Move over 007 these bonds can be broken, re-set, temporarily change the shape and determine the look.… of your hair.
There are three different Bonds in your hair. Disulphide Bonds (which are strong), Hydrogen Bonds and Salt Bonds (which are weaker).
Let’s start with biology of the hair.
Hair is made from keratin, which is a fibrous protein. The long shape which you recognise as hair is actually these long filament chains of protein that grow from the follicle on the scalp in the dermis of the skin.
The three main parts of the hair are the cuticle (outer layer) which looks like a shingled roof and gives strength to the outer layer and protect the cortex from damage, cortex (middle layer) this contains pigment known as melanin which determines the colour of your hair. Medulla (inner core) is the softest most fragile part of your hair it varies in size from follicle to follicle and is where majority of your hairs DNA is stored.
The reason these layers are important is because they are held together by the bonds in our hair that tightly and securely cross and lap over to form the structure of your hair.
Keratin and bonds are important in the roll of the shape, texture and strength of your hair strands.
The shape of your hair is determined by the amount of disulphide bonds and the distribution of these bonds along the internal structure of the hair. The straighter the hair the more evenly placed the disulphide bonds are and the follicle is more likely to be round in shape. So, the curlier your hair is the more clustered or irregular the disulphide bonds are distributed and the follicle is more oval shaped.
Disulphide Bonds are broken by chemicals such as perms and relaxers these bonds are broken and then a stylist can manipulate the shape by rods or boards and then the bonds are re-joined which is the only way to change the shape of the hair. This will however not change the follicle shape so your growth will come back in its original form.
These chemical processes damage the hair causing breakage and loss of elasticity due to these strong bonds being weakened.
Disulphide Bonds can also be damaged by over exposure to water, heat styling, colouring, environmental stresses, wind, salt, chlorine and colour which causes damage to your cuticle, speeding up oxidisation, weaking the strong bonds.
Hydrogen Bonds and Salt Bonds are a lot weaker and found all over the cortex they are easily broken by water and anything with a pH over 5.5. Salt Bonds are easily stabilised by managing exposure of the pH your hair is exposed to. These bonds help you or your stylist to set the hair in a new style this is because heat and water break the bonds allowing you to temporarily manipulate the hair as it dries and cools the bonds are re-joined giving shape and form to your hair.
But of course, if you don’t properly protect your hair these damaging elements as stated above can cause irreversible damage to your strands by damage to the cuticle and weakening the bonds.
So, this leads on to frizzy hair.
Frizzy hair occurs when your hair is exposed to humidity/ water, (there goes those hydrogen bonds breaking again). Water being at least a pH of 7 alters the bonds and unfortunately the shape you’ve created. This happens because oxygen atoms attract the hydrogen atoms which charge the oxygen atoms negatively (ions). Ions don’t disappear and they build up on the hair, increasing oxidation which break down the hydrogen, salt and disulphide bonds which in the long-term cause dehydration, elasticity loss resulting in dull, lifeless and eventually broken hair.
This is why Halo helps to keep your hair strong and healthy. We formulate every single product with a low pH or cohesive pH to your hair to stop your cuticle opening which exposures the hair to unnecessary damage. Halo also protects from every damaging environmental stress that you are exposed to daily helping to keep the hairs integrity from those strong bonds not being weakened.
We also teach you ways to not over expose your hair by styling correctly and by following our layering method. The less your hair is exposed to a high pH, chemicals or water the stronger your hair is and the longer your style will last between blow waves and washes.
Unsure of the perfect layering method for you? Reach out and our founding qualified stylist can help with any advice you need to help you achieve healthy hair.
