But you can train your hair to be less oily with a technique called hair training. This involves slowly reducing the frequency of hair washes to get your scalp used to not being rinsed often, naturally minimizing oil production.
"You can train your scalp to be less greasy in the course of three to four days, however, it will take some time for your body to fully adjust," Potempa says. "Take some time to do research about the type of hair you have and establish a new routine that gives your body enough time to adjust to the change."
Those with fine or thin hair, however, may find their hair looks greasy after just one day. It's all to do with the amount of oil your scalp produces, as well as how well your hair can carry that oil.
Greasy hair is caused by an excess or build-up of sebum, the natural oils produced by our scalp to support our hair health.
Prolonged periods of not washing can cause cause buildup on the scalp, damaging hair and even impeding its ability to grow, Lamb said. Grime from dirt, oil and hair product can show up within four to six days for people with finer, straighter hair.
Curly hair and thicker, longer hair tend to be oily at the roots and progressively drier toward the ends. This is simply due to physics: It takes much more work for scalp oils to travel down a corkscrew-shaped hair shaft or down long hair shafts.
People with oily hair or who use hair care products daily should consider washing their hair once every 1–2 days. People with dry hair can wash their hair less frequently. Those with textured or coily hair should only wash it once every 1–2 weeks.
Hair training and your hair type
She advises that after two to three months of the same routine, your hair will eventually adjust. But for many people with naturally curly or coily hair textures, daily washing is already a thing of the past.
Get healthier hair
The folks who don't wash their hair for months on end claim that when they stop washing, their hair eventually produces less scalp oil, which is called sebum. The result: hair that's shiny, moist and healthy ' never greasy.
Why Greasy Hair Looks Thin. According to hair expert Jean Will of NiaWigs, an oily scalp makes your hair look thinner because a buildup of excess oil at the base of your hair follicles causes strands to clump together. “Greasy hair looks thin because of its oily look,” she said.
However, brushing your hair too little allows oil to build up on your scalp, making the top greasy but the ends dry. The key to finding your balance is using a paddle boar bristle brush, which allows you to grab any excess oil from your scalp and evenly distribute it down to the ends.
Hair and puberty
Did your hair also feel greasier too? These are both likely caused by the sex hormone testosterone, which is a major player in both female and male reproductive development. Testosterone is thought to increase the production of sebum which is the substance that can make both skin and hair feel oily.
Your Hair Is Extra Healthy
"If you are feeling greasy, but there's no apparent oil in the hair, it could be because your hair is just really healthy and shiny," she says.
“If you have oily scalp, then daily washing is needed,” she explains. “Sometimes, people think they have dry scalp because they have dandruff, but in those situations, more frequent washing is also helpful.”
Oily hair can cause limp locks, itching and dandruff. It is also prone to infections and hair loss, since the hair follicles responsible for hair growth can get clogged with sebum and buildup at the root.
Getting Through The Awkward Stage: Hats and Buns
The awkward stage of hair growth is that 5 to 8 month period of time when you have started growing your hair out and it is just a mess.
Myth: I Can't Train My Hair to Do Something
Hair can totally be trained to grow a certain way—but it's going to take some time and consistent manipulation, says Reslan. “The follicles in our scalp are typically angled in a position influenced by gravity, making the hair grow out and down,” she explains.