How to check your strand thickness
Take a single strand that has fallen out and roll it between your fingers. If you can barely feel it, it is fine. If you can feel it but it is soft, it is medium. If it feels firm, like thread, it is coarse. Different parts of your head can differ, and strands can get finer with age.
Fine strands
- Choose foams, light gels and lotions over butters and rich creams.
- Use small, measured amounts and keep conditioner off the roots.
- Handle wet hair gently; fine strands break more easily.
- Clarify regularly, because fine hair shows build-up first.
Coarse strands
- Wet hair all the way through before shampoo; coarse hair can shed water at first.
- Use enough conditioner for slip and give it time.
- Richer leave-ins and creams are less likely to weigh it down.
- Heat tools may need more heat: use a heat protectant and the lowest setting that works, as the American Academy of Dermatology advises.
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