Does Oil Loosen Braids Or Is It A Myth

Having too tight braids can lead to irreversible damage to the hair and scalp. It can cause conditions such as hair breakage, damaged hair follicles, and traction alopecia, eventually resulting in permanent baldness. How to prevent this? Oiling. But how does oil loosen braids?

When you oil your hair and scalp, you moisturize and grease them. The oil’s texture and properties make your hair slightly greasy, which in turn helps loosen tight braids.

But just putting oil on your hair and leaving it will not help. To get the full benefits of oiling your hair, you need to follow specific steps, which we’ll tell you about. Let’s get into it.

Is Oiling Your Scalp Good for You

Oiling your scalp is one of the best things you can do. Simply put, oiling your scalp is your best friend regarding hair care. According to Dr. Khushboo Garodia, “Oil helps in scalp health. When you gently massage the scalp, it helps in exfoliation, and sometimes that helps reduce hair fall.”

 The benefits of oiling your hair include but are not limited to the following:

•  Oiling rehydrates your hair.
•  Reduces hair fall.
•   It moisturizes the hair, hair follicles, and scalp.
• As oil settles in the cuticle cells of your hair, it prevents dirt and debris from getting in, preventing hair damage and inflammation.

Depending on the kind of oil you use, you’ll see different hair issues being resolved. We’ll touch upon this next.

What Does Oiling Do to Your Hair

Each oil has its properties and benefits. Depending on which oil you use, you can see the following benefits:

1. Coconut oil

With lauric acid as its primary fatty acid, coconut oil has a high binding capacity toward hair protein and bonds to protein, which your hair is made of, and easily enters the hair follicles.

It is an oil capable of deep conditioning and has antimicrobial and antioxidant properties. All of these combined results in coconut oil help reduce the scalp’s flakiness, dandruff, and dryness.

2. Argan oil

Argan oil is enriched with vitamins A, C, and E, antioxidants, and omega-3 fatty acids. These properties enable it to condition and strengthen your hair.

3. Sesame oil

Full of vitamin B1, copper, calcium, zinc, iron, manganese, magnesium, and Phosphorus, sesame oil works wonders when it comes to deep conditioning and smoothening your hair and scalp. It also has antifungal and antibacterial properties that mitigate fungal infections and dandruff.

4. Almond oil

Enriched with vitamins B, K, and E, almond oil is a lightweight oil that reduces stress and promotes hair growth.

Depending on what you need, you can use any of the oils mentioned above as a part of your hair care regime and benefit from their properties.

How to Take Care of Tight Braids

One of the first things you can do when you notice your braids are too tight is to apply coconut oil. Coconut oil helps loosen tight braids by moisturizing your hair. You can also apply a leave-in conditioner for the same purpose, but coconut oil should always be the first choice due to its properties.

Oils are a Great Way to Loosen Tight Braids

Oils moisturize and grease up your hair. This leads to hair being softer, smoother, and easy to maneuver. All of these, in turn, help you loosen your braids when they’re too tight.  

How to Loosen Up Tight Braids Fast

You can apply just one lightweight oil, like coconut oil, almond oil, or olive oil, to loosen up your hair in a jiffy.

Otherwise, make a mixture of coconut oil, tea tree oil, and castor oil and put the mixture in a spray bottle. Spray the mixture on top of your braids to not only loosen them but also to benefit from the properties of the oils.

What to Put on Braids to Loosen Up

To loosen braids that are too tight, you can use the following products:

• Coconut oil to loosen up and rehydrate your hair and scalp.
• Sesame oil to reduce frizziness and split ends and to loosen your braids.
• Braid spray.
• And lastly, a natural leave-in conditioner will loosen your braids and moisturize your hair and scalp.

Does Warm Water Help with Tight Braids

Warm water opens up your hair cuticles and pores and softens your hair. This allows them to absorb moisture and natural oils, which in turn helps loosen tight braids.

How Long Will It Take to Loosen Tight Braids

How long it will take for your braids to loosen up depends on your method. If you let them loosen naturally, it might take 1-2 days for that to happen.

On the other hand, using hair products such as oils, conditioners, braids, sprays, warm water, and leave-in conditioners helps to reduce the tension and strain caused by tight braids instantaneously.

What Can Happen if Your Braids Are Tight

Tight braids can lead to a lot of hair-related issues. These include but are not limited to the following:

I. Hair breakage and hair fall

 The strain tight braids put on your hair can cause them to break and fall.

II. Hair follicle damage

Tight braids tugging and pulling on your hair can lead to hair follicles being damaged. This will prevent new hair from growing on your scalp, leading to baldness.

III. Traction Alopecia

Traction Alopecia is when your hair starts falling from the middle of your scalp and continues to fall until you are permanently bald.

FAQ

Conclusion

Keeping your hair healthy should be one of your top priorities, as it can make or break your appearance. We hope you now know the answer to “does oiling loosen braids” and will utilize your knowledge, as tight braids can damage hair health.