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Page 1 of 3 Five Myths About African American Hair
by OurHair Staff
I'll never have hair to my waist, right? Should my hair be silky to be healthy? Is African American hair rough and tough? Read on to banish the five most common myths about African American hair.
Myth 1 - African American hair looks wooly so it must feel rough and hard.
False - Our hair can be some of the softest, fluffiest stuff you've ever squeezed (more on squeezing later). While our hair in its natural state appears tough and wiry due to our thin and highly coiled hair strands, it has a soft, cushiony, cottony feel.
On a couple of occasions when I was feeling solicitous towards someone being curious about my hair and allowed them to touch it, the look on their faces was well worth the price of admission. The hesitant look moves from doubt to wonderment at the light and airy feel of a twist or bit of afro puff. The resultant oohs and ahhs sound embarrasingly orgasmic when overheard by passersby. More than once a touchee has invited total strangers that stop to watch the event become touchers. Needless to say, I've learned to duck and worm my way out of such impromtu invites.
Myth 2 - Unless they straighten it, all African Americans have hair that is big, poofy, wooly in texture.
False - The people of the Diaspora's natural hair textures can range from bone straight to kinky coils the size of watch springs. Obviously this is due to the racial melting pot provided by our genetic pool. And while it may seem as though the union of a straight and coily hair texture would produce a child with wavy hair, more often than not, this is not the case. Hair that has curls, coils, turn and loops is the dominant hair texture throughout the world.
Myth 3 - Our hair can handle rough treatment
False with alarm bells - Our hair is the most fragile hair in the world because of its ribbony texure which yields it unique beauty.
Each time a hair makes a turn to form a curl or coil, the point at which the bend begins is a potentially weak spot. Rough combing, chemical and heat abuse as well as stressful styles can shred our hair to pieces in a matter of months. We've all seen the sister with a beautiful head of hair change one thing about her routine to have the latest style and three months later be practically bald.
Our hair demands gentle handling to ensure its health and longevity.
Myth 4 - African American hair can only grow so long
False, but with conditions.
While it seems true that the majority of black women do not attain the hair lengths as seen by other races of women, the fact is we can and do. However, the nature of our hair and some current care methods prevent that from being obvious.
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