How Often Should You Actually Wash Your Hair? Here is What Dermatologists Personally Recommend
The Science Behind It: Because your hair strands have texture, it takes a significantly longer time for the natural sebum produced at your roots to travel down the lengths of your hair. This means your roots stay looking fresh for days, while your mid-lengths and tips get a healthy amount of natural conditioning.
The Expert Advice: Aim to shampoo your hair roughly two to three times a week. On the days in between, you can easily refresh your look by simply rinsing your hair with warm water, applying a light conditioner to the ends, or utilizing a high-quality dry shampoo at the roots to absorb minor oils.
- The Thick, Coiled, or Kinky Hair Type: Every 1 to 2 Weeks
If you have beautifully thick curls, tight coils, or kinky hair, your washing schedule looks drastically different from other hair types. For you, moisture is the absolute top priority.
The Science Behind It: The intricate, spiral shape of curly and coiled hair makes it incredibly difficult for natural scalp oils to travel down the hair strand at all. As a result, the scalp can feel relatively dry, and the hair strands themselves are naturally prone to dehydration, frizz, and breakage.
The Expert Advice: Dermatologists and textured-hair specialists recommend washing your hair once every week or even once every two weeks. Washing more frequently than that will completely strip your strands of the precious moisture they need to stay elastic and strong. In between shampoos, many people find incredible success with “co-washing”—using a moisturizing conditioner instead of a sudsy shampoo to gently cleanse and refresh the scalp without drying out the hair.
3 Lifestyle Factors That Instantly Change Your Schedule
While your hair texture is the baseline, your daily routine can throw a curveball into your washing schedule. Adjust your habits if any of the following apply to you:
- Intense Daily Workouts
If you smash out heavy cardio sessions or hot yoga classes multiple times a week, sweat builds up rapidly on your scalp. While sweat isn’t the same thing as oil, it can trap bacteria and leave a salty residue that dries out your hair. If you sweat heavily, rinse your scalp thoroughly with plain water after your workout and use a gentle conditioner, saving a full shampoo scrub for your regular scheduled days. - Heavy Use of Styling Products
If your daily look relies heavily on hairsprays, styling creams, waxes, or dry shampoos, you need to be careful. These products don’t just disappear; they build up on the scalp over time, creating a dull film and blocking follicles. If you use a lot of product, make sure to integrate a powerful clarifying shampoo into your routine once a week to completely reset your scalp health. - Your Age and Changing Hormones
Our oil glands are heavily regulated by hormones. Teenagers and young adults generally have incredibly active sebaceous glands, requiring more frequent washing. As we mature and step into our 40s, 50s, and beyond, our oil production naturally slows down significantly. If you notice your hair feeling progressively drier as the years go by, listen to your body and space your wash days further apart!
