair regularly, to help the roots grow. take vitamin tablets do the hair has nutrients and develops strength. have a trim approx every 1-2months. give your hair fresh air so avoid wearing hats/hoodies etc. also,avoid relaxer because you’d end up with slit ends and you’ll need to cut it, making the process of growing hair very slow. ONLY WASH HAIR ONCE A WEEK. IGNORE THE NONSENSE ABOUT WASHING IT MORE THAN A WEEK. black peoples hair needs lots of oil whether its natural oil or whether you’ve bought it, so washing hair too much will make the hair dry and cause it to break and therefore slip ends will occur and also the roots will not have enough liquid to take in so it will simply not grow. just imagine a plant growing. it will not grow without water (well our hair needs oil), air and space. Also from my own experience, i’ve noticed that keeping hair in braids/cornrows/plaits work allow the hair to grown. overall, just use alot of oil, prevent hair from heat, give it some air, put it in braids, avoid too many washes, massage it, take vitamin tablets, eat well, and NO RELAXERS/PERMS/WEAVES/HAIR DIES, and embrace our sort of hair! the original is always the best! you may see the results in about 3months. HOPE THAT’S USEFUL!
Moisturizing is a very important part of growing out long beautiful hair. Hair dries out and breaks, regular moisturizing is critical to the life of hair. http://www.salonweb.com/features/hair-care-articles/6-Tips-to-Grow-African-American-Hair-Longer.htm
I thought i would never let go of my long relaxed hair… I let my hair define my beauty. Whewww im finally free i did the big chop. I had been relaxer free for 18 months n finally decided 1 day to free myself..i cut my hair into a bob and i love it..! Ladies dont b afraid my hair is growing soo fast.. My beautician has to trim my hair to keep my bob defined every three weeks . I use echosline products i have the conditioner, placenta which is leave in and a strengthening spray ..the key to this transition is having a loving stylist who understands YOUR hair! Great products, patience, n a hair style u can maintain. The true test comes n the heat n humidity! I plan 2 Senegalese twists during this time..long n fabulous! Ladies u can do it! I promise !
i don’t know why everyone is arguing about different races.We are black an should be proud to black.we are unique , beautiful and different from any other kind of race so lets just think about that instead.:-O :D
U could try stretching hair,by doing the banding method.It’s just tying bands inches apart down your hair.+ African threading is simmular just with thread.also, you could try herbal scalp treatment from organics. it’s just a liquid herb mixture.to hydrate hair,spritz hair with water and don’t put too much coconut oil. only enough to make hands a little shiny.
I am half black and my hair grows from shoulders to rear end in less than a year. My hair went from bra strap to hips in about nine months.