What Is A Light Protein Treatment And When Do You Need One?

I suppose by now most of you are aware of the importance of protein in your hair regimens. If you are not then these articles here, here and here are essential reading for you.

In most of my articles I talk about hard protein treatments like Aphogee 2 Step but I would also like to address light protein treatments and their place in your healthy hair regimen.

A light protein is nowhere near as dramatic as a hard protein treatment. In essence it is just using a product that contains a little bit of protein that is used during or after your wash. You can include a light protein into your hair regimen with a shampoo, conditioner, leave in treatment or any other product that contains protein in it.

The ingredient to look out for would be hydrolyzed protein(keratin) which is different from other types of protein in that the size of the molecules are much smaller allowing the product to better penetrate all areas of the hair shaft.

Hydrolyzed keratin is especially good because it is the protein that most closely resembles the keratin that our hair is made from so try to go for products that have it in their ingredient list.

The main thing to be aware of when choosing a light protein treatment would be how far up the list of ingredients the protein appears. The higher up, the more protein that the product contains which is an important consideration if you are protein sensitive.

Pictured above, you can see a couple of light protein conditioners to show you how their ingredients compare. On the left is Aphogee Keratin Reconstructor and on the right is Tresemme Keratin Smooth Keratin Infusing Conditioner.

Of course the most accurate way would be to figure out the exact amount of protein per ounce of product but that would be difficult to figure out as manufacturers usually keep their exact recipes confidential. Still this is a good rule of thumb to follow when trying to find a suitable product to purchase.

So what does it mean and when would you use a light protein conditioner? Read on…

When your hair is distressed, breaking badly and is dry and brittle then it’s obviously time to pull out the big guns in terms of a hard protein treatment.

Light protein treatments are a different animal entirely because they are used more to maintain the health of your hair than to make the dramatic difference that a hard protein treatment does.

Here are a few circumstances where a light protein would be appropriate:

1. You are a regular co-washer – If you wash your hair more than once a week, chances are you are already getting enough moisture and because of the all the manipulation your hair is experiencing, a light protein is necessary to retain your hair’s strength and resilience.

2. You have colored hair – Colored hair whether relaxed or natural tends to require regular protein infusions, even as often as weekly for some people.

3. You have recently straightened your natural hair – If you straighten your hair often, you will have lost a lot of protein during the manipulation involved in getting it straight. A light protein treatment is the perfect thing to restore your hair’s strength afterwards and allow your curls to spring back to normal after you wash it.

4. You are transitioning or stretching your relaxer – Manipulating your hair is harder when you are dealing with two hair textures which is the case for transitioners or long term relaxer stretchers. While protein won’t stop all breakage, it will keep your hair strong enough to endure the challenges of your detangling sessions.

5. You have relaxed hair – Relaxed hair is often protein hungry due to the cysteine lost during the relaxing process. If you are sure that you are protein sensitive then regular light protein treatments are the best way to infuse your hair with protein regularly without having to use hard protein treatments. While you don’t have to use a protein conditioner weekly, you can certainly follow a moisturizing deep conditioner* with a light protein spray or in fact a protein leave in to balance things out.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of situations where you may need a light protein treatment because everyone’s hair is different. If you know your hair then you will be well aware of when you are in need of protein or moisture in a given week.

A light protein will help you restore balance until your next hard protein treatment. Also, please be sure that your hair is really protein sensitive before dismissing it from your regimen entirely.

Remember that hair is not a self supporting fiber and it constantly loses protein, so if you never restore the protein lost, your strands will continue to deteriorate and eventually break regardless of how well looked after they are.