The Case of The Chlorine and The Curl
An adoptive mom writes with this quandary…
Hello! I hope this comment gets through to you, even though it comes way after your original post. I need help! 
I brought my daughter home from Haiti 18 months ago, and at first all was well on the hair front. I learned to braid and take care of her hair. At least, I thought I did! Now she has so much breakage that no style looks nice for very long. I was able to put her hair in puffballs when we first got home, but now her hair looks awful when I do. It looks OKAY in braids and beads now, but not nearly as clean as when I first brought her home (now her head looks fuzzy from the breakage after just a day). I used to use those small rubberbands to put her hair in ponytails before I braided it, but I stopped doing that because I was concerned that it was causing the breakage. I took her to a salon, and they said “sure, she has some breakage, but it’ll be okay…take this product to help.” It was a deep conditioning treatment that I have been using. I use Pantene for shampoo, Pantene’s daily oil cream moisturizing conditioner, Infusium leave-in conditioner every day, and olive oil spray. She sleeps with a do-rag on at night, and I make sure she wears a swim cap when we go swimming. Her hair is thick, coarse, and VERY curly. What am I doing wrong, and how can I help my daughter look her best???
Thanks for any tips on how to repair her hair.
Casey
Answer:
Of course, there are a lot of things that could be at play here, but I am willing the main culprit is found in the next to last sentence: “she wears a swim cap when we go swimming…”
Just a couple of days ago, I was speaking to my daughters’ hairstylist, Vicky, about the dangers of pool water when it comes to African hair.
“Vicky,” I said. “I finally get it. I finally understand just how horrible chlorine is for African hair.”
“Oh, yeah”, she responds. “It is!”
“What I realized, is that I have to wash it with anti-chlorine shampoo regularly, and then follow up with a deep conditioner. If not, it becomes so coarse, brittle, and dry that I can not even get a comb through it.”
“What I don’t get though, is when I mention anti-chlorine shampoo to my black friends, the vast majority of them act like they have never heard of it. Is it just a white thing?” I asked.
“No”, she answered. “Most just don’t know about it. Traditionally, a lot of us just avoided the pool’, she said, laughing.
Chlorine is really, really horrible for black hair. I found out the hard way.
I personally don’t put a swim cap on my girls because I used to be a swimmer, and what I found is that a whole lot of water gets under the cap anyway. I find that is is better all around to apply an anti-chlorine shampoo, let it sit for one minute, and then rinse thoroughly. Follow up with a really good deep conditioner. One that has always done the job for us is Neutrogena’s Triple Moisture Deep Recovery Hair Mask.
One more note about swim caps…If you are not careful, some caps can actually “hang on” to the hair when you try to remove it. This could cause further breakage.
Other notes on breakage:
1. If you use elastics, get the “ouchless” ones, NOT the rubber bands.
2. When removing elastics, always clip them with a pair of scissors first.
3. Comb as gently as possible, starting from the end of the hair, working towards the scalp bit by bit.
4. Use a braid remover cream or spray in conditioner when removing braids and combing hair.
5. When combing the hair, work with only one small section at a time.
6. Last, but not least, consider having your daughter’s hair professionally cornrowed for awhile. This will give it a rest.
I hope this helps!
Sherri
Do you have a recommendation on an anti-cholorine shampoo??
I use ion Swimmer’s Shampoo Anti-Chlorine Treatment from Sally’s Beauty Supply.
We’ve found that a saturating the hair with fresh water before getting in the pool is also very helpful in minimizing the damage. Aubrey Organics makes a swimmer’s shampoo and conditioner too.
Yes. Hair is like a sponge. If it is first wetted thoroughly with tap water, it absorbs less of the pool water.
Thanks for commenting, and thanks for mentioning the shampoo. I look forward to trying it!
Sherri
My daughter lost alot of hair from swimming and me trying to detangle it as well as the chlorine. Heres a great tip I was given by another Mom- apply a mixture of an oil-based product( I use Proclaim Olive oil) and also a conditioner ( I use the Pantene for black hair).Comb through thoroughly and then put hair in two ponytails and braid them. Right after swimming, rinse hair right away(shower is best so that hair naturally is pushed back and easier to comb through) then wash with any anti chlorine shampoo and a leave in conditioner(infusium) with some oil. My daughters hair has no tangles and is healthier than its ever been. I’ve even started putting in the conditioner/oil treatment at night to give it more time to absorb before the next days swim lesson. Once a week, do a really good hot oil treatment and hair should stay healthy!