Best High Porosity Hair Products

 By Toia Barry

If you have high porosity hair, you’re probably well aware of the common pitfalls: dryness, frizz, tangles, and damage, to name a few. While your grievances may include some or all of these side effects, you don’t have to put up with them forever. There are hair products for high porosity hair specifically designed to hydrate, protect, and heal it. With the right cleansing, conditioning, and styling products in your shower and beauty cabinet, you can learn to embrace your hair type.

How to Determine if You Have High Porosity Hair

Before you start shopping for the cure to your hair woes, it’s essential to know your hair porosity type. High porosity and low porosity hair care will look quite different. Products formulated for high porosity hair won’t benefit someone with low porosity hair and vice-versa. 

The first step in understanding, what is hair porosity, is understanding your own. You can determine your hair’s porosity level by performing a simple test on a strand of your hair. Just drop the strand in a glass of water and watch what happens. If the hair strand floats, it is low porosity; if it sinks, it is high porosity; and if it stays somewhere in the middle, it’s medium porosity. It’s best to perform this test on dry, freshly washed hair that’s free from product so you can see how your hair responds naturally without moisture blocking and cuticle closing products that could affect the result.

If you want to test your hair doubly, run a strand between your fingers. Does it feel a bit rough and bumpy, or does your finger catch on little ridges along the way? This indicates high porosity hair, which has lifted or open cuticles that feel like bumps or ridges along the strands. 

You also may be able to determine your hair’s porosity by merely noticing the signs of high porosity hair. High porosity hair dries quickly and can handle a lot of product because it absorbs moisture quickly. Highly porous hair also tends to be dry, frizzy, or show signs of damage, because while it can absorb moisture quickly, it has trouble retaining it. 

Once you have determined that you have high porosity hair, you can stock up on the products to help maintain their best form. 

The Best Products for High Porosity Hair

High porosity hair can not only handle a lot of product, but it needs a lot of product to thrive. Don’t be afraid of thick creams, oils, and hair butter—your hair can take it! These rich products will deliver much-needed moisture to your locks, so they look and feel healthy, lush, and hydrated. They’ll transform your mane, like magic. 

Deep Conditioning Treatment

The best thing you can do for high porosity hair is to supply it with hydration. High porosity hair is often dry and/or damaged, so it will benefit greatly from using a deep conditioning treatment 1-2 times a week. Our Babassu Oil and Mint Deep Conditioning treatment is just what the stylist ordered. It is enriched with fatty acids and natural oils, as well as complex amino acids from wheat, soy, and other all-natural ingredients, to help hydrate and replenish your hair with the protein it needs to stay strong. Give your hair 15-30 minutes with it on to soak up all the benefits.

A Humidity-Fighting Formula

The hair cuticles on high porosity hair tend to be lifted and far apart, allowing moisture to penetrate the hair core. In humid conditions, moisture from the air can penetrate and expand the hair shaft, leading to frizz. In order to keep high porosity hair from instantly frizzing when it’s humid out, it’s important to apply a humidity-fighting formula to hair to lock in shine and seal the cuticle layer. 

Our Mongongo Oil-to-Pomade Treatment will be your secret weapon against humidity and ensure your style stays sleek and frizz-free. This powerful yet lightweight product repels humidity and uses sub-Saharan African mongongo oil for Intense Heat Defense™ and Curl Pattern Protection™. Plus, it can be applied to damp or dry hair, so you can add it to your routine pre or post-styling whenever humidity is a threat. 

Leave-In Conditioner

A sealed hair cuticle is what gives hair its shine, which is why high porosity hair can lack this coveted trait. However, you can restore hair’s shine with the right product and lock in moisture while you’re at it. As a prescription for your hair, our Moisture RX Hawaiian Ginger Moisturizing Leave-In Conditioner will treat thirsty hair with a rich hydration that restores shine, locks in moisture, and delivers long-lasting curl definition.

