Curly hair strands cluster together and wind around themselves in a spiral or looser curl shape. This texture needs plenty of moisture to encourage a defined pattern, but a little frizz can give it personality. Wavy hair is when strands curve or form an "S" shape. Straight is when strands go straight up and down.
If it dries straight without a bend or curl, then you have straight hair (or type 1 hair as it is commonly referred to). If it dries with a slight curve or “S” shape, then it's considered wavy hair (type 2). If your hair dries with a defined curl or loop pattern, you have one of two curl types.
"Type 2C hair is considered a wave with attitude," says Sears. "It's more than a wave but less than a fully formed curl. While type 2C hair doesn't have the shape to be wrapped around the fingers, the wave pattern is strong, and with the right products, the hair can really pop."
Over 60% of the world's population has curly hair, yet most research to date has clumped hair into three catchall types - African, Asian, and Caucasian.
That shape depends on the shape of the hair follicle. This tiny structure guides the hair fiber up a sort of tube as it grows. The inside of the tube determines if the hair is curly or straight — ovals produce curly hair and circular tubes yield straight hair.
Human hair comes with all sorts of colors, textures and shapes. Notably, African hair is more coiled and dry; Asian hair is straighter and thicker; and Caucasian hair is somewhere in between with around 45% having straight hair, 40% having wavy hair, and 15% having curly hair.
An increase in androgens in females can actually change the shape of the hair follicle from round to flat and this can instigate a change in texture from straight to curly.
Less than 20% of people have naturally curly hair.
We believe one of the reasons is that super-straight hair — also known as type 1a hair — is so rare. In fact, it's the rarest hair type. Only 2% of the world's population has 1a hair. It's mostly found in people of Asian descent.
Wavy hair is not considered curly, despite the fact that it has a pronounced wave. It has neither a straight nor a curly appearance. It's just in the middle of straight and curly hair. While wavy hair is less susceptible to oil accumulation than straight hair, it is more liable to frizz.
Type 2A hair is the loosest of all wavy hair. Type 2A waves are loose and lax S-shaped waves and can sometimes be hard to determine if not styled properly. At the root, this curly type may be straight, but the shaft and/or ends of the hair have a slight bend that creates the wave.
Wavy Hair can be classified by three curl types; 2A - A slight wave to your hair. 2B - Medium Wave form in the hair. 2C - Wavy hair that starts to form ringlets, especially when hydrated (wet) and styled correctly.
3C hair is the curliest of the type 3 curly hair pattern. And since type 4 hair is considered coily instead of curly, type 3C hair is the curliest of curly hair. If you have 3C curls, your curls have the width of a pencil and are shaped like corkscrew-like ringlets. Type 3C hair is also very dense and full of volume.
“It can be tricky! But the best way to tell is by looking at the shape of your hair closer to the scalp. Hair that is wavy tends to have S-shaped strands, either tight or loose, and usually lays closer to the head. Curly hair has more corkscrew pattern and the curls have more 'lift' from the scalp.
Like all type 2 hair, 2c hair is wavy, but that often feels like a technicality. Your S-bend hair is thick and the waves start at the roots. If you've ever been confused about whether your hair is wavy or curly, it's likely you have the 2c hair type.
Curly hair is dominant, so someone is more likely to have curly or wavy hair if at least one of their parents does. Recent research points to trichohyalin, a protein in hair follicles, as having primary influence over hair curl. However, there are many genes contributing to hair curliness, most of them unknown.
A general observation across experiments was that straight hair was perceived as younger, healthier, and more attractive than wavy hair and darker shades (medium copper and brown) were perceived more positively than blonde hair.
The rarest natural hair colour is red, which makes up only one to two percent of the global population. You commonly see these hair colours in western and northern areas of Europe, especially Scotland and Ireland. However, natural redheads may not exist for much longer.
According to an article by evolutionary biology professor Mark Elgar, PhD, of the University of Melbourne, blue-eyed redheads are the absolute rarest, with 0.17% of the population having that combination of hair and eye color. So if that describes you, you're most likely one in a million (or more!).
Individuals of African ancestry, for example, are more likely to have curly hair due to the oval shape of their hair follicles. Additionally, the Keratin Associated Protein (KAP) cluster genes, responsible for the structure of keratin fibers, have been found to have variations in many African populations.
And while the results did vary, in the end we found that 58% of the fellas agreed that curlier is sexier.
Puberty, menopause and pregnancy all cause hormonal shifts that can make your tresses go from straight to curly hair. In fact, 40-50% of women experience major changes in their hair while pregnant or breastfeeding.
It's very normal to have a mix of curl patterns on the same head of hair. It starts with your genetics. You see, the gene for curly hair is not completely dominant. It can remain dormant until activated and then it changes the shape of the hair follicle which changes the hair that grows from it.
The number one rule to remember when you're trying to get your curls back is that moisture is your best friend. Hydrating shampoos, conditioners, leave-in treatments, and deep conditioning hair masks will give your hair a boost.