Download The Science of Black Hair: A Comprehensive Guide to Textured Hair Care epub

Words cannot express how much I LOVE this book. I will hold on to this book as a reference as I go through my healthy hair journey. First, I will say that a lot of the things covered in the book can be found online on some blog or probably on youtube. The problem is that there are so many routines, products and noise about black hair on the internet that its became a challenge (at least to me) navigating this world and making sense of it all. After much research online, I was overwhelmed with the amount of information and no clear idea of how to proceed with my healthy hair journey (the different classifications of hair types did not help me either). With this book, everything is explained, from the structure of hair, to why certain products work well of some hair types and not others, and so much more. By the time I finished the book, I had a better understanding of how to create a hair care routine that catered to my specific needs. I love that a lot of the ingredients used in hair products are explained in detail. I also like the textbook lay out of the book (maybe because I have a science background). I have recommended this book to all my friends and family, with relaxed and natural hair and those in transition (like me). It was worth every penny. It will definitely be my go to for any information relating to my hair.

I got the hard cover because I prefer hardcover books but I really needed this book and my post office did me dirty. They kept lying saying they left me a slip on my door to pick my book up but they never came to my door at all. I finally got it today and I've been browsing through certain chapters. I've been going through a very hard time with my 3c/4a high porosity/porous hair. I'm still not sure if it is/was protein overload or buildup but I'm reading these certain chapters to help me find out and I've just realized I have hard water which can also be a factor. . I normally go through hygral fatigue or moisture overload because my hair is porous but it's not either this time. I'm trying to learn more about my hair and to get my PH balance back what it used to be. I have been dealing with this for almost 8 months now and it's been devastating but shockingly my hair has retained length and for the first time my hair is 4 inches away from bra strap length. My hair went from curly to wirey straight then wavy and now my curls are coming back after months. I've spent lots of money on Camille Rose products because I didn't want to use proteins for a while and my hair is getting there but not quite yet. My hair is normally hydrated bu it's been very dry and not trying to curl up. I hope this book can help me find out where I went wrong in my regimen. I love how informative this book is and I want to also help others with their hair woes. I believe this is for not just black hair but for any textured hair too and it also has chapters for relaxed/permed hair. Great and well though out book and it has science to back it up. It even has an index which madw my mouth drop! This is now going to be my natural hair bible lol I'm pleased and will continue to read it.

Update: I thought I was going through protein overload but it turns out I was actually going through moisture overload! Which I always go through moisture overload or hygrab fatigue because my hair is very high in porosity. I put two protein treatreatments on my hair earlier this year and they didn't work so I thought it was protein overload because all my hair products I used had Hydrolyzed protein but now I remember where I went wrong in my natural hair journey. I stopped washing my hair in the shower and started washing it in the sink and I believe the sink's water pressure wasn't enough to get my hair clean and that led to buildup which is why those Aphogee protein treatments didn't work on my hair and nothing was able to penetrate my hair including water. No matter what I put on my hair nothing could penetrate it because I had so much buildup. I started back washing my hair in the shower and now I keep my head under the shower head to let the pressure of the water knock off the hair products but I also use my hands gently to remove it before shampooing and now my hair feels so clean and I put a protein treatment on my very clean hair yesterday and to my shock after washing it out in the shower my hair instantly felt stronger and my curls were coming back. Late last year I was skipping my wash days and using a heavy leave in conditioner (Cantu) even though my hair did just fine when I used eco styler and olive oil. In Chapter 6 (Protein Deficient) Moisture-Induced Hair breakage, when it said "hair may not hold a curl or styles well" I knew then that was my problem. I haven't been able to wear wash n goes since December of last year. My hair went from spiral curls to loose and wavy but my hair stayed frizzy and I would put more products on it but my curls would separate and my hair used to look dull but now my hair is spiraling again. My hair feels better and looks a lot better after the protein treatment but I need to put another treatment on my hair because it needs it after going this long without an intense protein treatment. I wish I knew this last year because my hair has been this way for almost a year and thank goodness I've only experienced minor breakage at the crown. I've learned to never skip wash days, never wash my hair in the sink, and keep a balance of protein and moisture but since my hair is very porus I need a little morw protein in my hair products than moisture because water moisturize it just fine.

I ordered this book to help better educate myself on my hair and it’s care. Often non black people don’t understand that we frequently haven’t been taught how to properly care for our hair. Often hair stylists don’t even really know. If you move to a small town where many people don’t look like you or have your hair texture and type, that can be challenging. This book will help you understand the science behind your hair and is care. The author is thorough and the book reads easily. I would recommend.

This is an excellent resource for anyone with textured hair (black, white, etc). I have been natural for about a decade, and I've only ever purchased one book on natural hair are and that was in 2003. I primarily educated myself on my transitioning/natural hair with the help of a lot of online resources. I remember reading Audrey's articles as "sistaslikk" on Fotki or LHCF and being so impressed that she was taking the time to do the research and taking the time to apply her scientific background to haircare. So when I heard she had written a book, I had to check it out.

This book will teach you everything you did not know about hair: what's happening at the subcutaneous level, within the hair shaft, scalp, how to test for moisture balance, protein balance, etc. There were plenty of things I did know before reading his book, but the true value of it for me is as a complete hair reference. It's not a book most would want to read from cover-to-cover, I use it as a reference text and haven't found a question yet that has not been addressed within its cover.

I bought one for my sister when she went natural and bought one for myself just to have in my own library. The only critique I have is the confusion about the different hardcover copies. I bought my sisters' copy first and it was hardcover with great color illustrations inside. When I bought my hardcover it everything was black/white (no color)! So heads up: buying hardcover doesn't mean you get color pages. I sent Audrey a message and she responded promptly and I was able to exchange for the preferred color copy. That slight issue aside, this book is definitely worth the money.

Note: this book is for those with all manner of textured hair; whether chemically treated or unprocessed.