Silicones: Hair Hero Or Curly Kryptonite?? The Real Truth About Silicones In Curly Hair Care

Hello, everyone and welcome back to the fit curls. My name is angela, i'm a fitness, professional and a curly hair enthusiast, and i use this channel to teach you how to keep your curls in shape. So if you're new here don't forget to hit that subscribe button and the notification bell next to it, so you don't miss a single thing now, today we are talking about one of the most controversial ingredients in the beauty sphere. Silicones i'm going to be talking to you guys about what exactly cosmetic silicones are, what they do and why they may not be as bad as you think. So if you're excited for this conversation, hit it with a thumbs up and without further ado, let's dive in silicones have a really bad reputation in beauty. They seem to have somehow become the big bad wolf of curly hair care. They must never be allowed in your house for any reason and if you do let them in they're gon na huff and they're gon na puff and they're gon na blow your hair down less whimsically put most people are afraid of silicones for one very specific reason And that is build up. We are told that silicones are plastics, that build up on the outside of our hair shaft like a non-breathable layer of rubber and suffocate our hair from the inside out. At best, they create a shiny top coat on the hair, but don't actually benefit, and at worst they refuse to allow any moisture through that barrier causing our hair to become dry and brittle. You may also have heard that silicones are non-biodegradable and therefore terrible for the environment, and some of you may even believe that they're actually toxic for your body. Now the precise origin of this belief is difficult to pinpoint, but it's pervasive and more and more products are lining the shelves with labels that proudly proclaim them to be silicone, free and say that they are the only healthy alternative for your hair. But is this actually true, let's break these beliefs down scientifically point by point to get to the bottom of what silicones really are? Okay, first, let's address the silicones are plastics objection. Here'S the thing cosmetic, silicones and industrial silicones are too vastly different things when we refer to silicones in cosmetic products, skin care and hair care. We'Re not talking about the same compounds and materials that are used to make say: non-stick muffin pans, we're talking about compounds called organocilazanes which are actually derived from sand sand. Aka silicon dioxide. Did you guys know that silica is actually an element on the periodic table? So it occurs in nature anyway, and not all organocelazines are created equal, but they can be divided into about three primary categories. You have your small silicones like cyclopentacylazine, which are usually found in liquid form, they're relatively volatile, which means that they evaporate off of skin or hair. You have your long chain, silicone polymers, which are made of repeating silicate units. An example of those is dimethicone, which is a silicone that a lot of you may be familiar with. Then you also have functionalized silicones, which are long-chain polymers that have additional molecules bonded onto them to give them an additional purpose outside of the regular performative functions of silicon. The one that we're going to be talking about most today is ammo dimethicone. Now each of these silicones serves a slightly different purpose, but in general, silicones are used in products to smooth the cuticle and reduce friction translation, they're, particularly effective conditioning agents beyond their conditioning properties, though, studies have shown them to be exceptionally effective at adding shine. Protecting against thermal damage and even retaining color in the hair shaft for longer, some have even been shown to increase hair's tensile strength, and they do this by performing the exact duty that they are demonized for. Creating a film around the hair shaft, which leads me to my next myth. So let's really get down to brass tacks here and talk about the reason that most of you are probably scared to use silicones in your hair products that they cause damaging buildup. While it's true that silicones create a hydrophobic or water repellent barrier around the hair, that's not a bad thing, because healthy hair actually already has a hydrophobic barrier chemically bonded to the shaft. It'S called the f layer. It'S made up of fatty acids and its job is to reduce friction and repel excess water from being able to penetrate the cuticle. Now, when hair is damaged by say, heat or chemical processing, that f layer starts to wear away, which leaves the hydrophilic or water attracting proteins of the hair's cuticle a little bit too exposed which causes them to swell and then start to chip and break. Now. This actually causes the hair to acquire a negative charge, and this increases porosity friction breakage the works, lots and lots of damage. Here'S where silicones, though particularly a silicone that is functionalized called ammo dimethicone, can actually help. Eodomethicone has extra amine groups bonded to the silicone molecule and when it's in an acidic solution like, for example, a hair conditioner, it carries a positive charge because opposites attract the negatively charged damaged areas of the hair, actually attract the ammo dimethicone molecules to them, which then Bond to the shaft and mimic that missing, f layer, bonus amidamethicone will build up on your hair shaft over time with repeated use, but once the charge of the hair has gotten back to its normal ph normal ionization level, the excess protonated molecules will be repelled from That now patched up, hair shaft, so you're not gon na get excess or damaging silicone buildup. How freaking cool is that a japanese study even showed significant improvements in the manageability over time of hair in subjects that used a two-in-one, shampoo and conditioner that contained ammo dimethicone, because those molecules build up on top of each other just enough to mimic that hydrophobic