How To Treat Frizzy Hair In Humidity

Medically reviewed by Dr. Shruti Chavan, MBBS Dermatologist
April 8, 2021 Written by Arshiya Syeda

The worst thing about summer has got to be the humidity. It makes you feel hot and sticky and – more importantly – causes your hair to become frizzy and unmanageable.

Luckily, you can say hello to smooth, frizz-free locks with some easy tips and tricks! We have discussed what causes frizz along with the best way to control frizzy hair in humidity. Check it all out – and more! – in this article.

In This Article

What Is Frizz?

Frizz refers to the misalignment of hair fibers. When your hair frizzes up, your strands lose their shape, curl up, and run in different directions.

In humid weather, straight hair becomes wavy, wavy hair curls up, and curly hair transforms into tighter coils. Additionally, your tresses take on a rough texture in response to the extreme movement of the strands.

But, why does frizzy hair occur in the first place, and how can you find out if you need frizz control? Find out in the next section!

Why Does Frizz Occur?

Frizzy hair is caused by high humidity in the air.

Humidity refers to the water vapor present in the air. Our hair is incredibly sensitive to it, and in humid weather, it reacts by becoming frizzy or curling up.

During these periods, the water molecules present in the air enter the hair strands and bind to their protein. This causes the strands to forget their shape and revert to a curlier pattern. When carried out in varying degrees, the result is a head full of frizz.

While frizzy hair due to humidity is something that every hair type experiences at some point or the other, there are a few instances where your hair may be more susceptible to it. They are as follows:

1. Thick, Coarse Hair

When it comes to thick hair, the diameter of the strands is a lot wider than fine hair. This creates a structure that is already upset. When faced with extreme humidity, this fragile assembly breaks and the hair follicles stray in different directions.

Once frizzy, it can be difficult to get these strands under control again. Typically, people with curly locks get frizzy hair more often than people with fine hair.

2. High Porosity Hair

Hair strands have small holes that suck in the moisture from the air to keep themselves hydrated. High porosity hair refers to hair with too many holes that soak up a lot of moisture.

Due to over-absorption of moisture, high porosity hair tends to lose its shape and frizz up.

If you are not aware of the porosity of your hair, we recommend conducting the water test:

Grab a glass of water.
Drop a strand of your hair into it.
Check if it floats or immediately sinks to the bottom.
If the strand of hair sinks quickly, it is highly porous. High porosity hair absorbs the water at a quicker pace and becomes too heavy to float.
If your hair floats in the water for an extended period, it means that your hair is not very porous.

3. Damaged Hair

Your hair gets damaged due to over-processing and extreme use of harsh chemicals. When damaged, the outermost layer of the strand, called the cuticle, cracks and opens itself to the moisture in the air. This lack of filtration causes the hair to get frizzy in reaction to the humidity.

Additionally, cracked cuticles tend to have a really rough texture, thus inhibiting the strands from lying close to each other. This makes it difficult to bring the frizz under control.

4. Dry Hair

Unlike the other types mentioned here, dry hair refers to severely dehydrated strands. To fulfill their moisture requirements, the locks overexpose themselves to the humidity in the air. This extreme exposure can make your hair frizzy.

Now that you know why humidity causes your hair to frizz up, let us move on to the solution.

Tips For Taming Frizzy Hair In High Humidity

Unfortunately, there is no cure for frizzy hair caused due to humidity. That said, you can follow these tips to get your frizzy hair under control:

1. Use Conditioner Frequently

Memorize these golden words – shampoo is for cleaning, conditioner is for moisturizing.

When taking a shower (especially with hot water), it is easy for your tresses to dry out. This is because the shampoo washes away the moisturizing natural oils from your strands.

As such, the best treatment for frizzy hair is to condition it frequently. Using a conditioner will replenish your hair’s lost nutrients and prevent dryness.

Consider deep conditioning once every 2-3 weeks and applying conditioner every time you wash your hair. You can also use coconut oil on wet hair as a leave-in conditioner and keep the frizz at bay. Follow these steps:

Towel-dry your hair until it is just damp.
Rub 4-5 drops of coconut oil between your palms.
Run your fingers and palms through your hair until your hands do not feel oily anymore.

2. Style Your Locks

A great way to keep your hair from getting frizzy due to humidity is to style it into submission. You can tame the frizz with the help of a flat iron or straightener.

However, be sure to incorporate the following products into your styling routine to protect your hair from heat damage:

Heat Protectant Spray: This will prevent your strands from losing their moisture due to the hot styling tools.
Leave In-Conditioner: This will replenish your hair’s moisture that it has lost during the styling process.

By including these extra steps, you can prevent your strands from seeking out moisture and stop it from getting frizzy in humidity.

3. Start Using A Holding Spray

Spraying some holding spray is an after-styling tip that can help you manage your frizzy hair in humidity. For better frizz control, opt for a spray that contains moisturizing elements and has less of an oily sheen.

4. Get Back To Your Roots

Frizz is often a huge issue for people who rely heavily on styling their hair. Instead of trying to keep your frizzy hair smooth during the humid months, it is probably worth getting a frizz-friendly haircut. This will ensure that your hair, even at its worst, still looks its best.

Apart from these tips, hair care experts and stylists have some suggestions that can help you avoid frizzy hair in high humidity. Here is what they have to say.

Expert Hair Care Tips To Manage Frizzy Hair In High Humidity

Try the following expert suggestions to prevent your hair from getting frizzy in high humidity:

1. Apply Oil After Styling

When dealing with frizzy hair during the humid months, you want to create a barrier between your strands and the moisture in the air.

You can do this by gently applying some oil to your tresses after you finish styling it. If required, you can touch up the parts of your hair that have fallen out of shape.

2. Blow-Dry Your Hair The Proper Way

Believe it or not, the direction in which you blow-dry your hair can actually affect its frizziness! To combat this, experts suggest the following blow-drying technique:

Divide your hair into 6-8 sections.
Dry each section by positioning the hairdryer downward and moving from the roots to the ends.

The heat from the blow-dryer will open your cuticles. This will make it easier to reshape and smoothen your strands and fix humidity-induced frizzy hair.

3. Try Water-Based Hair Styling Products

One of the main causes of frizzy hair is dehydrated strands absorbing too much moisture. Hence, you must moisturize your locks as often as possible.

Use a water-based styling product that is sure to condition your hair while styling it. For example, add a little water-based holding spray to the frizzy areas of your hair and re-style it with your fingers.

Final Take

While every hair type gets frizzy in humidity, certain hair types are more vulnerable to it. These include dry and damaged hair, high porosity hair, and thick, coarse hair.

Unfortunately, there is no remedy for frizzy hair. However, practices like conditioning your hair, using a holding spray, and getting a frizz-friendly haircut can help you deal with frizzy hair during the humid months.

You can also listen to the hair care experts and use oil- and water-based styling products as well as blow-dry your hair in a particular way.