Hair Serum: Everything Black Women Need to Know

As black women with curly hair, we need to give our hair extra tender, love, and care. We wash, condition, and even deep condition our hair on a regular basis, but one important thing that many of us are not doing is enhancing and protecting our hair with a good hair serum. In this post, you’ll learn everything you need to know about hair serum. 

What is Hair Serum?

Hair serum is a concentrated silicone-based product that coats your hair strands to provide shine, frizz control, decreased tangles, and numerous additional benefits.

Silicones used in hair products are synthetic fluids made of silicon and oxygen. They form a protective barrier around the hair to keep moisture in, and offenders like dirt and debris out. Often, silicones get a bad rep because many people don’t like that they require the use of sulfates to be removed. Luckily, not all silicones are created equal. Some silicones that easily wash out with sulfate-free shampoos include dimethicone, dimethiconol, and trisiloxane, and these are just a few. Hair serums use silicones in combination with vitamins and oils that help to nourish the hair.

Who Needs Hair Serum? 

Serums are good for anyone who wants to seal in the moisture that they’ve already added to the hair, add deliberate shine, assist in detangling, and to provide protection against heat. Thick, coarse hair is notorious for being chronically dry and difficult to manage. People with hair of this type would likely benefit most from adding a hair serum to their hair regimen. 

Incorporate Hair Serum Into Your Hair Regimen

Since the serum is concentrated, you’ll want to be sure not to overapply it. Dispense a few drops of hair serum to your hand, rub them together and apply all over your hair, paying special attention to your ends (the oldest and most fragile part of your hair). Avoid applying it to your scalp. 

Apply your hair serum:

• immediately after conditioning your hair. 

• as a heat protectant after you’ve washed and conditioned your hair. 

• if you deep condition, wait until after the deep conditioning session to apply the serum. 

Note that hair serum should be applied to damp hair. 

Hair Serum vs. Hair Oil

Hair serum and hair oil can look similar but they are different. Hair serums are to be used mainly as a styling aid to give your hair a physical boost to make it look shinier and smoother. They also coat your hair and protect it. Hair oil, on the other hand, is not intended to coat the hair. Instead, it penetrates the hair and adds moisture and vitamins to the internal structure of your strands.

Pros and Cons of Hair Serums

Pros:

• Protection against outside elements, including heat and sun rays. 

• Moisture retention

• Enhanced shine, manageability, and nourishment depending on the ingredients of the particular serum you choose. 

Cons:

• Hair serums can be expensive 

• Some don’t like that silicones are present in serums. 

Recommended Hair Serums

• Herstyler Hair Repair Serum features Argan oil, vitamin E, and aloe vera in addition to silicones to remedy dry hair, add shine, and protect hair from heat.

• Suave Professionals Serum is a more affordable hair serum that provides enhanced shine, smoothness, and heat protection. 

• Pantene Pro-V Truly Natural Hair Shine Serum smooths the hair, adds shine, and can be used for heat protection. It also features argan oil. 

Well now you have it - all you need to know about hair serum. As you may have already gathered, hair serum could be the best thing you never knew your hair needed!

Sources:

https://www.stylecraze.com/articles/hair-serum-what-are-they-why-to-use-them/#gref
https://soilhair.com/hair-serum-black-hair/
https://hellogiggles.com/hair/hair-serums/
https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-pros-and-cons-of-applying-hair-serum