Do Dreadlocks Ruin Your Hair? Unveiling the Truth About Locs and Hair Health

Dreadlocks, also known as locs, are an ancient and natural hairstyle with a rich history. They represent a commitment and a personal statement. However, a common question arises: do dreadlocks ruin your hair? Many people wonder if a bunch of knots all over your head can be good for your hair. The short answer is no, dreadlocks as a hairstyle actually help protect your hair. The truth is more nuanced. While dreadlocks themselves aren't inherently damaging, certain practices and neglect can lead to problems. This article explores the potential pitfalls and offers guidance on maintaining healthy locs.

Dreadlocks as a Protective Hairstyle

Dreadlocks are a protective hairstyle, relatively speaking when it comes to protecting hair follicles. Before diving into the potential damage, it's important to acknowledge the protective qualities of dreadlocks. Dreadlocks as a hairstyle actually help protect your hair. When properly cared for, locs can shield hair from environmental stressors and reduce the need for frequent manipulation, which can minimize breakage.

Before getting dreadlocks, many people subject their hair to damaging practices like chemical dyes, heat styling, and daily washing. As the author experienced, such treatments can leave hair dry, brittle, and prone to breakage. Dreadlocks can offer a break from these harsh treatments, allowing hair to recover and thrive.

How Dreadlocks Can Damage Your Hair

Dreadlocks can damage your hair, it's true. The key to healthy locs lies in proper care and maintenance. Here's a breakdown of common issues and how to address them:

1. Traction Alopecia: The Peril of Tightness

Tight pulling of the roots can happen just at the beginning of your loc journey (as I experienced when I got my dreads installed) or for extended periods of time. Traction alopecia, or hair loss caused by repetitive pulling on the hair follicles, is a significant concern for individuals with dreadlocks. This can be caused by over-styling your hair, pulling it back into ponytails or buns, and from maintenance when the hair is being pulled too close to the root. If you sever these hair follicles temporarily, it is likely that your hair will grow back. On the other hand, if the pulling is fairly constant, you may have thinner hair or no hair growing in those places. You should be extra cautious if your roots have been suffering this way for a long time.

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How to Prevent and Reverse Traction Alopecia:

• Loosen Up: One of the best ways to cause less tension to your scalp is to wear your hair loosely. Stop styling your hair (for a while- not forever), especially the first few days after maintenance when your head is still sore.
• Gentle Styles: For those who need to keep their hair pulled back because of work or other reasons, you should avoid tight hairstyles and use a headband or beanie instead. You can use anything that will not apply too much pressure to your roots.
• Scalp Massage: To reverse some of the hair loss damage, I recommend gently massaging the affected area with a few drops of jojoba oil mixed with lavender or cedarwood essential oil. Do this once or twice a week.
• Professional Help: In the event of severe hair loss, the best idea would be to schedule an appointment with a dermatologist who will be able to provide you with treatment options that are appropriate for your situation specifically.

2. Over-Manipulation: When Too Much Love Hurts

Dreadlocks are neither a low maintenance nor a high maintenance hairstyle, they’re somewhere in between. Balance is key! During the first few months of my dread journey, I was obsessed with keeping my roots neat. I always wanted to tame the frizz, loose strands, and new growth. I quickly learned that twisting, rubbing, and fiddling with your hair too much can cause thinning and damage at the root. Some dreadlocking methods (crochet, twist & rip, etc) can also have very damaging effects on the hair because if done too harshly, they can result in hair breakage.

How to Prevent Damage from Over-Manipulation:

• Leave Your Roots Alone: The best solution for this is to give your roots a break. If you are messing with them unconsciously, tell someone to point it out to you.
• Space Out Maintenance: It’s so much easier said than done, but give your head some time to rest in between maintenance sessions and allow your scalp to grow hair normally. Maintain your locs and roots no sooner than every 6 to 8 weeks. Resist the urge to tame the new growth right away.

3. Itchy Scalp: Scratching Can Lead to Scarring

Itchy scalp is one of the better-known “side-effects” of dreadlocks. Almost every person will have itchiness at some point in their journey but there are many ways to minimize it. Excessive itchiness can cause inflammation and scarring on the scalp. It can also lead to permanent balding in the areas that are more frequently scratched.

How to Prevent and Reverse Itchy Scalp:

• Hydration is Key: There are various methods that alleviate an itchy scalp. First and foremost, hydration is super important. Skin is our largest organ and when we’re dehydrated, we may experience dry skin throughout our body, including our head. Drinking a few more glasses of water every day should greatly minimize the itch if this issue is caused by dryness.
• Tea Tree Oil: Tea tree essential oil can improve scalp health, so consider adding it to your shampoo.
• Natural Remedies: Also, 100% pure aloe vera applied to the scalp and an occasional apple cider vinegar rinse after washing your hair will help to reduce itchiness.
• Address the Issue Promptly: Unfortunately, there’s no way to reverse permanent hair loss, so if you notice yourself scratching your scalp way too much, do something about it now!

