Your afro sticks up due to its natural curly or coily texture, which grows upward, combined with factors like dryness, static electricity, genetics (cowlicks/swirls), and damage, causing it to lift away from the scalp instead of laying flat. Hair's structure (coils/zig-zags) and lack of weight at shorter lengths contribute to its volume and tendency to defy gravity, needing moisture and proper styling to manage.
Use Waxes and Cremes. If you're after a little extra hold for your 'fro, styling waxes and cremes are the way to go. You should, at all costs, avoid gels. Gels will strip your hair of its natural oils leaving it dry and susceptible to damage.
It may come in spirals, coils, loops, zig zags, or other curves. This is why it tends to grow up rather than down and can make gravity defying shapes like afros and puffs.
Hair sticks up mainly for 2 reasons. Your hair type and hair length. If you hair is very thick and dense, most likely it will stick up on the sides, if you have a cowlick or swirl that may also cause it to stick up. In this video I share some of my hair tips on how to prevent your hair from sticking up.
The rarest hair type is generally considered Type 1A, which is extremely fine, straight, and wispy, lacking any natural bends or waves, making it difficult to hold a curl but naturally sleek and prone to oiliness. While curly hair types (Type 3 & 4) are less common globally, 1A stands out as the least voluminous and textured straight hair, often seen in people of East Asian descent, though it's considered rare across all populations due to its unique fineness.
Kinky hair is a uniquely human characteristic, as most mammals have straight hair, including the earliest hominids. Robbins (2012) suggests that kinky hair may have initially evolved because of an adaptive need amongst humans' early hominid ancestors for protection against the intense UV radiation of the sun in Africa.
5 Signs of Damaged Hair
Caucasian hair grows at an average rate of 1.2 cm per month. African hair grows at a slower rate, approximately 0.9 cm per month. Asian hair has the fastest growth rate, averaging at 1.3 cm per month.
The more you scrub your natural hair clean, the more you are stripping it of its natural oils. Some may find that their scalp even begins to get more oily as the scalp overproduces the oils it is being stripped of. To mitigate this, we recommend washing natural hair about once a week.
The 2.25-inch rule is a popular guideline to determine if short hair suits you: place a pencil horizontally under your chin and a ruler vertically under your ear; if the measurement where they meet is less than 2.25 inches (5.5 cm) from the earlobe, short hair (like a bob or pixie) will likely flatter you, while a measurement over 2.25 inches suggests longer styles might be more suitable, based on your jawline's angle.
The 5.5 cm (or 2.25-inch) hair rule is a guideline to determine if short or long hair suits your face shape by measuring the angle of your jawline: place a ruler vertically under your ear and a pencil horizontally under your chin, intersecting at the jaw; if the measurement from the ear to the pencil is less than 5.5 cm, short hair is flattering, while more suggests longer hair is better, though face shape and hair texture are also key.
Signs of low porosity hair
10 hair care habits that can damage your hair
The "Big 3" hair loss treatments, popular in forums, are Minoxidil, Finasteride, and Ketoconazole shampoo, often combined to tackle hereditary hair loss (androgenetic alopecia) by boosting growth, blocking hormones, and reducing inflammation. Minoxidil (Rogaine) widens blood vessels, Finasteride (Propecia) blocks DHT, and Ketoconazole fights scalp fungus and inflammation, with microneedling sometimes considered a fourth addition.
Yes, all hair growing from your scalp is considered virgin until it is chemically treated. This makes new growth the healthiest, most natural hair you can have.
Type 1A hair is the rarest of them all. Straight as a pin and can be prone to greasiness. It can be difficult to style, is extremely fine and it does not hold a curl.
Mechanical properties vary among different ethnicities. Asian hair demonstrates the highest hardness and elastic modulus, followed by Caucasian and African hairs, respectively.
Those with fine hair or oily scalps typically need to shampoo more frequently, roughly once a day or once every other day. If you have thick, coarse, or chemically treated hair, you may benefit from a less frequent wash schedule.
The rarest hair type is generally considered Type 1A, which is extremely fine, straight, and wispy, lacking any natural bends or waves, making it difficult to hold a curl but naturally sleek and prone to oiliness. While curly hair types (Type 3 & 4) are less common globally, 1A stands out as the least voluminous and textured straight hair, often seen in people of East Asian descent, though it's considered rare across all populations due to its unique fineness.
There are several solutions:
Over-moisturized hair looks limp, mushy, and lacks definition, with curls falling flat and feeling overly soft, stretchy (without bouncing back), and heavy, often appearing stringy or greasy, even feeling cool and damp for a long time after washing due to moisture overload and a lack of protein balance.