Keratin Treatment For Hair – Everything You Need To Know At A Glance!

What woman would not like to have beautiful and healthy hair? But the condition of your hair depends on many factors – diet, hormones, health problems, stress, weather conditions, etc. Proper care can turn into a real nightmare, especially in summer, because heat, salt water and chlorine have catastrophic effects on the hair structure. The keratin treatment originally comes from Brazil and promises permanently smooth and shiny hair. What exactly is behind the miracle cure and for whom is the hair treatment suitable? The answers to these and many other questions can be found in our article!

Keratin – what exactly is it?

While the term is very common these days, many people still don’t know what exactly keratin is. It is a natural protein that is responsible for the formation of the skin, nails, and hair. It builds up the so-called fiber layer and fills the area between the hair skin and the cuticle layer. Each hair actually consists of 90% of these special protein molecules and the rest is made up of pigments, water and natural fats. Many external influences, such as too frequent dyeing, rough brushing, perming, blow drying that is too hot or the sun’s rays can weaken the keratins, which leads to brittle and dry hair.

Is it worth a keratin treatment for your hair?

Many different hair problems such as split ends or frizz could occur as a result of a keratin deficiency. In the case of high air pollution, cold or heat, or an unbalanced diet with a lack of nutrients, the result is usually brittle, dull and dry hair. In order to repair your mane and make it look shiny and smooth again, the keratins must be replenished and that is exactly what a keratin treatment promises. The protein penetrates the outer cuticle, wraps itself around the hair like a protective film and smooths its structure. Thanks to the treatment, your hair is much easier to style and the blow-drying time is reduced by 60%, which is a big plus, especially for the warm summer months! In addition, your hair should even be able to withstand moisture – so you no longer have to constantly check the weather forecast!

How does a keratin treatment work?

If you have already decided on a keratin treatment, you should plan between 3 and 5 hours at the hairdresser’s.

• First of all, your hair is washed thoroughly several times to remove residues from care products such as silicone. A special keratin shampoo is used for this and the hair is then blow-dried.
• In the second step, the hairdresser applies the product to the hair strand by strand with a fine brush and combs it through with a special comb so that everything is evenly distributed. Then he lets the product act for exactly 20 minutes.
• The third and final step takes the longest. Your hair is first straightened with a blow dryer and brush and carefully combed through – this activates the treatment solution.

• The hair is then straightened strand by strand with a special straightening iron. The right temperature is extremely important for a successful keratin treatment. Too high a temperature is quite a burden on the hair and if it is too low the effect is much weaker. Depending on the condition of the hair, a temperature between 210-230 degrees is recommended. An exception applies to dyed or severely damaged hair – you should never exceed 200 degrees.
• After straightening, take a 15 minute break and then the hair is washed thoroughly with a keratin shampoo.
• Blow dry again and you’re done! The result is immediately visible because your hair has that long-awaited shine!

For which hair types is a keratin treatment suitable??

The best news is that keratin treatment is suitable for all hair types. However, since the pH changes and messes up with the heat, the hair treatment is not recommended for people with hair that is too thin and for people with dry or oily scalps. Although the treatment itself contains a lot of care substances, the hair structure is damaged even more by the straightening iron and the high temperatures. Switch to keratin-based care products and use them for around 1 month – this is how you successfully prepare your mane for the treatment. Because the more well-groomed the strands, the less damage is.

Keratin treatment for colored hair

The hair treatment closes the cuticle of the hair that was opened by bleaching and dyeing and ensures that it looks healthy and shiny again. It very often happens that the roots are still relatively healthy, but the lengths are already broken due to the frequent styling and dyeing. Here, too, the keratin treatment can be incorporated in such a way that your hair structure becomes uniform again.

The treatment is also worthwhile for curly hair?

The keratin treatment is also ideal for women with curly hair! Here you have two options to choose from – either just nicely defined curls or slightly smoother hair – everything is possible. Either way, your hair will gain softness, lightness and shine and create a WOW effect.

How long does the effect last and how much does keratin smoothing cost?

How long the effect of the keratin treatment lasts depends on how you care for your hair and how often you wash it. The product washes out a little with each hair wash. It usually lasts between 3 and 6 months, provided you follow a few golden rules. Wash your hair a maximum of 2 times a week with shampoo (absolutely sulfate-free and preferably based on keratin). In order to be able to enjoy the result longer, it is recommended to simply wash your mane with lukewarm water and then only use a conditioner. If you want to keep your hair supple and smooth after this period, you will need to repeat the conditioner. Unfortunately, the keratin treatment is not particularly cheap – depending on the length of the hair, you have to reckon with a price between 200 and 450 euros. In addition, there are also the costs for the special care products that you are supposed to use.

Proper care after a keratin treatment

Without a doubt, a keratin treatment works wonders. However, a visit to the hairdressing salon is far from being all. Proper care at home is also of great importance for long-lasting results. Even if the hair treatment is really great, it is also very sensitive and the wrong care can wash out the product very quickly. The keratin works for the first 72 hours and has to stay in the hair. For this reason, there are a few things to keep in mind:

• In the first 3 days you are not allowed to wash your hair, do not wet it and very important – do not tie it together! In other words – you have to make sure that your hair stays the same for this period as it did immediately after the treatment.
• As already mentioned, in order to enjoy it for a long time, you have to reduce the amount of hair washing.

• It is recommended to top up the hair with a little bit of keratin over and over again. There are many shampoos and deep-acting hair masks on the market that are specifically designed for this.
• Style your hair with the flat iron once a week to reactivate the keratin from the heat.
• We do not advise you to go swimming for the first week. After that, before every bath, you should first dampen your hair slightly and treat it with a conditioner and only rinse it out shortly before jumping into the water.
• At least two weeks must pass after a keratin treatment before you can dye or tint your hair again.

Keratin treatment is harmful?

While keratin treatment has many benefits for damaged hair, the products fell into disrepute a few years ago. And rightly so, because in the keratin series from Brazil and the USA, formaldehyde or methylene glycol were found in large quantities. These gases were released during straightening and inhaled by people. Since formaldehyde is highly carcinogenic and irritates the skin and eyes, it can be very harmful to health. Fortunately, these days keratin products do not contain these substances and do not harm your hair.

Difference Between Keratin Treatment and Brazilian Blowout?

In contrast to a keratin treatment, with the so-called Brazilian Blowout, the product is washed out immediately and the whole procedure takes a maximum of 90 minutes. Another plus point is that you can return to your usual styling routine immediately after a Brazilian blowout, which is not the case with keratin. While the treatment is particularly popular in America, it is banned in many European countries because the formaldehyde limit is exceeded.

Vegan alternative to keratin treatment

To obtain keratin, the hooves, horns, hair and feathers of various animals are ground up and for this reason this hair treatment is not suitable for a vegan lifestyle. Fortunately, there is an alternative that you can resort to. What is meant is an organic smoothing with tannin. Tannins are vegetable tanning agents that stretch and straighten the hair when exposed to heat. In nature they are found in the bark of oaks, birches and chestnuts or in the fruit shell of walnuts.

You can do the keratin treatment yourself at home?

For those of you for whom the treatment is not an option because of the price, there is also the option of doing it yourself at home. You can find many different keratin kits on the Internet that contain everything you need for it. However, we have to warn you that it is not that easy and that there is a risk of using the heat on the straightening iron. The right temperature for your hair structure can sometimes be a real challenge and this is exactly why many people have damaged their hair from overheating! Hence, you need to be extremely careful and do everything best with someone who is knowledgeable about hair straighteners.