Hair Smoothening Vs Hair Straightening: Whichever You Choose You Get Straight Hair ·

06 May 2024, 00:00

Radiant skin, sharp attires and smooth hair - all these add to a clean and polished look. In today’s day and age of stress and polluted environments, smooth hair may not be a permanent feature. But not everyone may have smooth hair or they might not seem smooth. The quickest solution would be to get it straightened at home but it’s a smoothened hair that looks so perfect. So if you are caught between hair smoothening vs hair straightening then you are on the right page!

The confusion is for nothing because both of them are different causing differing outcomes. So, we will get down to clarifying hair smoothing treatment and hair straightening, at a cellular level.

Our contributor William Slator, Product developer at HairGuard, a holistic hair care product brand, says, “The choice between hair smoothening and straightening depends on individual preferences. Hair smoothening aims to reduce frizz and enhance shine, while straightening aims to achieve a sleek, straight look. Consider the natural texture of your hair and desired results when making a choice. Both processes involve heat and chemicals, so proper care is crucial for maintaining hair health.”

Hair Straightening: A Detailed Overview

It’s a natural human desire to look beyond the horizon and try to achieve what they don’t have. For many, hair straightening is one such wish and technology gives us the liberty to do it (2).

Hair straightening, as the name suggests, is basically a cosmetic process of removing curls or waviness of the hair strands, collectively, and straightening them (1). The natural texture of the hair might not go well with your personality or the look that you desire to achieve. This is the most common reason why people go for hair straightening.

There are predominantly two ways of artificially straightening your hair – by using chemicals and by using hair straightening tools. You can also straighten hair using natural ingredients but the effects aren’t long-lasting.

Certain chemicals are often used in measured quantities for removing natural curls and waviness from hair. This process is identified as the chemical hair straightening method and is done through hair rebonding, keratin treatment and hair relaxing.

Hair rebonding is a specialized chemical treatment performed by a licensed cosmetologist. The hair is passed through a chemical process to change its natural texture resulting in smoothened and straightened hair (4).Hair rebonding involves several steps in which the natural bond of hair is broken and rebounded to give them a different shape – straighten in this case.

Our body produces keratin – a protein responsible for forming hair, skin and nails and keeping them strong. As a natural process, our body loses keratin. So, in order to fill up this deficiency, cosmetologists or professional hair stylists apply keratin-based products. They can penetrate the hair fiber, nourish them, coats the surface and thus prevents loss of hair moisture (7). These external sources make up for the keratin loss, fix hair damage and get the sheen back on your hair.

Hair relaxing is another artificial technique for straightening hair, especially curly or coiled hair type. A typical cream is used that loosens the natural curls and straightens them (9). However, the process is based on chemical usage for the straightening and entails damage. Hence, it would be best to try other ways.

As we have mentioned earlier, besides chemicals, you can also straighten hair using certain tools and remedies like straightening brushes and iron, hot oil treatment, blow drying and others. They work well too but the straightening effect doesn’t last longer as compared to the chemical treatments.

The Brighter Sides of Hair Straightening

Few things are as crucial as self-love. Anything that makes you feel good is worth trying and looking good is one of them. Straightening your hair for your own sake is a crucial form of self-love.

Here are some of the most heart-warming reasons to experience it and the benefits of straightening. .

Gorgeous mane

Hair straightening treats the fizziness of hair, gives them a natural shine and makes them look healthier. This will add a touch of perfection to your look.

Remains straight for a longer time

Hair straightening through established hair treatment methods (using chemicals in moderation) is often permanent. It lasts for more than six months (5) to one year or more depending on your hair type and maintenance.

Sparkling personality

A flawless look nails down a charming personality; well-trimmed and silky hair accentuates your look. A straightened hair may create a million-dollar outlook. That’s why it is so important to hire the perfect stylist or book an appointment at the best salon to get your hair straightened!

Hair Straightening Has Some Darker Side Too; Do You Know Them?

Brighter days may have an overcast sky too; weather may change and quite unpredictably so. Hair straightening may be great but there are a few pitfalls too. Having said that, let’s not fret about it and start comparing hair smoothening vs hair straightening. It’s still too early to do that! Now, let’s get back to the downsides of hair straightening and understand it at a cellular level.

Hair straightening is a cosmetic process (10) and it involves the usage of different chemicals and their compounds. Stylists use several products for straightening hair like hair gels, creams, moisturizers, sprays, shampoos and conditioners, activators, detanglers, glosses and other products. Formaldehyde, cyclosiloxanes, parabens, sodium hydroxide, diethanolamine, phthalates, benzophenone-3 and a few more are some of the common chemicals found in these hair products (14).

The Department of Toxic Substances Control, California, USA, has expressed concern over the use of these chemicals and how people are exposed to such chemicals (14). The DTSC even checked these products for the chemicals and found some of these chemicals and compounds have a detrimental impact on respiratory tracts, disturb the endocrine system, create an adverse situation for reproduction and development, have dermal effects, affect the environment and create bioaccumulation (14).