4. Weight and Tension: The Strain of Long Locs

Long dreads can cause your roots to pull at your scalp, causing gradual hair loss as well as headaches and neck pain. Your locs can get really heavy when they’re wet and when there’s too much product build-up, specifically from wax. The long-term strain on the scalp from heavy locs can leave you with a receding hairline.

How to Prevent Weight-Related Issues:

• Trim Your Locs: If the heaviness is due to long hair, you can reduce some of the weight of the dreads by cutting them down a few inches.
• Strategic Styling: If you’re anything like me though and you love having long dreadlocks, then you can brush a few of them out around the frame of your face. The loose hair should make a difference, at least in preventing hair thinning around the scalp’s most vulnerable area. One other thing you can try is a dread hawk, in which you would shave the sides of your hair. I haven’t tried that style out myself but it looks amazing on the people I’ve seen it on. Usually they shave a design on the sides as well, so it adds another element to the style.
• Deep Cleansing: If the added weight is due to product build-up, do a deep cleanse on your dreads and use a residue-free shampoo weekly. If the build-up is severe, you may have to go to a professional loctician to have it washed off. Once you have removed the majority of the build-up in your locs, discontinue using products that leave residue. Here’s a list of products you should never use in your locs.

5. The Perils of Dyeing Dreadlocks

Dying your hair not only adds chemicals to your locs but also strips your hair of its natural oils and moisture. Dying normal hair is damaging but dying dreadlocks is even worse because it’s nearly impossible to wash off the inner core of the dread completely. In other words, the dye may continue to ruin your hair long after you have colored it. I know several people who have dyed their dreads and instantly regretted it. Do so at your own risk.

How to Prevent Dye Damage:

• Avoid Chemical Dyes: The only way to prevent this is by steering clear from chemical dyes completely! If you want healthy locs, embrace your natural color, get dreadlock extensions in the color you desire, or use henna. Dyes are extremely damaging to your hair, it doesn’t matter who does it- whether it’s you or a professional. There is no remedy or reversal to this type of damage.

6. Synthetic Dreadlock Extensions

It is super important that you treat your synthetic dreads before installing them, even if the manufacturer claims to have done so already. To do this, neatly hang the extensions in a hanger, this way they won’t get tangled. Then, soak them in a blend of boiling water and apple cider vinegar for at least 15 minutes. If you are allergic to both synthetic and wool materials, you might want to consider trying 100% human hair loc extensions. Even though they’re pricey, it might be worth it!

Read also: Comprehensive Dreadlock Guide

Growing Dreadlocks: A Step-by-Step Guide

So, before we discuss how dreadlocks can damage your hair (mostly via grooming mismanagement, let's briefly discuss how you grow dreadlocks. A dreadlock is a rope-like growth of hair that grows naturally via a matting and follicle locking process. The exterior of the dreadlock will have a matted, fuzzy, and textured feel. To start the dreadlock process, you should have at least three inches of hair or more. Divide sections of hair at the scalp into small or large squares. You can then start twisting each strand length between your fingers and thumb. Or you can roll your hair between your palms. Or you can backcomb, hold your hair by the end and come back towards the scalp. It will take eight months to 24 months to grow dreadlocks, depending on the length of your hair. In the beginning, you need to apply an organic dreadlock gel to each dread and twist. Twist each dreadlock strand so that they assume that beginning spiral shape. Once your dreadlocks start matting, you don't need to twist them every day. You could twist them once a week or once a month. Your hair washing frequency is a personal preference, but you do not need to wash your dreadlocks daily. You could wash them once or twice a week. What's important is to dry your dreadlocks entirely after washing.

Choosing the Right Products

Only use all-natural and organic hair products to maintain your dreadlocks. Your dreadlocks are a sponge for moisture and any non-organic grooming products you use.

The Importance of Professional Detangling Services

Many hairstylists who specialize in dreadlocks now offer detangling services. After a few years, the base of your dreadlocks becomes an irretrievably fused mass of matted hair follicles. Be 100% sure before you start developing dreadlocks.

Hair as a Reflection of Self

The state of your hair, its cleanliness, its style, and how you accessorize a clothing aesthetic to match it tells the story of who you are and what you believe in. Your hairstyle talks for you. And it talks for you just as much as your wardrobe style, if not a lot more. The status of your hair will betray your basic personality. About 19% of people spend ten to 25 minutes styling their hair daily. In a recent study by American Salon magazine, over 80% of the participants said that the aesthetics and health of their hair heavily influenced their personality and outlook on life. The point here is that if you take care of your hair, then it will always take care of you.

Read also: Treating Dandruff in Dreadlocks

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