Does my hair need protein or moisture?

Author: Wade Volkman  |  Last update: Tuesday, January 27, 2026

Your hair needs both protein and moisture to be healthy. Protein strengthens your hair's bonds, making it stronger and less prone to breakage. Moisture is what keeps it smooth and hydrated. Knowing when your strands are lacking in either is the difference between good hair health and hair damage.

How do I know if my hair needs protein or hydration?

Typically, if your hair is limp and lifeless, you need protein. If your hair is crispy and stringy, you need moisture.

How do you know if your hair needs to be moisturized?

If the hair isn't moisturized it can feel rough, and brittle. It can be frizzy and tangle easily because of the rougher texture, it looks dull and has no shine. The hair will also stretch to the point that it snaps and breaks.

When should you not put protein in your hair?

When you add an excessive amount of protein to your hair you're creating an intense barrier on your strands. Protein buildup like this can be a real problem as water and other moisturizing ingredients aren't able to penetrate the strand, leading to dry and dull hair that may feel limp and stiff.

Does my hair need nutrition or hydration?

To put it simply, hair that needs hydration needs water, while hair that needs nutrition needs fat. Dehydrated hair is hair that produces enough sebum (oil), but lacks water. This may be due to external aggressions that have contributed to the evaporation of water, such as exposure to the sun or excessive heat.

How to Know When Your Hair Needs Protein

How do I know if my hair has too much protein?

The signs of protein overload include hair that feels rough and straw-like, lacks elasticity, and is prone to snapping. While dry hair may be a symptom of protein overload, if your hair has lost its natural elasticity and bounce, or you're experiencing more oily hair than normal, it's likely moisture overload.

What does dehydrated hair look like?

Dry hair is hair that's lacking in moisture – it can't retain hydration, and it's not getting enough on a day-to-day basis. Dehydrated hair often looks frizzy and dull – when you touch it, it may feel brittle and straw-like, and flyaways and split ends may become noticeable when you look in the mirror.

What does protein overload hair look like?

Hair in protein overload will have some distinctive symptoms: If you pull one strand of hair it will have no elasticity, but instead it will snap and break. The hair will feel dry, brittle and stringy, because it won't have enough moisture to stretch and support elasticity. The hair will lose shine and look dull.

How do you know if your hair is high or low porosity?

Simply take a clean, product-free strand of loose hair and put it in a glass of water. If the hair floats at the top then it is low porosity, if it sinks slowly or settles in the middle it is medium/normal porosity, and if it sinks straight to the bottom then it is high porosity.

Why is my hair stretchy and falling out?

Chemical Treatments: Procedures such as coloring, perming, and relaxing can break the disulfide bonds, weakening the hair and causing it to become stretchy. Heat Styling: Frequent use of hot tools like straighteners, curling irons, and blow dryers can damage the hair's protein structure.

What does hair lacking moisture look like?

Your Hair is Dull

If your hair lacks shine since coloring or chemically treating it, and you're experiencing dull, brittle strands, your hair is in need of moisture. Hair that is dry or damaged won't have a shiny, healthy look.

Can you put too much protein in your hair?

Yes, excessive protein can compromise hair health. When there's an abundance of protein, the hair can become stiff, dry, and brittle. This lack of flexibility causes the hair to break more easily. If your hair feels tough, hard, and snaps easily, you might be experiencing protein overload.

Does putting coconut oil on your hair help?

Coconut oil can have many benefits for your hair and scalp. It is used to relieve dandruff, restore luster to dry and damaged hair, tame frizz, and protect hair against styling damage. It is safe to use on all hair types.

How to know protein deficiency?

Top 10 Signs You Might Be Protein Deficient
  • Weakness and Fatigue. ...
  • Hair Loss and Brittle Nails. ...
  • Frequent Illness and Slow Healing. ...
  • Swelling (Edema) ...
  • Cravings and Increased Appetite. ...
  • Muscle Loss and Joint Pain. ...
  • Mood Changes and Mental Fog. ...
  • Skin Problems.

What is the curly girl method?

Here's how to do the Curly Girl Method step-by-step.
  • Step 0: Reset Wash. First up, do a reset cleanse to remove product build-up from your strands. ...
  • Step 1: Cleanse. Wash your hair with a co-wash conditioner or a sulfate-free, low-poo shampoo. ...
  • Step 2: Condition & Detangle. ...
  • Step 3: Style. ...
  • Step 4: Plop. ...
  • Step 5: Repeat.

What deficiency causes frizzy hair?

Vitamin C: Vitamin C is essential for collagen production, which is vital for hair strength. A deficiency in Vitamin C can result in weak hair that is more prone to frizz. Zinc: It plays a crucial role in hair tissue growth and repair. Insufficient zinc levels can lead to hair that is dry and prone to frizz.

Is frizzy hair high or low porosity?

We often get asked this and yes, frizzy hair is usually a sign of high porosity.

What does low porosity hair look like?

We tend to think of curly hair as dense and prone to dryness. Low porosity curls tend to be looser, wavy, or S-shaped. The curls are distinct with a tight, flat cuticle that prevents moisture from entering and exiting the hair. This is why low porosity hair can often look limp or flat.

How to check hair porosity at home?

Easy! The Slide Test: Take a strand of hair and slide your fingers up the shaft from the ends towards the scalp. If you feel little resistance and your fingers glide smoothly, your hair is likely high porosity. If you feel some resistance but can still slide your fingers easily, you have medium porosity hair.

How to tell if hair needs protein?

If your hair strands feel dry, brittle, and bumpy on touch, fair chance you're lacking moisture. If it feels mushy, doesn't stretch at all and snaps easily, it likely needs more protein.

What does over-moisturized hair look like?

Signs Your Hair Is Overly Moisturized

Your hair is limp and falls flat. Your hair is dull and flat-looking. Your hair feels spongy and mushy when wet and feels too soft and fluffy when dry. Your hair has low elasticity — stretches when wet but doesn't bounce back when released.

Does Olaplex have too much protein?

There are 2 olaplex products, number 4 and number 6. They contain minimal amount of. hydrolyzed vegetable proteins. And the levels of these proteins are very low, less than 001 percent.

How do I know if my hair needs moisture or hydration?

If your hair is experiencing extreme dryness or becomes dry quickly, then your hair is most likely dehydrated. If your hair is tangled and feels dry, your hair needs to be moisturized.

What does humid hair look like?

Your hair gets frizzy in humid weather because the extra moisture in the air disrupts the hydrogen bonds in your hair's keratin structure. Hair loves to soak up water, so when it's humid, the hair shaft swells and the cuticle lifts, causing your hair to lose its shape and become extra curly or wavy.

How often should you wash your hair?

Generally, he says, the range is somewhere between once a day and once a week. “If you have very fine or thin hair, you may need to wash more often, while those with thick or curly hair may need to wash less often,” says Dr Elizabeth Bahar Houshmand, a double board certified dermatologist and hair health expert.

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