Let’s understand this; hair straightening is reversing natural hair structure to give a desired shape. The hair products (with a lot of chemical components) break their original formation for straightening. Thus hair goes through a chemical reaction. Hair follicles, shafts, and scalp formed on living cells that get damaged in the process. The damage shows up as irritation, hair loss and fizziness after a certain point of time. It also interferes with your body, and its endocrine system resulting in hormone-related issues like early onset of menstruation, diabetes and obesity (14). The chemicals’ adverse effects are also linked to causing breast cancer (13).

These adverse effects are pretty irreversible. Still, here are a few tips by our contributor William Slator, to combat the side effects of straightening. He says, “To reverse side effects of hair straightening, focus on deep conditioning treatments, regular trims to remove damaged ends, and minimizin

It would be wiser to try the natural ingredients for hair straightening or you can even try hair smoothening. Often there’s confusion between hair smoothening vs hair straightening; we hope you get all the answers when you reach the end of this piece.

Is Any Time A Good Time for Hair Straightening?

In the best interest of your hair and your health, you must not do it frequently unless you have the compulsion to do so. If your job calls for it then you may go for it frequently but under the supervision of a stylist.

If you have already straightened your hair once, then you may need to repeat it after a certain time. The stylist would suggest to you when to go for it. The straightening effects go away after a certain period in time, and then you might need to redo it.

Hair Smoothening: Victim of Mistaken Identity for All the Wrong Reasons!

Don’t be surprised if you too, at some point of time, didn’t know that hair smoothening and hair straightening are different. This confusion prevails among hairstyle enthusiasts too; so if you were confused about hair smoothening vs hair straightening, that’s totally fine. You might not know about it unless you have opted for hair smoothening.

Hair smoothening is reforming hair structure to become silkier and lustrous by making the hair saturated with moisture (16). You can change the hair by changing its molecules, particularly its proteins and its follicles too (17). Hair is made up of a special protein called keratin which helps the hair grow and gives its luster. However, as a natural process, your body may run short of it and that affects your hair, and may cause fizziness, hair thinning and prone to damage. Loss of moisture may also result in abnormal hair loss. That’s exactly where hair smoothing treatment comes into the frame.

By treating damaged hair with proteins like keratin and other products, a stylist overloads your hair with moisture. As the hair follicles come in contact with the moisturizer, it readily absorbs the moisture and shows signs of improvement. However, it is important to mention that such changes didn’t happen overnight. How fast a hair recovers from the damage entirely depends on hair health and its quality. Hair smoothing treatment is thus a special softening hair treatment performed under monitored situations and through a verified process. Interestingly, it is more common than hair straightening.

Hair smoothing is haute and extraordinarily levels up your personality. That’s why it’s so immensely popular and why not? It’s difficult to ignore the sheen and might be a mistake to not own it.

The Perks of Hair Smoothing

Can you deny the charming temptation of a super silky mane? Doesn’t matter whether you have long hair or short, the texture nails the look. The demand and popularity of smoothing treatments of hair have shot up at rocket speed over the past few years. Seems like we are intensely mesmerized by it! What’s so charming about hair smoothening treatment?

No Fizziness

It’s the primary purpose of undergoing hair smoothing treatment! The stylist would use a number of hair products to feed moisture to your hair shafts and ensure it gets locked there. They may add some more to make it saturated with moisture making it shimmer most elegantly. What happens due to this (and this is the best part) is it treats the fizziness of your hair and makes it disappear.

Improved Hair Texture

Loss of moisture, lack of essential Keratin, pollution and a few more unwanted factors damage your hair. Often, we don’t have control over these elements but can certainly control the damage, neutralize it and improve hair texture. Hair treatments like hair smoothing add moisture through external sources and help restore health and improve texture.

Accentuated Look

A fizz-free and smoothened hair is unparalleled in creating a flawless look. It contours your look, making it so proper and sharp. Doesn't this sound similar to your dream look? We bet it does! Hair is such an important part of your outlook; its fizziness only makes you look clumsy. It’s a key reason that spiked up the popularity of hair smoothing.

Fall in Love with Your Hair

Girls love their hair; it’s an eternal bond, even before the first diamond was mined out! Correct us if you think otherwise. Don’t we reach out to the nearest possible hair strand when thinking those endless thoughts, touch them for reassurance and twist and curl it when worried and caressing it makes us feel better? Smoothened hair makes every touch worth revisiting; you enjoy the indulgence thoroughly.

The Other Side of Hair Smoothing That You Ought to Know Too!

Not everything is shiny and sunny about hair smoothing; it has its darker sides too. It’s great and you may love it; we all adore it but it would be wise to not ignore its side effects.

