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Home » Keratin for Hair: What Is It and How Do I Use It?

Keratin for Hair: What Is It and How Do I Use It?

If you’ve ever desired smoother, frizz-free hair, you’ve probably heard of keratin hair treatments—or, at the very least, Brazilian blowouts. These smoothing hair treatments are recognized for their ability to keep hair looking straight, smooth, and shining for up to six months.

The main difficulty is that they contain a lot of chemicals and hence acquire a poor rap. Because of this, and understanding how effective keratin can be as a haircare component on its own, beauty manufacturers have began developing keratin-infused at-home solutions.

What exactly is Keratin?

“Keratin is a structural and protective protein found in hair and nails,” says Stacey Steinmetz, a cosmetic scientist. “It is responsible for reducing breakage, frizz, and heat damage in hair.” Keratin may be used to smooth and de-frizz your hair by applying it topically.”

We reached out to the experts to learn more about using keratin for hair, including the advantages, different ways to use keratin, and who it is best suited for.

GET TO KNOW THE EXPERT

  • Stacey Steinmetz is a Cosmetic Biochemist that specializes in New Product Development. StimuNail was founded by her.
  • Dr. Hadley King, MD, FAAD, is a dermatologist in New York City and a consultant for Collective Laboratories.
  • Gretchen Friese is a BosleyMD-certified trichologist practicing in Denver, Colorado.

There are two major ways to include keratin into your haircare routine, and the advantages differ depending on which you pick. “When hydrolyzed collagen proteins are given topically to the hair, they can help fill up damaged sections of the hair shaft, temporarily improving strength,” explains dermatologist Hadley King, MD, of New York City.

“This is not like [in-salon] keratin treatments, which often use formalin (formaldehyde and methyl alcohol) to straighten hair.” These procedures can harm your hair and emit harmful odours.” Despite the risks, many individuals continue to schedule in-salon keratin treatments.

Discover the fundamentals of the substance, including how it works to strengthen your hair and the best approach to get all of its advantages.

Advantages of Keratin for Hair

  • Strengthening smoother is the type of substance.
  • Main advantages: repairs the hair shaft, smoothes the strands, and adds shine
  • Who should make advantage of it: Keratin is particularly effective for people who have thick, damaged, frizzy hair. People with delicate, brittle hair may struggle.
  • How frequently should you use it: Keratin-infused products at home may be used on a daily basis. However, in-salon chemical keratin hair treatments should be planned only every few months.
  • “Because keratin is a naturally occurring protein with smoothing benefits that minimize frizz and make hair glossy and manageable, other products can reinforce the benefits of keratin,” Steinmetz says, noting that natural oils like argan can help add moisture to damaged hair, and silicone-based finishing products can help smooth the hair’s surface even further.”
  • Don’t use with: “If you have a salon keratin treatment in your hair, you should avoid sodium chloride, parabens, and sodium lauryl sulfates,” adds BosleyMD-certified trichologist Gretchen Friese, noting that doing so will help keep the treatment’s integrity. However, if you’re utilizing softer keratin-infused cosmetics at home, no substances are off-limits.

What Keratin Can Do For Hair?

Smooth  Hair

Before we go into the advantages of keratin for hair, let’s define keratin and how it impacts hair. To begin, keratin is the foundation of hair structure. It’s a fibrous protein that physically produces each hair strand. When hair is damaged, it requires all the assistance it can receive to restore and strengthen its natural structure.

Keratin treatments and keratin-infused products have several advantages for your hair.

Hair is strengthened: Whether you choose an in-salon or at-home keratin hair treatment, you should expect to see a difference in your hair. “At-home keratin solutions assist to strengthen hair that has been weakened by chemical and mechanical damage,” adds Friese. In fact, studies have shown that keratin can help strengthen strands by 40%.

Smoothes and decreases frizz: Keratin-infused products, which are often available in the form of an oil or serum, can result in a smoother, shinier, healthier-looking mane.

Keratin provides shine to your hair by smoothing hair cuticles and filling up damaged regions in the hair shaft. Although in-salon treatments produce more dramatic effects, at-home solutions may still produce lustrous and healthy-looking hair.

Keratin helps to strengthen and smooth hair cuticles back together, which decreases the appearance of split ends. Stronger strands result in fewer breakage, which promotes hair growth.

Lowers drying time: A keratin treatment reduces porosity in your hair, which means less water is trapped between the cuticles. 3 This implies that it can significantly reduce blow-drying time.

You may also like: Best Keratin Treatments For Damaged Hair

Considerations for Hair Type

Keratin treatments, whether at home or at a professional, are excellent for persons with dry, damaged, or unmanageable hair. Furthermore, Steinmetz claims that keratin treatments might be beneficial for people who want to attain a fuller look because it is claimed to bond to thin hair and give it a fuller appearance.

