How To Get Smooth Hair & Risks Of Chemical Treatments

Wondering how to get smooth manageable hair? Do not worry; we can help you.

Daily combing and using thousands of different serums do not always seem to function when it comes to tangling and roughness. As a result, your hair may begin to look dull, unmanageable, and frizzy. However, it is not difficult to achieve smooth, frizz-free tresses. This article addresses the various techniques for hair smoothening at home. Keep reading to learn more.

Ways To Smoothen Hair

There are two ways you can smoothen your hair: chemical smoothing and regular hair styling.

• Chemical Smoothing: This method uses chemicals like formaldehyde, alkalines, etc. to treat your hair (1). It is a permanent treatment that lasts for at least 12-15 weeks. You will have to get it redone every few months to keep your hair looking smooth.

In a study conducted on 1,555 women, it was reported that 89% of them have used chemical products or straighteners to smoothen or straighten their hair. It was also observed that there was also a higher usage of chemical and leave-on conditioner to smoothen hair. So you can use these hair products or natural remedies to make hair smooth and straight.

• Natural Smoothing: This method uses regular hairstyling tips to smooth your hair. It is temporary but very efficient. It does not heavily change the structure of hair, as chemical smoothing does. With the right care and management, you can achieve smooth and healthy hair.

While these methods are temporary, natural smoothing is likely to improve the health of your hair, in the long run, making it smooth and shiny. Read on to know more about these two smoothing methods and decide which one would be the ideal choice for you.

How To Get Smooth Hair Naturally

Hesitant about using chemicals and heat to get sleek, straight, and shiny hair? Wondering how to straighten hair naturally? Consider the following home remedies and hair care tips to achieve smooth hair with minimum risks.

1. Rinse With Cold Water

Rinsing your hair with cold water removes any frizz and makes the hair straight. After you wash and condition your detangled hair, rinse with cold water a few times. Pat dry your hair instead of drying it vigorously or scrunching it. You can also use a straightening or anti-frizz conditioner before rinsing your hair. The cold water will lock in the anti-frizz action of the conditioner and keep your hair smooth and conditioned.

2. Banana Packama

Banana is rich in carbohydrates, vitamins, natural oils, and potassium. It has antioxidant potential that helps fight free radicals (2). Using a banana in a hair pack will make your hair feel nourished and moisturized. It reduces frizz and soothes an irritated scalp with regular use. The benefits of banana can be enhanced by adding yogurt to it, which is also an excellent hair moisturizer.

You Will Need

• 1 ripe banana
• 2 teaspoons yogurt

Procedure

1. Mash a ripe banana and add two teaspoons of yogurt to it.
2. Blend it to get a smooth paste so that no chunks of the banana remain.
3. Apply this all over the hair, starting from the tips and work up until the crown.
4. Rinse off after 45 minutes with a shampoo.

3. Vinegar Rinse

Using an apple cider vinegar hair rinse regularly is a popular home remedy to achieve smooth and healthy hair. Our hair has a pH of 5.5, but the shampoos and conditioners we use are strongly alkaline (3). Although there is no scientific evidence, anecdotal evidence suggests that apple cider vinegar helps maintain the pH balance of our scalp while cleaning the build-up that might have formed from the excessive use of products. Rinsing your hair with the vinegar will close the cuticles of your hair and make it smoother, softer, and shinier.

You Will Need

• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup water

Procedure

1. Dilute apple cider vinegar with water.
2. Use this as the final rinse after washing your hair and leave it on.

4. Hot Oil Treatment

A hot oil massage once a week will not only give you healthy and smooth hair, but it will also help you de-stress. Use oils, such as coconut, olive, sweet almond, jojoba, castor, lavender, rosemary, and thyme, to massage your hair (4), (5), (6), (7). You can also use the combination of these oils for better results.

You Will Need

• 2-3 tablespoons of oil, depending on the length of your hair

Procedure

1. Massage your scalp with the oil and apply it to all of your hair.
2. After massaging your scalp, wrap your head with a warm towel. This creates an environment that allows for maximum penetration of the oil.
3. Leave it on for 20 minutes and then wash off the oil with shampoo for glossy hair.

5. Use A Shampoo For Your Hair Type

A shampoo cleanses your scalp and also makes your hair smooth and soft. However, you should always use a shampoo that is suited to your hair.

Another safe idea to cleanse your hair is to use natural ingredients.

