"Glycerin" The Do's & Don't of Using Glycerine

                        "Glycerin" The Do's & Don't of Using Glycerine

I was reading a post on hairlista in regards to when to use, or when to NOT use "Glycerine" Apparently, this humectant is to be used only during the warmer seasons, but when the climate is cold, it has the opposite effect of drawing moisture from the air to your hair, and making the hair dry! I have noticed my hair has been extra dry lately, and not I am sure I have found the culprit! I'm glad I found this post because I have been putting glycerine in my hair butters & my water based moisturizing spritz!!! As of today Feb. 6, 2013, I will not put glycerine in my hair products during the winter seasons! Below is some information that explains the difference in low humidity, and high humidty conditions as they pertain to the use of glycerine....

Low Humidity

In extremely low-humidity conditions, such as a cold, dry winter air, there is no appreciable amount of water in the air for the humectant to attract to the surface of the hair. In this particular type of climate, the best one can hope for with most traditional humectants is for them to prevent evaporation of water from the hair into the environment. Also, under these circumstances, there is some risk of the humectant actually removing moisture from the cortex of the hair itself, creating the problem it was intended to prevent.

That’s why in dry climates it is important to use conditioning products which rely on strong moisturizers rather than traditional humectants. However, it is interesting to note that new humectants are being developed that perform well even in low humidity (such as hydroxypropyl bis-hydroxyethyldimonium chloride and dihydroxypropyltrimonium chloride).

High Humidity

In high-humidity conditions, such as summertime in the southeastern United States or the tropics — where the relative humidity can easily reach or exceed 90 percent during the day — there is a tremendous amount of moisture in the air. This can be disastrous for curly hair. If curly hair is dry and damaged, it is very porous, and easily absorbs water from the air. In high-humidity conditions, this can cause curly hair to swell so much that cuticles are raised, making the surface of the hair very rough. These cuticles can then become entangled with cuticles of adjacent hairs and create a huge, tangled mass, which is prone to breakage. Also, curly hair swollen by excess water can lose its curl pattern, creating the dreaded summer frizz.

Clearly, products heavy in humectants will only exacerbate problems with humidity-induced frizz. Some humectants can also develop a sticky feeling when they become saturated with water, which is certainly an undesirable characteristic for hair. Thus, in tropical and subtropical climates, it is essential to maintain well-moisturized hair that is in good condition (which will be less prone to absorbing water from the hair). But it is preferable to use products containing fewer humectants or humectants with less hygroscopic capacity.

Due to the limitations and pitfalls of humectants in extreme weather conditions, it is apparent that these ingredients probably function best for curly-haired consumers in moderate climates, with temperatures and humidity in the medium range.