Your hair may look and feel dry, brittle, dull, and stiff. If you take a closer look at your hair, protein overload may also cause split ends and breakage. It may also shed more. If you're noticing more strands on your comb or brush than usual, that could be a telltale sign of high protein hair.
Soaking your hair in regular warm water is a great start to rid your hair of excess oils and buildup, but you'll probably need a clarifying shampoo to really break apart proteins that are bonded to your hair. Look for a gentle clarifying shampoo made specifically for your hair type.
Tyler agrees: "Too much protein on top of the hair can prevent water and other products from fully hydrating strands, causing hair to become dry and brittle," he says. "If your hair is dry, brittle and strawlike but this isn't helped by hair treatments and moisturising products, it's likely caused by protein buildup."
Hair that is stringy, flat, or limp is a definite sign that your hair needs a protein treatment. Normally, hair should be pretty durable and full, so when it starts to droop, take notice. By adding protein back into the hair, you can revitalize your strands and get them to a healthier state.
As a general rule, it is safe to use a protein treatment weekly for the first month to restore hair's strength and elasticity. Use once or twice a month thereafter. Overuse of protein treatments can actually dry hair out. Always follow the directions on the package or consult your stylist.
While some OLAPLEX products contain some protein, the amounts are minimal and not enough to be considered a protein treatment. Therefore, OLAPLEX is not a protein treatment. OLAPLEX works at a molecular level to rebuild the hair internally.
COMMON SIGNS OF MOISTURE OVERLOAD
If you pull one strand of hair it will stretch and stretch without bouncing back, and eventually fall apart and tear. The hair will feel mushy, limp and excessively soft. Your curls will struggle to hold their shape, they will have little definition and tend to fall flatter than normal.
Imbalanced Protein and Moisture
Another VERY common cause of wet frizz is excess protein or moisture in the hair.
Hair looks limp and stringy.
Dull and limp hair is a sign of protein deficiency. Most clients will think it just needs a bit of hair styling product to bring it back to life, but this practice actually compromises the health of the hair significantly.
Interestingly, consuming too much protein can also lead to hair loss. This is because when the body has an excess of protein, it will start to excrete the excess through the urine. The hair follicles are then deprived of much-needed nutrients, which can lead to shedding and thinning.
If you have protein overload, consider adding a clarifying shampoo to your hair care routine. It has more cleansing power than regular shampoo and can easily cut through protein buildup. Clarifying shampoos break apart the excess protein that's bonded to your strands, so it can be rinsed away at the end of your wash.
Signs and Symptoms of Over-Conditioned Hair
You'll notice your hair becoming unmanageable, soft, limp, or flat. Any sort of updo will be impossible, as your hair has no natural grip. Over-conditioning thin, fine hair weighs it down and makes it look oily and perhaps stringy.
Limp, gummy, or mushy hair — If your hair feels limp, gummy, or mushy when wet, then that is a strong indication that your hair is over-moisturized. If you think you may be experiencing hygral fatigue, it's always best to immediately seek help from a hair care professional.
Depending on how overloaded your hair got it can take a few weeks or months to fix it. I've been working to reverse my protein overload for about a month now and have been doing a few things that have been working and getting my hair back to normal. Here are my four tips for reversing protein overload.
Are there risks with using Olaplex “too often”? Apparently no. Olaplex cannot damage your hair, no matter how often you use it. Some users have reported that when they use it for long periods, the amount of time it requires to “take effect” will climb and climb.
Less is More With Olaplex
The only mistake you can make is using too much – and the only “side effect” of using too much is the processing time climbs and climbs. The hair can never be damaged through the use of Olaplex!
Eating adequate protein is important for hair growth because hair follicles are mostly made of protein. A lack of protein in the diet has been shown to promote hair loss ( 2 ). Biotin is essential for the production of a hair protein called keratin, which is why biotin supplements are often marketed for hair growth.
A shampoo that is sulfate-free and sodium chloride-free is best to use after a keratin treatment. This will help prolong the life of your treatment and keep your hair shiny and vibrant.
For most women who are experiencing hair loss, a good protein goal is 1-gram protein per 1 pound of body weight. For example, if you're a 150lb woman, that means aiming for 150 grams of protein per day.
Chacon said, "Both keratin and biotin benefit the hair. Both are essential for forming the building blocks of the hair follicle." And both maintain healthy hair and can help it shine. "I believe that healthy, strong, long hair may benefit equally from both biotin and keratin in different ways," said Chacon.
What does keratin look like? Keratin can exist as alpha-keratins and beta-keratins according to the configuration of its polypeptide chains (the series of amino acids attached by peptide bonds). Alpha-keratins are mostly fibrous, and their structure looks like the thread of a screw (helical).