How Often Should I Use a Hair Mask?
Hair masks have the same primary purpose as your everyday conditioner—to deliver moisture and improve your strands' condition. Knowing how, and how often, to use them is essential for achieving the greatest benefits.
Generally, your hair mask should be used once or twice per week in place of your regular conditioner. The ideal frequency will depend on the current condition and type of your tresses. If they're dry or damaged, you will likely need this deep-conditioning treatment more often. Healthy or oily hair can get by with less frequent applications.
Hair Mask Benefits
During perimenopause, many of us discover our hair becoming thinner, weaker and more easily damaged than before.
When used at the frequency suited for your hair type, masks can significantly improve your hair’s appearance and manageability, counteracting these common concerns and giving you a mane that's:
- Shinier
- Softer
- Stronger
- Smoother
- Less prone to damage
Can I Use a Deep Conditioner Every Day?
Typical hair masks include more potent concentrations of fatty acids and other hydrating ingredients than standard conditioners.
If a little hydration helps, it stands to reason that more must be better, especially if your hair is dry and brittle. With hair masks, this is not the case.
When you deep condition too often, you run the risk of hyper-moisturizing your hair and causing issues with your scalp's natural biome.
This is because your hair can only absorb a limited amount of your mask's extra oils and conditioners.
After reaching your hair's maximum saturation point, you may experience a condition called hygral fatigue.
Hygral fatigue is caused by constant expansion and contraction of your follicles due to extreme moisture retention. You run the risk of developing hygral fatigue by deep conditioning too often, especially if you have high porosity hair.
Symptoms of hygral fatigue include:
- A gummy texture when wet
- Dullness
- Tangling
- Frizziness
If your hair begins feeling limp, lifeless or mushy, reduce your hair mask usage frequency.
Hair Mask Frequency by Hair Type
How often you deep condition your hair will depend on its moisture requirements. There are several variables at work here; therefore, it's best to focus on your hair's unique response to the hair mask and adjust the frequency as needed.
A good rule of thumb is to start using once per week and then try using your hair mask more or less frequently, depending on what works best for your hair type.
Dry Hair
Hair masks are designed to deliver ample amounts of hydration, and when your hair lacks moisture, the porous fibers act like a sponge. Consequently, it makes sense you will need to deep condition more often if you have dry locks.
Apply a greater amount of product (usually about a quarter-sized) onto your hair twice a week to start. Use it more or less often as needed.
Split Ends and Damaged Hair
Though hair masks cannot restore the broken molecular bonds of damaged hair, they can shore up your strands to defend against additional damage.
If your hair has experienced damage, begin by trimming off the broken segments and split ends. Then, deep condition using your hydrating mask two times per week to start.
Frizzy Hair
The cuticle, or surface layer of each hair shaft, is made up of tiny overlapping shingle-like cells. These cells may open or close in response to temperature changes and pH fluctuations.
When your cuticles are sealed shut, you'll have smoother hair that can retain moisture more efficiently.
However, when the hair cuticle is open, your locks will appear frizzy. Open cuticles also make them more vulnerable to damage due to dryness or humidity. To smooth your cuticles and safeguard your cortex, use your hair mask once or twice per week.
Fine or Oily Hair
As we get older, dihydrotestosterone (DHT) levels cause our follicles to contract, leading to skinnier strands and thinning hair. For some women, this means less hair to absorb excess sebum.
The ultra-hydrating formula of hair masks can overwhelm thin, fine hair if used too frequently. Concentrate your mask application to the very ends of your strands. Limit your mask treatments to a dime-sized amount once a week or every other week — especially if you have an oily scalp and hair.
Curly Hair
Your thick, curly locks will typically benefit from more hair mask applications. This hair type is made up of multiple spirals, making it difficult for sebum oil to evenly spread over each strand. This leaves it vulnerable to frizzing and dryness.
To work effectively, you may need to use your hair mask up to twice per week. Your curls will be more defined, bouncier and less likely to frizz.
What Hair Mask Should I Choose?
Better Not Younger offers two hair mask formulations. Both contain five plant-based butters, including macadamia, murumuru, mango, avocado, cupuaçu, plus other nourishing ingredients to ease inflammation related to dryness and itchiness without clogging your pores.
Like every product in our Better Not Younger Shop, both masks were explicitly designed to address the unique hair and scalp challenges that come with age.
Use either the Hair Redemption or the Silver Lining masque after shampooing in place of your conditioner—as often as needed for your hair type.
Spread a small (dime- or quarter-sized) amount through your hair. Massage from root to tip for one to three minutes, and then rinse thoroughly with cool water.
Once you determine how your hair responds to deep conditioning, incorporate our hair mask as a regular part of your total hair-care routine.
BNY Has the Solution to Your Aging Hair Challenges
Achieve the thickest, healthiest hair no matter your age using Better Not Younger's holistic hair care system. With dietary supplements, shampoos, conditioners, heat protection spray, hair thickeners, and more — Better Not Younger is here to help you overcome all of your aging hair challenges.
You can find all of our scalp and hair health solutions on our Shop page. Need help finding the right products? Drop us a line with any questions you may have, and don't forget to complete our Better Hair Quiz.
Tell us: How often do you use a hair mask? Share in the comments below!