5 Ways To Treat Your Edges Right!

1. Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize

Believe it or not, the number one reason hair breaks is dryness, and if the dryness reaches the follicle and disturbs the sebaceous glands, it can stop hair growth in its tracks.

Now I know you may be thinking that you put grease on your edges all the time and it doesn’t seem to make a difference. But grease isn’t moisture. Most hair grease found in a jar contains some type of lanolin, paraffin, or wax. The molecules are too large to sink into human hair so it sits on the surface creating a barrier. This barrier actually blocks much-needed moisture the hair needs.

Using products that are moisture-rich such as shea butter, natural carrier oils, or hair moisturizing creams and lotions…especially before applying edge control…will give your hair the moisture it needs to keep from drying and breaking.

2. Choose a better edge control product

Most hair care products are not created equal, and edge control is no exception. The main ingredient in edge control that keeps the hair bonded down is alcohol, and there are many types.

But the alcohol agent that you want to stay away from is Ceteareth-25. Not to be confused with Ceteareth-20 or Cetearyl Alcohol. All three are fatty alcohols used in hair and skincare products, but Ceteareth-25 has more gel-forming and thickening properties that put the hair in greater danger of damage.

Another ingredient you need to look for is PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate. It is a synthetic polymer mostly derived from coconut oil. Many edge control products on the market advertise as coconut oil enriched products, but you need to take a look at the ingredients list. If you see PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate more than halfway up on the list, try to choose a different brand.

You see the thing about PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate is that it is a safe ingredient to use in hair and skin care products when the product is rinsed off but can cause some damage when there is more than 10% of it in a stay-on product. So try your best to choose wisely.

Just keep in mind that the more gentle products DO NOT contain extremely harsh bonding ingredients so if you want your hairline to stay down like with ponytails, apply the product at night and tie your hair down. That way the product has the proper time to dry and set.

3. Stay away from moisture-absorbing products

You may already know this one, but just in case you don’t, at night be sure to tie your hair with a silk or satin headscarf or use a silk or satin pillowcase. The fabric allows your hair to slide instead of it being stationary, which will minimize breakage.

This rule isn’t only for preparing your hair to go to sleep, but EVERYTHING that touches your hair for a long period of time. This includes hats (straw, baseball, fashion, etc.), collars (for your neckline), and believe it or not…car seat headrests.

When it comes to hats, try to find a satin-lined hat or put on a satin-lined headband first. With the collars, try to make sure it’s not touching your “kitchen area” to cut down on damage. And the car seat headrest…that’s an easy fix…just cover it with a satin pillowcase. (Thought I’d throw that in there to help cut down on breakage in the center back of your hair. 😊)

4. Go easy on the tension

Braids, weaves, ponytails, buns, and cornrows can all cause damage to the hairline if it’s done too tightly. How do you know?  First, go by feel. If it feels like your skin is being constantly pulled after the hairstyle is complete, it’s probably too tight. Next time ask the stylist to ease up a little or take it down and redo your ponytail or bun.

Also, if you have fine bumps forming around the hair, it’s too tight and the tension point for the follicle has reached its limit. The next step is the hair coming out completely. If at this very moment you are wearing a protective style and have these fine bumps in various spots around the hairline, when you take down the style, give your hair a break. You have to give the hairline a chance to heal or you’ll be facing thin or bald spots that will be hard or impossible to regrow.

5. Feed the hairline growth-promoting oils

I am a strong supporter of feeding the scalp with natural ingredients. We use so many products with synthetic ingredients that strip our scalp of vital natural nutrients, yet we try to replenish our scalp with products that have synthetic ingredients.

Replace the natural with natural.

This is where essential oils enter the picture. Yes I know, you hear me talk about essential oils all the time but that’s because they work!

You see, the molecules in essential oils are small and can sink into human skin. When that happens, the wonderful nutrients of the oil can do their thing and trigger healing. And a healthy scalp produces healthy hair.

This is easy to do by mixing a carrier oil and essential oil that’s most beneficial to your particular scalp needs. Now I can’t go into exactly how to determine what your scalp needs without this becoming a book, but I have put together a FREE TRAINING explaining how all this works.

Just know that incorporating essential oils into your regular hair care maintenance will keep your hair on the healthy path.