Understanding the complexities of 4C hair to best care for yours may as well be considered a fine art. There are a number of factors to take into account at what feels like all times – deciding how to wear your hair to bed, determining how often to wash it and what with, and it can be easy for one or two wrong turns to lead your hair to damaged territory – hyper-prone to breakage, and struggling to grow. Many of us know this story all too well, but luckily, we aren’t without a slew of anti-breakage hair products on the market to help out.
If you find that you’re one of the members of the 4C hair community that struggles with breakage-prone hair, try embarking on your next beauty shopping spree with hair products with strength-building and restoring properties front and center. For example, there are conditioners and treatments that specialize in bond repair, while formulas with deep hydration qualities will keep the hair from drying out and restarting the breakage cycle.
Whether you’re tackling growth retention, general hair damage, or both, here are 11 4C-friendly hair products that repair damaged hair and protect it from future breakage, and nurture it back to its healthiest form.
Forgoing harmful ingredients such as silicone and alcohol, this dry hair treatment from Just Nutritive instead feeds the hair with gentle, but effective natural ingredients. The result is hair that feels refreshed, revived and if used regularly, equipped with the nutrients to thrive.
Available at Just Nutritive
This conditioner is proof that rosemary and mint are the combination your hair didn’t know it needed. In this blend, mint brings on a calming element, while the rosehip works to soften the hair, as well as restore it.
Available at Design Essentials
Mane ‘N Tail may be an oldie, but it indisputably remains a goodie. This trio brings on visible results after just the first wash, leaving your hair silky and soft, and boosting its elasticity, which in turn strengthens it against unavoidable damaging factors.
Available at Mane 'N Tail
If your hair has been left damaged, brittle and breakage-prone post chemical treatment (such as coloring), reach for JVN’s Strengthening Conditioner, which, beyond restoring the damage done and preventing future breakage, will add that shine and luster you’ve been looking for back to your hair as well.
Available at JVN
For an effective, yet wallet-friendly full-treatment option, ApHogee is one you can count on to deliver. The brand’s Shampoo for Damaged Hair restores each strand with protein and vitamins, meanwhile its leave-in conditioner leaves your hair smooth and tangle-free, while its keratin reconstructor targets a number of concerns such as boosting elasticity and moisture in the hair.
Available at ApHogee
This wash day set is calling the names of anyone with 4C hair who struggles with growth at the hands of breakage. The duo tackles sealing the hair cuticle and bringing your split ends back to life with olive oil and aloe vera leaf juice, and according to the brand, leaves you with up to 60 percent less visible split ends after just your first wash.
Available at Bondi Boost
According to the brand, it takes just two uses of this conditioning hair mask to reduce breakage (thanks to B-vitamins, algae extract and rosehip oil), so you’ll probably want to sign your 4C hair up for this yesterday. As a plus, its formula boasts naturally-derived, vegan ingredients, too.
Available at Briogeo
Protecting your hair from breakage means making sure that activities that can typically dry your hair out, such as shampooing, don’t have the opportunity to do so. Going in first with Curlsmith’s Bond Curl Rehab Salve as a pre-shampoo counteracts the process by working at the same time to repair hair bonds with proteins and super foods, resulting in stronger strands that can better withstand damage.
Available at Curlsmith