layer Of fatty acids that should naturally be on the hair shaft. Now, let's go on to the whole hydrophobic non-water soluble objection, just because a substance is hydrophobic, it doesn't mean that it cannot be cleansed away, and it also doesn't mean that it's not breathable dimethicone. One of the most demonized substances in the curly hair space is commonly used in skincare because of its breathability. It is both water and oxygen permeable, which allows it to form a protective barrier over the skin and over the hair without being completely and detrimentally occlusive. Now, on the hair long chain, polymers, like dimethicone, are a bit more occlusive than they are on skin, but rather than drying the hair out when applied properly, they seal the moisture in and prevent water loss from the hair shaft, which keeps your hair feeling hydrated for Longer and increases its elasticity and, furthermore, silicones absolutely can be removed. Surfactants cleaning substances, even non-sulfate surfactants are formulated to latch on to hydrophobic molecules like oils like silicones and wash them effectively out of the hair, just like any other emollient ingredient can commonly contained in hair products like oils and butters. Silicones will only build up if they're, not cleansed off, so a proper cleanse with a good shampoo will take care of the majority of the issue and a regular, clarifying or chelating routine will bust the rest of it and give you a nice clean canvas to be Able to go in with those products that your hair loves and bring it back to square one. Now, one of the other most frequent arguments against silicone using cosmetics is that they are non-biodegradable and therefore bad for the environment. That statement is technically half true. Silicones are, in fact non-biodegradable, but all that means is that they are not able to be broken down by living organisms like bacteria. They are, however, environmentally degradable, which means when they come into contact with certain substances in nature such as sand, sediment, water or even oxygen. They will degrade and return to carbon dioxide sand or water, so they break down in nature, there's also very little evidence of silicone buildup in the environment, despite the fact that silicones have been commonly used in cosmetic products since the 1950s. Now, just in the interest of full disclosure here, two small silicones, including cyclopentylosine, are actually banned in cosmetic use in the european union. But that's a preventative measure based on assessed risk rather than any environmental evidence, but again there's very little evidence of any silicone buildup in the environment, so they're really just being proactive. The conclusion here danger to the environment, isn't really a primary concern with silicone. So if that's been keeping you up at night, you can rest a little easier. Let'S talk about the rumors of silicone toxicity because that's all they are rumors. This idea, however, has been repeatedly debunked and actually the most common irritants and allergens in beauty. Products are naturally derived like plant extracts and essential oils. Silicones are actually included in so many cosmetic products because they are stable, non-reactive, non-irritating and hypoallergenic. There'S absolutely no evidence of their toxicity of any links to cancer or hormonal disruptions, even when used inside the body. As compounds that are used in medical devices like pacemakers, in fact, there's far more evidence showing their benefits, silicones effectively act as carriers for active ingredients in things like healing ointments and acne treatments, the fda even lists dimethicone as an approved skin protectant, and there are numerous Studies showing the long-term improvement of skin health with regular, topical dimethicone use. In short, there's no reason to believe that, just because they're synthetic that silicones are toxic now, just like any other cosmetic ingredient, silicones will work better for some than they will for others, particularly when it comes to hair, in the same way that some hair reacts badly To coconut oil, some hair might not do well with dimethicone, but that doesn't mean that silicones are the only problem here and silicones have been so demonized, particularly in the curly hair community, that it's given people some really severe silicone phobia, and i would like to see That change, if you've experimented with silicone rich in silicone free products and discovered that silicone free just works better long term for the health and manageability and look of your hair. Do you? But if you have held off trying any products that you're interested in just because they contain silicones without any idea how silicones will actually perform in your hair now's the time to try them go out and try those products start with one see how your hair reacts To it, if it doesn't like that silicone, maybe it'll like a different one, but you'll never know unless you try. I wanted to make this video to. Let you guys know that you don't have to be afraid of an ingredient if it doesn't work for you. No big deal, but if it does, you don't have to be scared of it. I just want to open up the realm of curly hair products for you guys, so you can find products that really work the best for your hair. That'S what matters to me so with that? That'S it for today's video. What did you guys think go ahead and drop a comment down below with any of your thoughts, opinions and impressions on this video, as well as your experience with silicones and anything you learned from today that you didn't already know about how awesome silicones actually are now, If you're interested in nerding out like i did and diving deeper into all of this information, i have linked all of the sources that i used for today's research down in the description box below, as well as the products that i use to style in my hair. Today, many of which do in fact contain silicones. Now, if you enjoyed this video - and you want to see more deep dives like this hit this with a thumbs up. 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