We have come a long way in our search for straight hair. While the first straightener was invented in 1909, there were days of using an ironing board to smooth out the frizz, and now we have pretty much any tool and product under the sun promising sleeker strands whenever we want. But if you’re looking for a more permanent solution, a.k.a. a break from using a hot flat iron regularly, there’s one chemical treatment you can turn to: Japanese hair straightening.
Japanese hair straightening can be a solution to your styling woes if you want to cut your routine down and stick to one hairstyle for months on end. As a child of the early aughts and mid-2010s, I got this treatment twice a year, every year, up until I graduated college. Just as I was never stressed about what to wear to school thanks to a mandated uniform, rarely did I ever have to worry about how to style my already sleek and shiny hair. But Japanese hair straightening isn’t a one-size-fits-all treatment, and there are a couple of things you should know before making the a commitment. Because it is a pretty big one where hair is concerned.
What is Japanese hair straightening?
New York City-based board-certified dermatologist Hadley King, MD, says Japanese hair straightening (also called thermal reconditioning) is a chemical hair treatment that restructures bonds in your hair strands to straighten and smooth them out. Dr. King explains that the process uses a combination of chemical solution and heat to break and reform the disulfide bonds in hair to permanently change the structure until your hair grows out.
While it sounds similar to other chemical treatments, such as the Brazilian blowout or keratin-based treatments, it is different from the rest. Angela J. Lamb, MD, associate professor in the department of dermatology at Mount Sinai’s Icahn School of Medicine, says that a Brazilian blowout and keratin treatment are not permanent solutions, with more flexibility in styling.
“They’re all smoothing treatments, but they work very differently,” adds celebrity hairstylist Joseph Maine. “Japanese straightening permanently changes the structure of the hair, and it’s a full chemical process, not a coating. Brazilian blowouts and keratin treatments are semi-permanent; they smooth frizz and add shine, but they wash out over time and don’t make the hair pin-straight.”
The Benefits
One of the biggest benefits of Japanese hair straightening, says Dr. Lamb, is that hair becomes permanently straight. She says that it provides easy styling to those who are looking for a consistently sleek, straight look. Maine agrees and adds that it will give you lasting shine and can be resistant to humidity and frizz.
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