1. Make your own natural shampoo by boiling dried Indian gooseberry (amla), shikakai, and reetha.
2. Let it boil until you get a soapy solution.
3. Use this to wash your hair at least twice a week to get shiny and smooth hair.

6. Careful Combing

Go easy on the brushing. Combing or brushing your hair too much will cause friction, which will make your hair frizzy. Restrict combing your hair to a bare minimum, and never do it when your hair is wet. Wet hair is more prone to breakage. A good combing schedule involves detangling your hair before a shower with a wide-toothed wooden comb and then combing it once or twice a day to style and get rid of tangles.

7. Proper Conditioning

The right conditioning treatment can work wonders for your hair and make it smooth and silky. Make it a point to deep condition your hair at least once a week. Leaving a little conditioner on your hair can make it appear smooth, radiant, and tangle-free. This is completely harmless as long as the conditioner is not in contact with your scalp.

You can also use leave-in conditioners and serums, which are very useful to achieve that smooth and frizz-free look. Leave-in conditioners are especially beneficial for people with curly hair.

8. Take A Break From Heat

Straighteners, curling irons, and blow dryers may be the best solution for instant styling to make your hair appear smooth. But the regular use of these hot styling tools is extremely harmful for your hair. The heat from these tools damages your hair, making it coarse and frizzy and stripping off its natural sheen (8).

However, if there are days when you cannot do without styling, remember to use a heat-protecting spray or serum. It will help reduce the damage from the heat by forming a protective shield around your hair.

9. Blow Drying Techniques

Always try to dry your hair naturally. But if you are in a hurry, you can blow dry your hair. However, make it a point to use a good quality big-toothed round brush with a ceramic base. Use the cool settings of your blow dryer as this leads to less damage. Hold the blow dryer 15 cm away from your hair and move it constantly so that it doesn’t blow at one section of hair for too long (8).

10. Say No To Chemicals

Do not use products that contain sodium lauryl sulfate or ammonium laureth sulfate, as both of them are industrial cleansers and very harsh on your hair. These are ingredients that most shampoos contain. Research has shown that these chemicals cause heavy hair fall and thinning of hair (1). Instead of sulfate shampoos, use shampoos with natural and organic ingredients, which are not harsh on your hair. They lock in the moisture, thus giving you smooth and soft hair.

11. Trimming Is Important

Trimming is the most important thing to do if you want to maintain hair that is healthy and smooth. It helps remove split ends and damage that would otherwise spread up the hair shaft, causing frizz and dryness. Trim your hair every four to six weeks.

12. Mayonnaise Mask

Nourish your hair with a deep conditioning treatment using homemade masks once a week. You can use convenient ingredients from the kitchen, such as mayonnaise. There are some noted potential benefits of mayonnaise for hair. It is a rich source of L-cysteine, an amino acid and a powerful antioxidant also found in eggs. Using this hair pack regularly stimulates healthy hair growth.

You Will Need

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoons mashed avocado

Procedure

1. Mix the mayonnaise and avocado until the mixture becomes fluffy.
2. Apply the mixture to your hair from the roots through the length of your hair.
3. Pull your hair to the crown and cover your head with a shower cap.
4. Keep it on for an hour and rinse off with shampoo.

13. Onion Juice Hair Pack

Onion juice is a commonly used home remedy that is popular for boosting hair growth. Anecdotal evidence suggests that its rich sulfur content may also help prevent hair thinning and breakage, resulting in smoother and more manageable hair. This makes it ideal for individuals dealing with frizzy tresses.

You Will Need

• 1 medium-sized onion
• 2 teaspoons honey

Procedure

1. Blitz the onion into a paste using a mixer.
2. Strain the pulp well to extract its juice.
3. Add the honey to the onion juice and mix well.
4. Apply the concoction onto the scalp and hair.
5. Leave it on for 1 hour, then rinse it off with cold water and a mild shampoo.

You can also smoothen your hair with chemicals. However, this method is expensive and can have damaging side effects on your hair (1). If you want to smoothen your hair chemically, ensure that your hair is healthy and hydrated and not over-processed. It is always a good idea to consult a stylist before you get a treatment done. Pre and post care is crucial for healthy, smoothened hair.

Quick Tip

Sleep on silk or satin pillowcases to avoid frizz and breakage and keep the hair smoother.

