Imagine having straight hair for years, perhaps just a bit wavy but never frizzy. Then, all of a sudden, you find yourself with a different head of hair—curly, full of curls you’ve never had. This change in hair texture can start from the root, turning flat length into lively spirals. No photos could ever fully document this transformation—it’s something you have to see to believe.
Many factors are responsible for such drastic changes. Hormones play a significant role, especially in pregnant or menopausal women, altering the shape of the hair follicle and causing the hair to change texture.
Likewise, treatments like chemotherapy or even a supposedly permanent perm can permanently alter one’s hair texture. This phenomenon leaves many grappling with new challenges in how to style their hair, often embarking on a long journey of trial and error.
What Causes Straight Hair to Become Curly? The Answer
Straight hair can become curly due to various factors, primarily changes in hair follicle shape. Genetics play a crucial role, as the shape of hair follicles is inherited and can vary within a family. Hormonal changes, such as those during puberty, pregnancy, or menopause, can also alter hair texture. Environmental factors like humidity and diet, as well as the use of certain medications, can influence hair structure. Additionally, aging and muscle tone changes in the scalp contribute to the transformation. Each of these elements interacts to potentially change straight hair into curls over time.Styling Newly Curly Hair
As you navigate this new reality, finding the right way to style your curly hair can be daunting. Yet, it’s also an opportunity to fall in love with your curls, just as I did, leading me to start my own blog, Hair Romance, to share my experiences and solutions. It’s about embracing this new part of your identity, learning from each styling attempt, and eventually mastering the art of curly hair care.
Imagine having straight hair for years, perhaps just a bit wavy but never frizzy. Then, all of a sudden, you find yourself with a different head of hair—curly, full of curls you’ve never had. This change in hair texture can start from the root, turning flat length into lively spirals. No photos could ever fully document this transformation—it’s something you have to see to believe.
Many factors are responsible for such drastic changes. Hormones play a significant role, especially in pregnant or menopausal women, altering the shape of the hair follicle and causing the hair to change texture.
Likewise, treatments like chemotherapy or even a supposedly permanent perm can permanently alter one’s hair texture. This phenomenon leaves many grappling with new challenges in how to style their hair, often embarking on a long journey of trial and error.
As you navigate this new reality, finding the right way to style your curly hair can be daunting. Yet, it’s also an opportunity to fall in love with your curls, just as I did, leading me to start my own blog, TwistyTreasure to share my experiences and solutions. It’s about embracing this new part of your identity, learning from each styling attempt, and eventually mastering the art of curly hair care.
Which Thing Will Define the Hair Texture?
The shape of your hair follicle plays a crucial role in determining whether your hair is straight or curly. If the follicle is round and thick, the hair strand tends to be straight because the amino acids known as cysteines do not gather close enough to form tight bonds. Conversely, if the follicle is flat and thinner, these cysteines are more likely to bond together, pulling the strands into ringlets.
The protein keratin, which comprises amino acids, significantly affects how these bonds increase the chance that the hair will bend or curl. This is akin to comparing a round string to a flat ribbon; the latter is more malleable and better shaped into a curl.
As your hair grows, these microscopic elements interact continuously, resulting in the hair texture you see. Understanding this can help those experiencing changes in their hair texture, as genes also influence this complex interaction, leading to variations in hair patterns over time or under different conditions.
So we can say that any changes in the hair follicle eventually lead to temporary or permanent changes in the hair structure from straight to curl or vice versa.
What Causes Straight Hair to Become Curly?
Straight hair becomes twisty primarily due to changes in the shape of the hair follicle. If the follicle is flat and oval-shaped, the hair grows in spirals, creating curls. Hormonal changes, certain medications, and even environmental factors can alter the follicle’s structure. Genetics also play a significant role, in influencing how these traits manifest over a person’s lifetime.
So let’s find out one by one the possible etiological factors that contribute to this change:
Genetics
The texture of your hair is mainly determined by your DNA. The gene for curly hair is not completely dominant, which means you can carry the curly hair gene without it being activated. This results in waves and curls that remain dormant until triggered.
A child can have a different hair texture than their parents because the combination of traits from both parents can lead to wavy hair. When hair grows, it emerges from tiny holes or pores in the skin called hair follicles. The shape of these hair follicles is influenced by your genes.
For example, perfectly round follicles produce straight hair, while oval-shaped follicles lead to curly hair. Sometimes, a mix of round follicle DNA and oval follicle DNA results in wavy hair, showcasing incomplete dominance where there is a middle version of the trait.
Researchers have found that activating specific genes can even change hair in animals like pigs from straight to curly. This fascinating interaction of genes and hair follicles explains why the same family can have members with straight hair, curly hair, or wavy hair.
Genes Can Turn On/Off
Genes play a significant role in the hair texture we have. Scientists know that certain genes can influence whether we have curly hair or straight hair, but they still don’t fully understand all the genes that contribute to this trait. Sometimes, these genes are turned on, and other times they are turned off. This means the cells in our body might have the instruction manuals for curly hair, but these instructions are not always in use.
Throughout a person’s lifetime, many factors can cause these genes to turn on or off. Hormones are a major influence, sending chemical signals between body parts and changing hormone levels. For instance, during puberty or pregnancy, the body produces different amounts of hormones like estrogen and progesterone, leading to changes in hair texture.
Women often notice their hair becoming thicker and glossier during pregnancy as a result of increased levels of these hormones. Other factors like age, nutrition, temperature, and sun exposure also play a role in these changes.
Hormonal Shifts
Estrogen is a key hormone responsible for many feminine traits such as breast development, wider hips, and even hair curls. When estrogen levels fluctuate during different life stages like pregnancy or menopause, the texture of hair can change.
