It's smooth and soft to the touch. Depending on how your hair feels to the touch, you might be able to quickly and easily determine if your hair is healthy. "If your hair is properly moisturized, your hair will be smooth and soft when you run your fingers through," Fink said.
If your wet hair hair feels strong, stretches easily and returns to normal without breaking, then your hair is BALANCED. If your wet hair feels rough, hard, overly tangled and breaks before it stretches then your hair needs more MOISTURE.
By sliding a strand, or a few, between your thumb and forefinger, you might be able to feel for the health of your hair. A smooth, easy slide, likely means your hair is healthy, while a rough and bumpy feeling means you likely have some damage.
Common signs of Moisture Overload
You have lost your protein moisture balance. Hair in moisture overload will have some distinctive symptoms: If you pull one strand of hair it will stretch and stretch without bouncing back, and eventually fall apart and tear. The hair will feel mushy, limp and excessively soft.
Soft hair is usually well moisturised with good elasticity, both of which are signs that hair is in good health. Moisture and elasticity both give hair strength and make it less prone to damage and breakage.
If hair looks silky, it's a safe bet that it's healthy too. That shiny—and sought-after—texture is the result of a smooth, flat-lying cuticle.
Each hair is made up of little scales. The hard water tends to make the scales stand up. Creating a rough and tangled feeling. A healthy and cost-efficient way to solving the problem is simply switching from hard water to softer water.
Should your hair be squeaky-clean? Your hair can be clean without being 'squeaky-clean'. It's actually been suggested that the squeak is a sign that the hair's been stripped of too much moisture.
On the other hand, soft water will cause your texture to feel softer and silkier, but can also leave hair feeling heavy. “While your hair feels softer to the touch, you may notice that it seems like you can't rinse the soap or shampoo off of your hair and scalp,” he explains.
Changes in your hair could indicate nutrition and health issues. A dry scalp or hair could mean you aren't getting enough healthy fats in your diet. Likewise, thinning hair could mean your diet lacks protein.
The Bottom Line on Wet, Thin-Looking Hair
It's normal for your hair to look slightly thin when it's wet. This is because the tens of thousands of strands of hair on your head tend to clump together when exposed to moisture, resulting in a larger gap between each group of hairs that reveals more of your scalp.
Hair is elastic, especially when wet, but one of the biggest problems with elasticity loss is that it can sometimes be hard to diagnose. Healthy hair has a high level of elasticity, and this is what gives hair its body, bounce, and texture formation.
Brushing hair when it is wet is one of the cardinal haircare sins as the hair is at its weakest and vulnerable to breakage, leading to flyaways, split ends, and damage. For the longevity of your strands, do not allow a brush to touch your hair until it is almost or completely dry.
Greasy hair after washing may be due to a person's hair care routine, an overproduction of sebum, environmental factors, or underlying health conditions. People may be able to stop hair from becoming greasy as quickly by using a gentle clarifying shampoo and lightweight, non-greasy hair products.
But there's a scientific reason for the overwhelming pleasure response: As you're being rubbed the right way during your hair shampoo the nerve endings in your scalp send information to the sensory cortex (the brain's "Goody!" center, which registers comfort and relaxation).
The molecules in your hair are held together by strong chemical bonds, some of which are sensitive to water and can temporarily change their shape. The shape of your hair reflects the shape of the molecules of which it is made.
Touching your hair, especially while wet or damp, can disrupt the curl clumpage and cause frizz.
You might notice frizz, or that your curls aren't as springy and well-defined. Your hair may begin to feel coarse and dry. These are all indicators that you may be shampooing too much. Split ends are always a sign that your hair is in distress, and usually, that comes from overwashing.
If your hair immediately sinks to the bottom, then it's highly porous. If it floats in the middle, then it's in the medium to normal porosity range, and if it sits on top, then it has a low porosity.
When hair starts to regrow, it appears like fine “peach fuzz.” It is usually translucent and thinner than the rest of the hair on your scalp. If you recently underwent surgery or had a head injury and are worried about hair growth on the bald spot, the appearance of peach fuzz is a positive sign.
Damaged natural hair is first and foremost characterized by its dryness and frizz. This can present itself in the form of split ends, where your strand splits into many pieces, or an overall dull look to your hair. It might also have a more irregular texture and less defined curls.