Haircare: Matching Products to Your Hair Rather Than the Marketing

Haircare is sold by hair type — straight, wavy, curly, coily — but the properties that actually determine which products work are porosity, density and the condition of your scalp. Two people with the same curl pattern can need opposite products.

The three things that matter

• Porosity — how readily hair takes in and holds moisture. Low porosity resists water and products sit on the surface; high porosity absorbs fast and loses it fast. Chemically treated and heat-damaged hair tends towards high porosity.
• Density and thickness — how much hair you have, and how thick each strand is. Fine hair is weighed down by products that thick hair needs.
• Scalp condition — oily, dry, flaky or sensitive. The scalp is skin, and it is often the actual problem when the complaint is about hair.

Working out porosity

The practical test: after washing, does hair take a long time to get wet through and a long time to dry? That points to low porosity. Does it soak through immediately and dry quickly, but feel dry again soon after? That points to high porosity.

Low porosity generally does better with lighter products and warmth to help absorption. High porosity generally needs heavier conditioners and something to seal moisture in.

Reading the label

• Sulfates — effective cleansers that can be too stripping for dry, curly or colour-treated hair. Fine for oily scalps.
• Silicones — smooth the surface and reduce frizz. Some need a stronger cleanser to remove, which is why they build up for people using gentle shampoos.
• Proteins — strengthen damaged hair, but too much makes hair stiff and brittle. If hair feels straw-like after a treatment, that is usually protein overload rather than dryness.
• Oils and butters — seal moisture rather than add it. Applying oil to dry hair without water underneath does not hydrate anything.
• Alcohols — the short-chain ones are drying, the fatty ones are conditioning. They are not the same ingredient class despite sharing a word.

A routine that works for most people

1. Shampoo focused on the scalp, not the lengths. The lengths get cleaned by what runs down.
2. Conditioner on the lengths and ends, not the scalp.
3. A deeper treatment periodically — weekly to monthly depending on damage.
4. Heat protection before any heat, every time.

Frequency of washing depends on scalp, not on rules. Oily scalps need washing more often; washing less does not "train" the scalp to produce less oil.

Where the money goes

Shampoo is used in volume and rinsed out within a minute. Conditioner and treatments stay on longer and do more of the work. If you are choosing where to spend more, spend it on what stays on the hair rather than what washes off.

Tools matter more than most products. A dryer with a proper heat setting and a decent brush do more for daily results than another bottle.

Before you order

Buy small sizes when trying a new brand, since haircare is highly individual and a large bottle of the wrong thing is a common waste. Check the return policy for opened haircare, which is usually stricter than for unopened. And check whether a bundle is genuinely cheaper per millilitre, because sets frequently include a travel size of something you did not want.