Cold water for hair ensures your scalp remains cleaner for longer as it closes the pores, making it less vulnerable to grease, oil and dirt. Cold water controls breakage, frizz and pesky flyaways, which is important for those with curly or thin hair.
Now, you may think that cold water spells bad news for your hair, but you couldn't be more wrong, because cold water can actually make your hair shinier and reduce frizz. This is because cold water can help seal your hair cuticles and pores after your hair is washed.
Using lukewarm water is best because it activates the cleansers in your shampoo while protecting your hair and scalp for your healthiest hair growth.
Factor, a clinical dermatologist and researcher, said, "Cold water can help your hair to become stronger and healthier over time. Cold water not only helps the scalp retain its moisture, [but] it also seals down the hair cuticles and helps lock moisture into the strands themselves."
Warm water should be used when cleansing your hair at the beginning of wash day. This is because warm water allows the cuticles of the hair and pores on the scalp to open up. This helps to deeply cleanse your hair and scalp to help remove any dirt, residue or buildup that is tightly packed in the cuticles and pores.
Cold water closes the hair cuticles and helps reduce frizz.
As a result, your hair will feel rough and greasy, even after washing. However, water that is too cold might make your hair dull and lifeless. Cold water may affect the hair volume and make it appear flat.
“Washing your hair with cold water helps with closing your cuticle after the wash. This also has the added benefit of helping, along with your haircare products, to make your hair look strong and shiny, and who doesn't want that?” says Hurel.
Contrary to popular belief, science does not support the claim that cold water promotes hair growth. In fact, research suggests that extreme temperatures can actually damage hair follicles and lead to hair loss.
No, water temperature has no effect on oil production or hair growth. In fact, cold therapy has been used for chemotherapy patients to prevent loss of hair.
Cold Water
Keeping this in practice helps you close the cuticles that you expanded earlier with warm water, while also sealing the moisture in. Moreover, it can also be deeply relaxing for your scalp skin after all that dandruff itching it's been through.
Flat hair is often the result of hair that has been weighed down, as buildup in the form of product residue, dirt, excess oil, and other impurities can pull and flatten your strands over time.
Does cold water stop greasy hair? "Rinsing with cold water will 'close' the pores on your scalp, which helps prevent dirt, grease and oil getting in. Plus, it can reduce hair shedding."
Improves Scalp Blood Circulation
When you wash your hair with cold water, your blood capillaries open wider and there is a free flow of blood to your scalp. Through this, your hair roots receive all the essential nutrients from the blood, resulting in healthy hair growth.
Smoother Scalp
Washing your hair with cold water helps prevent flakiness, dryness, and irritation of the scalp. Using cold water will reduce the amount of dandruff you experience since the temperature helps to improve circulation and preserve the amount of sebum, or natural oil, on your scalp.
Hot water actually stimulates the sebaceous glands in the scalp to produce more oil.”
Ideally, you should be going to bed with completely dry hair to reduce your risk of fungal infections and hair breakage. Sleeping with wet hair could also result in more tangles and a funky mane to tend to in the morning.
There are four primary factors that cause frizz: the environment, diameter of the hair fiber itself, level of curl, and the amount of damage. Avoid long and hot showers, excess exfoliation, and hot tools like traditional hairdryers and flat irons to prevent frizz.
It could be that you don't use enough shampoo, or that the shampoo you use isn't strong enough to break down the oil barrier that is contributing to your dandruff. The remedy: While the fix could be as simple as shampooing more frequently, you might need to take it one step further.
The frequency of shampooing necessary to control dandruff varies from person to person. Some need to shampoo twice a week, others more frequently, even daily. Many people forget that the scalp as well as the hair needs to be shampooed.
“Shampooing your hair twice is beneficial because it allows for proper cleansing, giving you longer periods of time with a clean scalp and keeping away the oily hair problem,” he says. “It also keeps you away from over-shampooing your hair, which is a mistake that most women make.”
Scalp massages can stimulate the hair's follicles and help with removing dead skin cells on the scalp. During cleansing, Women's Healthrecommends massaging your shampoo into your scalp beginning at the front of the head.