In addition to helping with moisture retention, a leave-in conditioner will also help with tangles, making a high porosity mane more manageable. 

Co-Wash

Overwashing your hair can lead to damage and dryness and cause hair to become high porosity if it isn’t already. While everyone likes the feeling of clean hair, it’s important to limit the number of times you wash it to keep hair at its healthiest. A great solution to keep hair feeling fresh between washes is a co-washing product such as our Detangling Co-Wash that cleanses and conditions. It removes impurities without stripping your hair of its natural oils and encourages stronger, healthier hair, so you can wash less and experience less breakage, damage, and dryness.

Detangler 

The open hair cuticles of high porosity hair cause it to become easily tangled, leading to hair breakage and frizz. Avoid this dilemma by adding a powerful detangler to your hair regimen. Start with our Detangling Co-Wash in the shower, which gently cleanses and conditions your hair and helps prevent knots. Then, reach for our Moisture RX Hawaiian Ginger Moisturizing Leave-In Conditioner and pair it with your favorite comb to easily detangle your locks post-shower.  

Styling Cream

As we said above, your hair can handle a lot of product, so if you plan on styling your hair, don’t shy away from using a styling cream. Cream is an essential component of the L.O.C. Hair Method, and one that features hydrating ingredients will encourage high porosity hair to behave and shine. For intense hydration and natural shine, reach for our Pomegranate & Honey Twisting Soufflé. This styling product will help define and secure your twist-out, braid out, or Bantu knots and nourish your hair while it’s at it.  

Hair Butter 

Hair butter is essential to have in your high porosity hair toolkit to reduce frizz and seal in moisture. Opt for a butter with a thick texture that can be used on damp or dry hair so you can get the most use out of it. Our Moisture Rx Hawaiian Ginger Moisturizing Hair Butter is made with healthy ingredients like coconut oil, avocado oil, ginger oil, and orange and lemon extract that will deeply moisturize your strands and assist you in whatever style you’re going for.  

Heat Protectant

Dry, high porosity hair is particularly prone to damage and breakage, so it’s crucial to care for it when applying any form of heat. Insert a heat protectant. Our Mongongo Oil-to-Pomade Treatment, specifically formulated for high porosity hair, features Intense Heat Defense™ to offer the thermal protection your hair needs when using a flat iron or blow dryer. It also features nourishing ingredients to enhance shine and protect against frizz. But don’t stop there: for additional protection, spritz your hair with our Mongongo Oil Thermal Heat Protectant Spray when wet to help it better handle the heat. 

Protein Rich Product

High porosity hair is often protein-deficient as a result of damaged hair cuticles. Damage can happen for many reasons, including sun exposure, chemicals from coloring, or even harsh hair products. When it comes to how to fix high porosity hair, you can add protein back into your strands to strengthen and restore them. Just be careful about which protein-rich products you select and how often you use them because excessive protein can cause hair to become rigid and dry and stunt low porosity hair growth. Some protein treatments are fit for only a single use; however, our Babassu Oil and Mint Deep Conditioning treatment infuses hair with protein in a way that is safe for recurring use. It also moisturizes strands while it’s at it, so you’re left with stronger, more hydrated hair. 

Sulfate-Free

A lot of hair products out there have been formulated with sulfates, which, unfortunately, can be extremely harsh on the hair, stripping it of its natural oils and drying it out. If you have high porosity hair, it’s essential to steer clear of sulfates to keep your already-dry strands intact. All of our Mielle Organics natural hair products are organic, so you can rest assured you’re giving your hair the best available. Our cleansing shampoos and hydrating conditioners are formulated free from sulfates to offer a deep and hydrating cleansing experience that is healthy for your hair.

If you have high porosity hair, adding these products to your daily routine will make all the difference and can even restore hair to normal porosity if its porosity is a result of damage. Hair that feels healthy, lush, and hydrated can be just on the other side of your shopping cart.