Hair Relaxer 101
There are many products that you can use to alter your hair if you are not happy with it and a hair relaxer is one of them. A hair relaxer is a cream or a lotion that makes it easier for you to straighten your hair and manage it overall. This is most commonly used by people who have curly hair.
A hair relaxer chemically changes the texture of your hair and breaks down the strands of hair to decrease your hair’s curliness. A hair relaxer will usually keep your hair straight for between six and eight weeks at a time. After that, you will have to use the hair relaxer again to keep your hair straight.
What Kinds of Hair Relaxers Exist?
There are two main types of hair relaxers that exist. These two types are no-Lye relaxers and Lye hair relaxers. It is hard to say which one will work better for you. After all, the effectiveness of each type of hair relaxer varies depending on your hair texture and hair type. Lye hair relaxers start working on your hair quite quickly, but you might also be able to rinse them out too easily for your liking. No-lye hair relaxers do not work as quickly as lye hair relaxers, but it is less likely that you will be able to rinse them out of your hair too easily.
No-lye hair relaxers differ from lye hair relaxers in terms of their main ingredient. The primary component of a lye hair relaxer is sodium hydroxide and lye hair relaxers are also called alkali hair relaxers. The primary component of a no-lye hair relaxer is calcium hydroxide. No-lye hair relaxers may dry out your hair more than lye hair relaxers. However, if you have a sensitive scalp, no-lye hair relaxers will work better for you.
What Advantages Do Hair Relaxers Provide?
As previously stated, the main advantage of using a hair relaxer is that it allows you to keep your hair straight. This is quite helpful for those who have curly hair and would like to straighten it. As a result of your hair being straight, it is easier for you to manage your hair overall. Straight hair is easier to handle than curly hair in general, as you might expect. Additionally, you can style your hair more easily if it is straight than if it is curly, so hair relaxers benefit you in that way, too.
What Are Some Disadvantages of Hair Relaxers?
As you might expect, there are some disadvantages to relaxing your hair using hair relaxers. One disadvantage of using a hair relaxer is that it can cause inflammation in your hair and scalp. Another disadvantage of using a hair relaxer is that it weakens your hair in general.
There is even some evidence that using a hair relaxer can cause you to develop uterine cancer. You may have heard a few things about the hair relaxer uterine cancer class action lawsuit that is currently ongoing. In any case, you should think carefully before you decide to use a hair relaxer on your hair.