That’s a bit of a double-edged sword, since, as Steinmetz points out, the harsh chemicals in an in-salon keratin treatment, not to mention the heat damage necessary to lock it in, can overwhelm weak strands.

Pregnant women and anyone with underlying respiratory disorders, according to Steinmetz, should avoid getting an in-salon keratin hair treatment. “It’s true that salon keratin treatments include a lot of formaldehyde,” she confesses.

“Some hairstylists have experienced lung difficulties as a result of constantly breathing the fumes from keratin treatment products.” As a result, pregnant women should avoid receiving this therapy. Keratin treatments should be avoided by people who are allergic to formaldehyde or have respiratory difficulties.”

That doesn’t mean you can’t use at-home keratin treatments. After all, they are far safer and do not include the chemicals and fumes associated with in-salon procedures.

Friese does, however, warn out that there is such a thing as too much protein. “If the hair feels dry after using a keratin product, avoid that type of treatment and use one with moisture instead,” she advises.

How to Use Keratin to Your Hair?

There are various methods to use keratin for hair to get all of its advantages, including stronger, shinier, and frizz-free hair. In-salon keratin treatments may appear trendy and easy, but the amount of damage they may do to your hair makes them just not worth it. As a consequence, whether you want to smooth and reinforce your hair for special occasions or even everyday occurrences, safer, gentler at-home formulations are the way to go.

According to Steinmetz, there are shampoos, conditioners, and finishing treatments that deposit a coating of keratin to the hair to make it seem sleek and glossy while minimizing frizz—but the advantages are temporary. However, this does not make these at-home goods unwanted.

After all, would you rather apply a product daily or monthly and maintain healthy-looking hair, or have a one-time in-salon treatment that might harm your hair and lungs? Exactly.

Here are a few different methods to use keratin in your hair.

In-salon keratin treatments (also known as Brazilian Blowouts) employ liquid keratin, chemicals, and high heat to lock protein into the hair. “The effects are transitory and normally last six months,” Steinmetz explains.

As previously said, the difficulty is that hair order to get those benefits, you must expose yourself to possibly dangerous chemicals, which is why Brazilian blowouts are frequently chastised. While in-salon keratin treatments are theoretically an option, they are seldom suggested.

As a style serum, smooth hair and give shine: A keratin-infused styling serum applied while the hair is still wet not only makes it glossy and silky, but it also reduces drying time. Keratin Complex Infusion Keratin Replenisher ($30) is recommended by Friese.

Hydrating oil treatment: Keratin is frequently blended with other oils (such as Abyssinian oil or Argan oil) when used as an oil therapy to not only smooth and de-frizz your locks, but also to hydrate them. According to Friese, the L’ANZA Keratin Healing Oil Hair Treatment ($46) will aid in the healing of damaged locks.

Use as a strengthening shampoo: You can receive all of the keratin’s strengthening and smoothing advantages in a shampoo. Hask Keratin Protein Smoothing Shampoo ($4) is an excellent choice since it leaves your hair healthy and frizz-free, and the clean recipe contains no harsh chemicals.

Repairing hair mask: To repair color-treated or heat-damaged hair, Friese advises applying a keratin-infused hair mask, such as Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Wild Ginger Keratin Intensive Hair Treatment ($30). Apply this mask to damp hair once a week and let in for 5 minutes. Rinse and style as usual.

FAQ

Can keratin stimulate hair growth?

Keratin does not really cause new hair to grow, but it helps strengthen your strands, resulting in reduced breakage and so encouraging hair development.

You may check: Best Hair Growth Product On Budget In 2023

Is keratin a permanent hair dye?

Keratin treatments in salon are called semi-permanent hair straightening since they normally last three to six months. Keratin-infused products, such as serums and hair masks, give short-term benefits but contain less chemicals and are gentler on the skin.

Is it possible for a keratin treatment to affect the color of my hair?

Yes, an in-salon keratin treatment can cause your hair to change color, frequently making it appear lighter. Those with gray hair may notice that their hair seems more blonde. Toner can be used to return hair to its natural color. Home-use keratin-infused products seldom modify the color of your hair.

Can I straighten my hair at home with a keratin treatment?

There are at-home keratin treatments available, in which you apply the substance at home and leave it for a length of time (usually approximately an hour), with the promise of identical in-salon results of straight and silky hair lasting up to five months. Steinmetz advises against utilizing these items at home.

“The mix of substances has the potential to be pretty annoying,” she explains. You should either get an in-salon treatment or utilize keratin-infused cosmetics, which produce comparable, but more transitory, effects.