Sun damage? Hair bottom layers much more silky than top layer?

[BBdck1]

I've been noticing for a while now that the top layer of my hair is dry and rough compared to the hair beneath that. If I lift maybe about 1/2 inch section of my hair up the hair underneath is very sleek and silky smooth. Does anyone else notice this?

Could the sun cause the dryness because other than the amount of sun exposure I cannot think of anything else that might explain this. Are there any solution for this beside wrapping my hair up in a scarf?

I'm sorry if I'm not making much sense. I can't seem to form coherent thoughts right now for some reason.

[afu]

i know exactly what you mean, i find that my hair curls beautifully underneath but im prone to frizz and 'courseness' on the top layer. I'm not sure why it is but i've been trying to overcome it by paying special attention to that area that gets most frizzed when im oiling and it seems to have helped

[jesis]

I'm the complete opposite. The hair on the top of my head is much nicer than the underside.

[littleizz]

I'm the complete opposite. The hair on the top of my head is much nicer than the underside.
Same! And to me it makes no sense. You'd think that the "outer layer" would be more susceptible to damage, but all of my gnarls, tangles, and split ends are on the VERY bottom layer of my hair, specifically the pieces at the nape of my neck below the ears.

[spidermom]

Both my top-most and my bottom-most hair have issues. The stuff in the middle is in pretty good shape, though.

I figure the top-most part, the canopy, gets the most weathering.
And the bottom-most part gets the most friction.

[torrilin]

Different kinds of melanin seem to respond differently to bleaching processes. I've got the sort of ash blonde/ash brown hair that bleaches to platinum if you look at it funny, and is pretty streaky no matter what and prone to red lowlights. I have never noticed a texture difference in my hair from sun bleaching. And this sort of bleaching response is pretty common for us ashy haired folks. Often, chemical forms of bleaching aren't super damaging, and in some instances it's just not really reasonable to talk about the person's hair color as if it's a fixed thing.

Many blondes have hair that is close to as flexible. But other hair shades may not really bleach at all without going orange and brittle, or they might just kind of laugh at the bleach. And some hair colors may *look* really hard to bleach, but instead they are just as flexible as mine.

It all depends on exactly what sort of melanin you got :). If your hair reacts really badly to sun damage, definitely try to minimize your exposure. Hats work. Scarves work. Some sorts of sun protection products work. Oil should help minimize the moisture loss, or you could do conditioner soaks if your hair likes that better. And of course avoiding the strong sun hours of between 10am and 2 or 3pm is a good idea.

I'd actively avoid hair products that use lots of honey (contains a bit of natural peroxide) and lemon (contains strong acids and some natural lightening agents). If you're in a very dry climate, aloe gel or glycerin are humectants. That means they absorb moisture from humid air and make it available to your hair... and in a dry climate chances are your hair is more moisturized than the air, so they can do just the opposite! And if you love to swim, pools that use chlorine for purification would not be doing your hair any favors. Using a swim cap would definitely be a good idea.

[Amber_Maiden]

Same! And to me it makes no sense. You'd think that the "outer layer" would be more susceptible to damage, but all of my gnarls, tangles, and split ends are on the VERY bottom layer of my hair, specifically the pieces at the nape of my neck below the ears.

Same here!


I would suggest wearing a sun hat if you are really worried about sun damage on the top of your head.

[Mommyof4]

My hair on the top is much drier and straighter than the rest of my hair.. literally like a cm of all the hair that is on the "outside" is just gross.. I've actually considered cutting it in small pieces to reveal my curlies underneath lol..

[ktani]

The canopy or upper layer gets weathered from UV more directly so it does make sense, to me.

For others, if nape hair gets tangled there can be breakage and splits, and longer ends are older and can be weathered and split, so it all fits.

[BBdck1]

I've heard of UV protection products for hair (such as Got2b Smooth Operator Lustre Lotion), does those work? I like to wear my hair down so is sun damage just unavoidable?

[BBdck1]

Here's the list of ingredient for the product mentioned above.
Water , Cyclopentasiloxane , C13-14 Isoparaffin , Dimethicone , Sodium Acrylate , Sodium Acryloyldimethyl Taurate Copolymer , Glycerin , Dimethiconol , Phenyl Trimethicone , Polyquaternium-16 , PVP , Stearalkonium Chloride , Isohexadecane , Polysorbate 80 , PEG , PPG-18 , 18 Dimethicone , Hydrolyzed Wool , Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate , Alcohol Denat. , Disodium EDTA , Methylparaben , DMDM Hydantoin , Fragrance , Linalool , Limonene , Citronellol

It claim to protect hair from UV damage but after looking up the first half of the ingredients, I don't see anything for UV protection. Are there certain ingredients for UV protection that I should look for in products?

[jacqueline101]

I think my hair stays the same the humidity makes it grow.

[thirstylocks]

Yes!! I'm glad I found this thread. My outer layer of hair feels like hay, and my inner layer of hair feels like it might belong on a different person's head because its so soft. I have no idea why?? Also, I used to bleach my hair but the inner layers have faded to brown, while the outer layers are orange. I'm convinced they turned orange because of environmental factors.

[Kinkycurlygurl]

I've noticed that my canopy has been drier. It's been really windy in New York where I am. Any part of my hair exposed to the wind dries out a bit.

[ludwig20]

My hair on the top is much drier and straighter than the rest of my hair.. literally like a cm of all the hair that is on the "outside" is just gross.. I've actually considered cutting it in small pieces to reveal my curlies underneath lol..

I have this exact problem. :( My canopy is quite dry, straight, and looks 'frizzy' compared to the bottom layer (which is mostly coarse silky strands!).

[Zydrate]

I have the same problem :/.. Hair underneath is so silky and smooth but top layer is awful.
Now I try to braid my hair more often a do up-dos when I'm going out.. so I hope it will help.

[clairenewcastle]

I used to have the same problem but once I started covering my hair with a scarf or hat in direct sunlight the condition of my hair improved a lot.

[fridgee]

I have the same thing, but mine is from heat damage. I'd just straighten the outer layer of hair so it looked smooth but I didn't have to subject all my hair to 200 degree heat, of course now the bit you see the most is the most damaged and the stuff I was trying to hide is the nicest!

Other things other than sun damage could be friction from pillows, clothes bring taken on/off, rubbing with a towel, playing with your hair, any products that only go on the outside such as hairspray. I have no idea if any of those apply to you, just brainstorming!