How a Keratin Treatment Can Benefit Your Hair

A couple weeks ago I shared a selfie on Instagram of my hair after visiting my hairstylist. My hair was stick straight and I posted that I had just done a keratin treatment on it. After receiving a few questions, I thought it would be helpful to put together a post. There are many reasons to get a treatment and I’m talking thru why I do it and what the Keratin treatment benefits are.

Keratin Treatment Review

What does a Keratin treatment do?

First, I’ll explain my hair texture. I have thick coarse hair and a lot of it. No matter the condition or health of my hair it is not soft and silky. It has a grip to it and each strand is thick. I have no wave or curl to my hair, it’s completely straight. It has a lot of volume and when not managed I would explain it as puffy. It’s naturally dry, has flyaways and frizz can be a big issue if I don’t keep it well-conditioned.

A keratin hair treatment will smooth your hair cuticle. The treatment will reduce frizz and actually strengthen hair. Your hair will immediately look better and have less damage.

There are several different haircare brands that have Keratin treatments. It is very important to talk to your hairstylist and figure out what is best for your hair. Also, discuss if and how much formaldehyde is in the formula. In the long run, it isn’t good for your hair, so know if there is any in it.

It is important to know that Keratin treatments do not change your hair texture. If you have curly hair, it won’t straighten it. A different, stronger product is needed to actually straighten hair.

The Process

Keratin is the main protein that makes up your hair. A Keratin treatment adds the protein back into your hair. The treatment smooths and fills in the cuticle of your hair. You’ll notice immediately after how your hair is in better condition than it was before.

While each brand has a slightly different process they are all pretty similar. To start, your stylist washes your hair with a strong clarifying shampoo and then dried until is just damp. At this point, your styling will apply the keratin treatment. Your stylist applies the product to your hair in small sections at a time so that every hair is completely saturated. Then your hair is blown out smooth with a brush and blow dryer. Once dry, the treatment is sealed into your hair with a flat iron. Your hairstyling will take very thin sections of hair and straighten them with a hot straightener. The process can take a while depending on how thick and long your hair is.

The aftercare is where each brand can differ. The one I have done allows for you to wash your hair as soon as you would like. Some of them need you to wait a certain number of days before you get your hair wet or sweat. Keratin treatment benefits are immediate, you’ll notice the difference as soon as you leave the salon. Depending on your hair type and how you treat it, the keratin treatment will last anyone from 3-6 months. For me, it lasts around 5 months.

Keratin Treatments Benefits

Smooth and Shiny

The first thing you’ll notice is how smooth and shiny your hair is. I’m always shocked by how good it looks. This is not just a superficial benefit, it comes from your hair is in better condition.

Less Frizz

Keratin treatments reduce frizz for me but for many it may even eliminate frizz. The smoother your cuticle, the less frizz you’ll have. You hair lays flatter against each other and smoother than before. Keratin treatments will also help with humidity. Hair is less reactive to the amount of moisture in the air. You wouldn’t have that increase in frizz when the humidity goes up because your hair won’t be absorbing the moisture in the air.

Better Condition

Not only does your hair look better but is actually in better condition than before. Adding Keratin fills in the cuticle of your making it stronger.

Quicker Drying

Because your hair cuticle is smoother and more “closed” it doesn’t hold onto as much water. My hair dries at least 40% faster! I like to let my hair air dry as much as possible and when it has had a keratin treatment it makes it so much quicker.

Hair Color lasts longer

If you color your hair, your hairstylist will color it right before she does the keratin treatment. The treatment will seal in your color and it will look fresher longer. It retains the vibrancy and saturation of your color.

Helps with hair growth

A keratin hair treatment will not stimulate hair growth. What it will do is keep your hair stronger so you have less breakage and split ends. In the long run this helps when you are growing your hair.

My Keratin Treatment Review & Why I get them

All the benefits above are why I get keratin hair treatments. The biggest ones are repairing heat damage and making my hair more manageable.

Here I’ll explain how keratin treatment benefits change my hair routine. After a keratin treatment, my hair is in much better condition. This is especially helpful as I keep growing out my hair. Longer hair, especially when it is dry like mine, is extra prone to breakage. I see the treatment as an investment in helping my long hair. Keratin treatments are, for me, a way to help make my hair more low-maintenance day to day.

Since my hair is much smoother and softer, it is more manageable.

Normally, to get smooth hair I have to use a round brush and blow dry it or use a curling iron to smooth it out. Now I can let my hair air dry or rough-dry it with a blow drier and I have smooth hair. This in turn lets me use less heat and prevents damage. I also have way less frizz and my hair doesn’t respond as much to humidity. Normally my hair would be a giant puffball on a really humid day.

My routine now is to let my hair air dry after I wash it. I use a wet brush after washing and then apply some hair oil to the ends. After that, I just let it dry! Since the Keratin treatment reduces the frizz I don’t have to blow dry it. To style, I’ll spray on a heat protectant and then use a curling iron or curl stick to put in some waves. If I want it straight, I’ll use this straightening brush to get and kinds out of it and put a little bend at the ends.

If you have any questions or need any more information on keratin hair treatments, please feel free to ask a question below.

Disclosure: I may earn an affiliate commission on any purchases or clicks thru the links in this post. This is at no cost to you and I only share things I love.

This post was originally posted on July 15, 2021 and has been updated.