Electric straightening brushes on Afro hair

I am sure you have seen the various heat straightening brushes advertised. The claims on these products is that you can straighten your hair faster and safer with these brush tools. The prices range from $19.99 up to $70, depending on the name brand. Certain electric brushes you can use to dry and straighten the hair at one time. This eliminate the need to blow dry your hair first. 

How does a electric straightening brush differ from your flat iron?

In general these electric brushes do not get as hot as a flat iron can. You can expect more of a blown out look than a slick straightening, when use on wet hair.  

Is this a tool you should use on your hair or your child's hair?

No, I do not recommend investing in this type of hair tool. If you are trying to grow your hair long, full and healthy stay away from brushes and high heat. The stress of the brush raking over your hair, combined with the high heat, will break your hair. With one use or repeated use you could thin your hair out or weaken your hair. This tool is not conducive to growing and maintaining long healthy hair. 

All  harsh heat tools should used in moderation, when on a healthy hair journey. If you are still tempted and feel one of these straightening brushes will benefit you, then here are the top picks from amazon. 

These straightening brushes received great reviews on amazon. Check them out!

Five top reasons for chronic split ends

Split ends happen to all on occasion, however chronic split ends are not normal. You must cut a split hair. You cannot heal split ends. You can temporarily glue them together with treatments. Once hair splits, it is split. You cut it off, or it will continue to rip. 

1. No regular trim schedule
A  good hair care regimen should include a trimming schedule. You decide how often you will trim based on what you do to your hair. The Coily Queens Regimen recommends trimming your hair every 4th month. This equals three times a year. This is if you start out with totally healthy ends. When you trim you hair on a regular basis, your hair styles better and does not pop and break as much. 

HEAT STRAIGHTENING 

2. Using the wrong tools
Your ends will  split easily if you use flat irons, curling irons, blow dryers or pressing combs. Heat from these sources, dries the hair out. Because you are trying to maintain your straight style, you are not moisturizing it properly, and that dries it out even more.  Harsh direct heat also weakens the protein bonds. Your hair is made of lots of layers that protect it, heat weakens those cuticle layers. When any of those layers become weak, your hair will split and eventually break.

Using brushes and combs also weakens the hair bonds. It does it slower than harsh heat. If you use a brush even once a week, your ends will start to thin. The thinning is from the hair splitting and breaking. The end result is thin see through ends, which makes your hair hard to style. Using combs and brushes always require you to cut more inches off when it is time for your trim. The CQR recommends finger combing. Finger combing will save your hair.

3. Eat more protein
All hair is made up of mostly protein. Thus you must eat sufficient protein daily to keep the hair growing from your scalp strong. Include protein rich foods in your diet daily, foods such as: fish, nuts, beans are healthy proteins. Animal proteins build the strongest hair. Taking a hair growth supplement helps the hair to grow stronger and faster. Most of us are not getting a balanced diet daily, so supplement help to make up for diet. 

Including:  Herbal Essence, Dove, Garnier Frutics

4. Using harsh ingredients
Cheap products that include cheap ingredients, sit on your hair and weakens your hair cuticle. Yes many of them give you good immediate results. Most of them are filled with harsh cheap ingredients and silicones. You receive great results when you first use the product, but long term use only leads to dried out damaged hair. Stay away from those products, the cheap price and empty promises are not worth it. 

5. No protein treatments
You fail to include good protein treatments in your regimen on a regular basis. Many naturals, in error, feel they are protein sensitive. This is due to what they have read on hair forums. Your hair is protein so you are not sensitive to it. In most cases you have used the protein incorrectly or used the wrong protein product. Not all protein treatments are created equal. Look for a protein treatment that has hydrolyzed keratin protein in the top 5 ingredients. There are other types of proteins, but the animal proteins are the strongest. They give your hair the most strength. If you are going for beyond bra strap length, up your protein game!

SEE THE CQR GUIDE TO PROTEIN TREATMENTS

What you need to know about the hair cuticle.

The hair cuticle is the outer layer of your hair, the part you see is the cuticle.

The hair cuticle is made of  layers, which resemble  fish scales.

The hair cuticle is made up of dead cells.

The hair cuticle is protection for the inner cortex of your hair, which is softer. 

The hair cuticle never closes. No product can be truly sealed into your hair.

The hair cuticle can only be made to lay flatter.

The majority of products you use, only lay on top of the hair cuticle. You do not want a lot of products reaching the inner cortex of your hair.

Water can penetrate all hair. Because all hair is porous. No matter if you think you have low porosity hair or not. 

Heat makes the hair cuticle open more.

Cold makes the hair cuticle lay flatter.

Once the hair cuticle is damaged it cannot be corrected. It can be temporarily repaired.

Things that damage the hair cuticle

Harsh ingredients with PH over 10

Hair color, bleach, relaxers

Brushing the hair

Heat from flat irons, straighteners and blow dryers.