Hair is smoothened using hair products, even for adding moisture but they do have chemicals in their composition (22). You know it right? The use of chemical-loaded hair products interferes with hair’s natural composition and causes dehydration as a long-term impact.

Dry and Fizzy Hair

Hair smoothing treatment may initially give you silky soft hair but as the smoothing effect withers away, it also takes away hair’s natural moisture. It happens because of the present chemicals in those hair products. Apart from unusual dryness, the hair also tends to become fizzy, gets entangled very easily and is difficult to manage.

Weakened Hair and Hair Fall

Keratin K31 is one of the most important components in the hair cortex responsible for hair strength and health. The chemicals reach the underlying layers and deplete the keratin and resulting in weakened tensile strength. Hair with lesser tensile strength is brittle and prone to breakage.

Split Ends

Hair smoothing is not a one-time process; it calls for maintenance and repeated exposure of your hair to hair products and heat from the styling tools. This frequent exposure to chemicals and heat further drives away moisture from your hair and results in split ends.

Unhealthy Scalp

Your scalp isn’t made for chemicals but they come in contact with it every time you go for hair smoothing or any other treatments. The chemicals aren’t good for it either. All these may make your scalp unusually dry and flaky. As a result, you may have dandruff issues too. Furthermore, it can cause irritation and make the sebaceous glands secrete more oil making the scalp greasy for some. Whichever it may cause you, it might not be something you wanted.

When You May Usually Book An Appointment For Hair Smoothening?

Whenever you feel the need or wish to have a makeover, you may go for a smoothing treatment for your hair. However, there are some compulsory situations which may push you for it.

If you have already smoothened your hair but the effect is withering away then you may need to get it treated again. Otherwise, the hair will be fizzy again and you won’t want that.

When your hair is not responding to natural remedies and treatments then you may think of smoothing treatment for hair. However, remember that you must treat it as the last resort.

If you have an important event to attend or it’s one of the most important days of your life then it deserves all. It would be worth smoothing hair for such an occasion. However, make sure it is that important and you don’t do it frequently.

Hair Smoothing Vs Hair Straightening

You thought they were the same until you were told about the tiny string that differentiates these two hair treatment processes. Yes, both of them straighten hair, making it look silkier and smoother. What differentiates hair smoothing from hair straightening is the usage of hair products. Hair straightening is a more rigorous process and thus involves stronger hair products, also with more intense chemicals. While on the other hand hair smoothing is a milder process. It is saturating the hair with moisturizers that make it look silkier and smoother. The effect of smoothing might be shorter but it does lesser damage to hair than hair straightening.

It’s a tiny difference with a more significant impact.

How to Care For Your Smoothened and Straightened Hair?

Hair smoothing and straightening, both are quite costly processes and your hair has to go through several unwanted elements. So, to balance the effects well and ensure the smoothened and straightened hair retain its texture for a longer time, you must take good care of it. No compromises with it unless you want to go through it again, and spend again on it! Here are some general hair care tips for smoothened and straightened hair.

It would be best to not wash your hair for two days, immediately after smoothening or straightening. The hairstylist would also suggest the same, because it may disturb the just straightened hair follicles and wash away the products that would hold on to the recently changed hair structure.

Take time to comb your hair properly and with a comb made of friendly material. Combing it roughly or quickly may detangle it and you won’t want that.

As your hair underwent treatment, it has been treated with hair products that changed its structure and composition. So, you may try to counter the effect and balance it by following a healthy diet and keeping yourself hydrated.

Wash your hair with mild shampoos. It will help you to retain the shine and smoothened effect for a longer time. So, check the shampoo compositions before buying your shampoo and use it in moderation.

Some basic care might be enough to maintain your smoothened and straightened hair, provided you are consistent with it.

Conclusion

There is no rule book to craft your look the way you want. Follow your heart and try out things even if you aren’t very sure about them. Who knows if it turns out great for you! However, make sure you aren’t overdoing anything. As we discussed, it isn’t a good idea to expose your hair to chemicals and heat that often. We hope this article fed you with all the information you might have asked about hair smoothening and hair straightening. On top of that, it cleared the air about hair smoothing vs hair straightening as well! Decide if you want it and go for it.

Contributor: William Slator, Product developer - HairGuard

References:

1. Mechanism of Hair Straightening

https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=5b150d6591a8d001c2f49f8ba5aeac7b25453eea

2. Hair Straighteners: An Approach Based on Science and Consumer Profile

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/329331194_Hair_straighteners_An_approach_based_on_science_and_consumer_profile

3. What Do We Need to Know About Hair Straightening?

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/354152688_What_do_we_need_to_know_about_hair_straightening

4. Hair Rebonding: The Process

https://www.scribd.com/document/530776504/Hair-Rebonding

5. An Overview of Chemical Straightening of Human Hair: Technical Aspects, Potential Risks to Hai Fibre and Health and Legal Issues

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/ics.12093