After washing our hair, we are often faced with a very tangled choice question - should we let the hair air dry naturally, or use a hair dryer to dry it quickly? What do you usually do? This is not a simple multiple-choice question, and it is also about the health of the hair.

Hair dryer to dry

1. Damage to the hair

It's not true that hair dryers can damage hair. The hot air from a hair dryer can make hair dry, brittle, split ends, and brittle. To understand the reasons behind it, we need to first understand the microstructure of the hair.

If you look at it under a microscope, the internal structure of a hair is a bit complicated, from the center to the periphery are the medulla, the cortex and the cuticle. The cuticle is actually a layer of epidermal cells that coat the surface of the hair like a small piece of armor, forming a protective barrier.

Cuticle of hair under an electron microscope

The cuticle has a great effect, it can not only prevent the loss of protein and water from the inside of the hair, but also maintain the health and strength of the hair; It can also reduce the friction between the hair and the external environment, and reduce the damage, breakage and split ends of the hair; The cuticle also prevents dust and chemicals from the outside world from entering the hair, effectively preventing these bad things from causing damage to the hair.

To make your hair look good, you first need to protect the outermost layer of cuticles. If the cuticle is intact and tightly closed, your hair will look healthy and shiny; If the cuticle is broken or not tightly closed, your hair will look dry and frizzy.

This layer of cuticle has a characteristic, that is, it is in a closed state in the dry state, one by one, close together, but after encountering water, the cuticle is in an open state.

When we finish washing our hair, when the hair is still wet, use a hair dryer, when the hot air blows through the surface of the cuticle, it will blow the cuticle opening at a wider angle, then at this time, the moisture inside the hair will be taken away by the hot air faster, resulting in the hair losing water, and it will become dry over time.

The high temperature and strong wind generated by the hair dryer will also cause damage to the hair cuticle, which will not only not effectively protect the hair, but also damage the hair cuticle, and the hair surface will become rough, resulting in increased friction between the hair, which will further cause hair damage.

At the same time, high temperature will also destroy the disulfide bonds in the hair keratin, causing keratin to denature, which is the main reason why hair will become fragile and brittle after regular use of hair dryers.

At the same time, the pigment in the hair is also destroyed by high temperatures. When the melanin in the hair is destroyed, the hair is prone to yellowing.

In contrast, the benefits of letting your hair air dry after washing are obvious, as it can help maintain hair quality by avoiding a series of damage caused by heat and strong winds.

2. Affect scalp health

Using a hair dryer can not only cause damage to the hair quality, but also have a negative impact on the health of the scalp. We also need to understand the reasons behind it from the microstructure of the scalp.

The surface of our scalp is covered with a thin layer of stratum corneum, underneath which are abundant capillaries and nerve endings. The stratum corneum is a protective barrier that can maintain the moisture balance of the scalp, block the entry of harmful substances such as dust and bacteria from the outside world, reduce infection and inflammation of the scalp, and also reduce the damage of ultraviolet rays, chemicals and other irritants to the hair follicles growing inside the scalp and maintain hair growth and health.

However, when the hot air from the hair dryer blows onto the scalp, the high temperature accelerates the evaporation of moisture from the surface of the scalp, causing the stratum corneum to become dry, which can lead to itching and scaling.

At the same time, prolonged or excessive use of hair dryers may damage the stratum corneum of the scalp and damage the barrier function of the scalp.

Prolonged heat stimulation can also affect the capillaries under the scalp, causing capillaries to dilate, making the scalp red and congested, and in severe cases, it may cause scalp inflammation, pain and burning.

In contrast, choosing to let your hair air dry naturally after washing your hair can avoid these damage to the scalp caused by the hot air of the hair dryer.

3. Easy to model

Although using a hair dryer can cause damage to the hair, there are advantages as well. The hot air produced by a hair dryer can change the shape of your hair. When hot air blows to the hair, the moisture in the hair is heated, evaporated, and the cuticle opens up, making the hair soft and malleable.

At the same time, when the hair is in a soft state after hot air heating, turn on the cold air mode of the hair dryer, which can quickly cool the hair, style the hair, and make the special shape more durable.

Air dry

So, is it beneficial to choose to air-dry your hair naturally? The same cannot be said either.

Waiting for your hair to dry naturally usually takes a long time, especially for girls with long hair, it takes too long for long hair to wait for it to dry naturally. If you rush to do something else at this time, it will be inconvenient.

And many people like to take a bath before going to bed at night, falling asleep with wet hair is not friendly to health, not only is it easy to catch a cold, but also the hair cuticle of wet hair is open, and with the movement of the head when sleeping, the hair cuticle will also be damaged due to friction, which is even worse for hair quality.

When washing hair in winter, if the hair is not dry, we are in a hurry to go out, and walk into the outdoors with a wet hair, the cold outdoor temperature will cause the temperature of the hair and scalp to drop sharply, so that the scalp is stimulated by the cold, causing problems such as cold or migraine; It can also make the cuticle on the surface of the hair close too quickly, making the hair brittle and brittle; Cold winds blow away moisture from your hair, which can also make your hair drier.

Which way to dry your hair?

Actually, it mostly depends on your individual needs.

If you have a lot of time, don't need to do styling, and want to protect the health of your hair and scalp as much as possible, natural drying is definitely a better option for you.

But if you're short on time, need to dry your hair quickly, or need to style your hair, then a hair dryer is undoubtedly a good helper. Using a hair dryer once in a while will not cause much damage to your hair and scalp. What we need to avoid is long-term, frequent use of hair dryers.

If you do need to use a hair dryer, the recommended practices are:

Use a towel to gently absorb excess water from your hair, taking care not to rub it vigorously, and then use a hair dryer to finish the final blow drying or styling when your hair is already semi-dry.

Or use a hair dryer for a while, stop using the hair dryer when it's still a little wet to the touch, and let the hair air dry.

In addition, there are two points to note:

1. Try to use cool breeze and minimum wind force

Try to avoid always using the hot air setting and high wind force of the hair dryer to dry your hair, try to use the cool wind setting and low wind force, keep an appropriate distance, follow the principle of "the wind blowing out does not burn the skin", and avoid blowing on the same part of the hair and scalp for a long time.

2. Blow dry the roots first, then the ends

Many people like to blow wet hair ends first, of course, this can prevent the water dripping from the hair ends on clothes and the floor, but in fact, the water from the hair roots will still drip down the hair strands, and finally blow the hair ends again, causing secondary damage to the hair ends. It is recommended to blow dry the roots first, dry the scalp by the way, and then blow the ends of the hair.

Both natural drying and using a hair dryer have their advantages and disadvantages, but the key is to choose the most suitable method to protect your hair while maintaining the convenience and comfort of life.

Editor/Wang Jing