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Black hair is often drier than other hair types as it takes longer for the scalp to produce natural oils that provide moisture. Bleaching black hair strips it of moisture, and weakens the hair bonds during the chemical process. As with all chemical hair treatments, bleached hair is highly susceptible to extensive damage including breakage and split ends, and requires daily maintenance. Because of the possibility of hair loss, it is highly recommended to visit a professional hair stylist to get your hair bleached or receive color touch-ups.

Wash your hair once every four to five days to retain moisture. Due to your bleached hair's slower oil production, use a moisture-rich shampoo to rehydrate the hair. Wash and rinse your hair with warm water, as hot water dries the hair out and can cause heat damage.

Follow up with a conditioner. A moisturizing daily conditioner or deep conditioner helps restore softness and moisture will improving manageability to bleached black hair. Apply liberally to the hair, focusing on the ends of the hair where dryness and split ends are common, and leave it on for 15 to 20 minutes. For additional benefits, place a plastic cap onto your scalp and sit under a hood hair dryer for 10 minutes using a medium to low heat setting. Wash the conditioner out with warm water and towel blot your hair dry.

Apply a leave-in treatment after conditioning. A leave-in conditioner helps maintain moisture by using olive, jojoba or grapeseed oil to coat the hair strand. Look for a light leave-in conditioner as heavy leave-in conditioners can cause buildup, which makes the hair feel heavy and attract dirt easily. Squeeze a nickel-sized amount of conditioner into palms, rub your palms together and work it through your hair starting at the ends. Use a leave-in treatment every time you wash your hair, then coat the hair in a light creme moisturizer for daily maintenance.

Use hot oil treatments. Hot oil treatments provide vitamin E and moisture to your hair in order to reduce breakage and dryness caused by chemical treatments. Fill a glass with one cup of water and warm it in the microwave for one to two minutes, or until warm. Place the oil tube into the water and allow it to sit for one minute. Twist off the bottle top and pour the oil into your hands, then saturate your hair with the oil. Do not apply the oil if it is hot to the touch; wait until it is warm. Allow the oil to sit on your hair for one minute, wash it out with warm water and shampoo as usual.

Avoid chemical treatments. Bleached hair should not be relaxed or receive any other chemical treatments, as it can result in hair breakage and severely brittle hair unless done by a professional stylist. Wait at least six to eight weeks or until you have one inch of new growth before getting a color touch-up to reduce the chance of damage.

Tips

  • Use a hot oil treatment weekly to improve softness and provide continuous moisture.