4C hair is made of tight coils which makes it more prone to dryness and shrinkage. This is a huge factor because how well you retain moisture into your 4C coils will determine how much length you can achieve.
Does 4C Hair Grow? Absolutely! All hair types grow but for some hair types you can see the growth a lot easier. For people with type 4 hair, it is harder to see the growth as it happens but if you were to pull a section of the hair you would see the true length of the hair.
Hot oil treatments are great for 4C hair type and are like a spa for your strands. They strengthen and prevent dry, brittle hair. Hot oil treatments stimulate blood flow, helps with hair growth, and provides many benefits to help deal with common hair care and styling issues like dandruff and dry scalp.
Kimble says, "It is actually a big myth that dirty hair grows faster than clean hair. Having dirty hair can cause bacteria growth and scalp irritation. The bacteria growth can cause scalp diseases which can in turn cause your hair to fall out or not grow properly."
Because 4c hair typically shrinks and is easily tangled, washing in sections will help retain length. Wash each section and place that section in a big braid, clips or ponytail holder. By doing this, you keep your hair stretched, preventing detangling and unnecessary damage.
Curl creams are standard when styling 4C hair and Cantu is a fan-favorite brand. It softens and gently elongates coils, making them more manageable and easy to style, keeping them picture-perfect all-day long.
As you probably already know, 4C hair types experience shrinkage the most because the curls are tighter than the other curl patterns. And this can make it difficult to detangle, manage, and style. In fact, shrinkage can be downright discouraging when you want to do hairstyles like a low bun or twist-out.
African hair is generally characterized by tight curls and kinks, and grows almost parallel to the scalp. This hair type has the slowest growth rate, 0.9 centimeters per month, due to its spiral structure that causes it to curl upon itself during growth.
The takeaway
There are many reasons to try the no-poo method of hair washing. There are also many methods of no-poo washing that have different benefits. No poo will work better for some people than others, but it's relatively low risk if you want to give it a try.
For the average person, every other day, or every 2 to 3 days, without washing is generally fine. “There is no blanket recommendation. If hair is visibly oily, scalp is itching, or there's flaking due to dirt,” those are signs it's time to shampoo, Goh says.
4C hair should be Shampoo-washed once or twice a month and Co-washed in between. Shampooing is important in maintaining a clean and healthy scalp. However, washing your 4c hair with shampoo too often strips the hair of its natural oils and moisture which may lead to damage.
Stretching has also helped me retain length. A lot of naturals struggle with length retention. I've found that this is one of the valuable techniques. With retaining length comes hair growth over time.
Due to type 4c hair being uniquely fragile, this type of hair requires regular strengthening treatments in the form of hydrolyzed protein. This process results in the breakdown of proteins into amino acids. Given that rice water contains amino proteins, it's potentially beneficial for type 4c hair, Wynter-Baxter adds.
If you wash your hair with cool water, you're missing out on softer, shinier, more hydrated, cleaner, healthier 4C hair. In other words, everything. Hot water has more energy, it penetrates the strand better, which means you get more moisture and more flexibility.
How long can 4C hair grow? Your hair grows at roughly ½ inch per month which means that the typical head of hair will grow six inches per year. 4C hair is made of tight coils which makes it more prone to dryness and shrinkage.
Feisal shares that “washing with water alone is like taking a shower without soap—great as a quick refresh, but probably not ideal for most of us to do all of the time. Water will only help rinse the hair's surface of dust and debris, but will not do much else and especially won't 'wash' your hair.”
Co-washing is the act of washing your hair solely with conditioner. If your hair is afro, mixed-textured, very curly or extremely dry, there's a good chance that your haircare routine could benefit from it.
Not washing your hair at all isn't recommended by trichologists as it impacts hair health. Your hair sheds between 50 – 100 hairs a day and avoiding washing your hair means these strands will accumulate sebum and dandruff on your scalp.
Sickle cell diseases are especially common in people of African or Caribbean ancestry. They cause your body to make red blood cells that are sticky and curved and back up in your liver, and they die faster than your liver can filter them out. Bilirubin from these cells builds up in your body, causing jaundice.
Follicles that are more oval in shape cause curlier hair to grow. Very tightly coiled hair is due to the nearly flat, ribbon-like structure of their follicles. This hair texture is very common in people of African ancestry. Not only is African hair often coiled, it also has a unique texture.
Compared to silkier hair African-American hair contains more lipids, or fats, but the lipids are less bonded which is why the hair loves oils so much. Along with that, the follicle size is much thicker and it has a flattened elliptical cross section causing it to be curlier than other hair types.
Avoid over-styling 4C hair.
Styling products dry out your hair, build up on your scalp, weigh down your hair, etc. Touching and styling your hair excessively can also lead to breakage. Explore styles that require less styling products, or alternate between high and low manipulation styles to give your hair a break.
4C hair is formed up of fluffy strands which lack a defined curl pattern. 4C hair's texture varies widely from person to person that is from fine to coarse texture. The coils are very tight that creates difficulty in coating the scalp's natural oils to the hair length, which makes the hair dry and fragile.