Chemical Smoothing Hair Tips

14. Traditional Relaxers

Relaxers are used to soften and calm the natural texture of the hair. They are suitable for people with wavy or slightly curly hair. However, they do not work well with extremely curly hair (1). Relaxers fix frizzy textures and smoothen the hair shafts. The effect loses out once the chemicals fade out in four to six months.

15. Chemical Smoothing

This technique uses a lot of chemicals to break the natural bonds of your hair (1). The hair is then washed with a smoothing solution and straightened. This procedure takes four to five hours, and the effects last for about three months. Regular touch-ups are required to maintain smooth, straight and lustrous hair. It is not meant for colored hair.

Puja Mondal, a blogger, underwent a hair smoothing treatment and shared what to expect from it. About the usual duration of this treatment, she writes, “The time depends on a couple of things like hair texture, thickness and also length. Obviously, it is going to take much longer if you have extremely core and thick hair. My appointment took almost 5 hours as my hair is long and colored (i).” She adds, “If you want your hair to look pin-straight then you may have to go to the salon for touch-ups after every 4 to 5 months.”

16. Thermal Reconditioning

Also known as Japanese straightening, this technique is suitable for bulky, loose to medium curls, but not for very tight curls (1). The hair is repeatedly washed with a chemical solution, which helps break the inner bonds. Then, each strand is reshaped. Finally, the neutralizer is applied to achieve a smooth, silky, and straight look. This technique permanently changes the structure of your hair, and regular touch-ups are required every five to six months, depending on the growth rate of your hair. It is not suitable for colored or processed hair.

17. Brazilian Keratin Treatment

This technique has widely gained popularity due to the use of keratin, which is less harsh on hair. It smoothes the surface of the hair but does not permanently break the bonds. This treatment controls frizz by maintaining the volume and texture of the hair (1). It is safe for colored hair and is suitable for all hair types from waves to tight curls. Here is a detailed post on Brazilian Keratin treatment.

As discussed earlier, there are certain risks and side effects of hair smoothing through chemical treatments. Learn more about it in the following section.

Did You Know?

Keratin is derived from the horns, feathers, and wools of animals and is commonly used as an ingredient in hair care products.

Risks And Side Effects

When using chemical treatments to smooth your hair, make sure they don’t contain formaldehyde (1). It can burn the scalp and eyes. Some products claim to have unactivated formaldehyde, which might be activated by the other chemicals in the product. When using regular straighteners, make sure you use keratin straighteners as they do less damage to the hair (1).

Infographic: Natural Ways To Get Smooth Hair

Smooth and silky hair is everyone’s dream and there are several techniques to help you achieve it. There are chemical techniques as well as natural styling tips. Out of all these options provided to you, the natural ways are the safest as they do not cause any damage and improve your overall hair health.

Check out the infographic below to learn the most effective natural ways to get smooth and sleek hair.

Illustration: StyleCraze Design Team

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is my hair so rough after washing it?

Your hair might feel rough after a wash if you are shampooing too often, using a shampoo that’s not right for your hair type, or not using conditioner adequately or properly.

How do salons make hair so soft?

Professionals working at salons know the right way to wash hair and use well-formulated products. They also apply different techniques to soften and smoothen hair.

Is smoothing good for dry hair?

Smoothing can be good for dry hair as it can help to tame frizz and make hair look sleek and shiny. But it is also advised to use a mask, oils, or overnight conditioner to help with the extra moisture. Using a minimum heat or low heat setting when blow-drying hair is important to prevent damage.

Does smoothing help hair growth?

There is no scientific evidence to suggest that hair smoothing can help with hair growth.

How often should I wash my hair to keep it smooth?

You can wash frizzy hair twice or thrice a week as it is important to restore moisture. Washing hair too frequently can strip the hair of its natural oils and cause dryness and washing hair too less can lead to buildup and scalp irritation

Can a healthy diet help to keep my hair smooth?

Yes, a healthy diet can help keep hair smooth by providing the necessary nutrients like protein for healthy hair growth.

Illustration: Effective Ways To Get Smooth Hair

Image: Stable Diffusion/StyleCraze Design Team

Learn how to make your own DIY cream for straight, silky, and strong hair! Get the beautiful hair you have always wanted by checking out this easy-to-follow video tutorial.

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Vd. Naveen SharmaBAMS, Ayurveda Specialist

 

Dr. Naveen Sharma is a renowned Ayurveda specialist with an experience of 10 years. He completed his Bachelor’s degree in Ayurveda, Medicine and Surgery(B. A. M. S) from Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka, in 2007.

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