During puberty, the rise in estrogen can cause straight hair to become wavy or curly. Similarly, drops in estrogen after childbirth or during perimenopause can transform straight hair into waves or curls due to changes in the hair follicles’ shape.
Interestingly, testosterone, a male sex hormone present in women as well, can also influence hair texture. Higher testosterone levels during pregnancy or aging can make straight hair wavier by altering the shape of the hair follicles.
Conversely, some women might see their curls loosening over time due to decreasing testosterone levels. Other hormones like prolactin, growth hormone, and cortisol can also impact hair texture, leading to changes during various life events.
Thyroxine and Triiodothyronine, produced by the thyroid gland, are essential hormones affecting hair. Clinically, doctors have observed that thyroid abnormalities like hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism can lead to hair texture and volume changes.
For instance, people with hypothyroidism might notice dry, brittle hair due to insufficient hormones, while those with hyperthyroidism often find their hair becoming thinner, brittle, and oily. Androgens, another group of male sex hormones, increase during puberty in both boys and girls, contributing to body hair and potential balding in males. In females, a rise in androgens can change the hair follicle shape from round to flat, turning straight hair into curls.
Researchers have found that insulin, known as the body’s sugar regulator, can be linked to hair texture changes. Scientists studying senior women with insulin resistance discovered strong connections between insulin resistance and androgenic alopecia, or severe hair loss.
Diet Changes
Eating too many processed foods, processed sugars, and unhealthy fats can make your hair brittle, causing it to become more wavy. To maintain the straightness and strength of your hair, it’s important to consume a balanced diet that includes healthy fats and proteins. These nutrients help keep your hair strong and less likely to lose its natural texture.
Permanent Perm
An adult with curly hair might claim their ringlets are from a perm they had as a child. This could be true, especially if they got their first perm during a hormonal change. It’s possible for a perm to permanently change the structure of the hair follicle. Perms use heat and chemicals to break down and re-configure the protein bonds in the follicle and the strand.
The common chemicals in perms, like ammonium thioglycolate, are responsible for breaking down the sulfur or disulphide bonds in the hair protein. Hydrogen peroxide then oxidizes these bonds back together in a new curly configuration. These chemicals can cause permanent damage to the hair follicle, resulting in hair that is forever changed.
Change in Muscle Tone
Hormones can greatly impact the quality of your hair by affecting your muscle tone, including that of your scalp. This change in muscle tone can affect the shape of your hair follicles and their direction of growth.
Typically, straight hair follicles grow straight out, while curly hair follicles have a hook shape. This structural difference is what leads to straight hair becoming curly when there is a change in the underlying factors affecting the hair’s growth and development.
Change in Humidity
Increased humidity can cause water molecules in the air to attach to each strand of hair, leading to frizz and waves. If you’ve recently moved to a new city or climate with higher humidity, this could be the reason for the change in your hair texture. Humidity affects how hair behaves, making even the straightest hair start to wave or curl due to the extra moisture in the air.
Hair tends to curl or wave when it’s humid outside. This happens because humid air has a lot of water molecules floating around. Each water molecule has a positively and negatively charged side, acting like tiny magnets. The proteins in your hair react similarly. Walking into a humid room is like surrounding your hair with small magnets that pull it in different directions. This can make your hair curly or wavy for the day.
Use of Medication
Chemotherapy has notably visible effects on hair, primarily because it kills rapidly dividing cells, including hair follicles, leading to hair loss.. Besides this, chemotherapy can have genetic effects that influence the hair follicle shape, causing hair to regrow with a different shape during the first few cycles of hair regrowth. Some medications can even cause curly hair. For example, chemo is an extreme example, but I’ve heard that even accurate dosages can change your hair texture.
Certain medications and vitamins can also affect hair growth. People who survive cancer and undergo chemotherapy may find that their hair grows back with a different texture than before treatment. This change is due to the effects of the treatment on the hair follicles and their ability to produce hair with the same characteristics as before.
Aging
As we age, our hair often changes. Over time, various factors like hormonal changes and genetic predispositions contribute to the loss of its natural straightness. Gray hair, which tends to be thicker and more brittle, can significantly affect the overall texture of your hair. You might notice that the cluster of grey hairs on your head feels different from the rest of your gorgeous locks.
After significant changes in the body, some people experience their hair grow in unique patterns. This transformation can result in the development of curly hair where it once was straight.
Set A New Story of Hair Care
When it comes to embracing your hair’s changing texture, it’s essential to believe in the process and make it fun. Learning to style your newly grown curly hair can be a trial and error period, but with time, you will learn what your hair needs to be perfectly styled. It’s all part of the beauty journey.
Investing in a hair care routine that is specifically designed to nurture your curls makes a huge difference and can make you feel like a stunning goddess. Using a system that promotes healthy growth and keeps your hair hydrated helps your curls thrive. Some people may find they need a new batch of hydrating or moisturizing products to prevent their curls from feeling dry. A little love goes a long way in caring for wavy and curly hair.
FAQs
What Causes Straight Hair to Become Curly?
Hair can change during puberty, pregnancy, or after chemotherapy. This is related to the genetics of hair shape, an example of incomplete dominance, where there is a middle version of the trait. For hair, we have curly hair and straight hair genes.
Can Straight Hair Turn Curly with Age?
If you have straight hair, you can expect it to become slightly curlier as you age.
What causes straight hair to grow curly?
Various factors cause straight hair to grow curly including genetics, hormonal shifts, humidity, permanent perming, aging, pregnancy, menopause, etc
Can Straight Hair Turn Curly Permanently?
It is possible to change the texture of your hair from straight to curly through a process known as texturizing or perming. This treatment uses chemicals to alter the structure of the hair strands and create a curly or wavy pattern.
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