EP04: Ultimate Tips for Caring Hair Extensions [Suncream]

Sunscreen is essential for protecting your skin, but it’s important to be cautious when it comes to your hair extensions. Some sunscreens contain chemicals that can damage your extensions or even change their color. UV rays from the sun can also be harmful to your hair, so it’s important to take the right steps to protect your extensions when you're out in the sun.

How Does Sunscreen Affect Hair Extensions?

While we all know that sunscreen can stain clothes, it can also affect your hair extensions. For those with blonde or light-colored extensions, the risk of discoloration is higher. Over time, exposure to certain sunscreens can cause blonde hair to take on a pink or orange hue, especially at the ends. Darker hair extensions may experience a slight color change, but it’s usually not as noticeable as with blonde hair that has undergone more processing.

What in Sunscreen Causes Hair Discoloration?

Two ingredients commonly found in sunscreens can be responsible for causing discoloration in hair extensions:

Avobenzone: This oil-soluble ingredient is used in many sunscreens to absorb the full spectrum of UVA rays.

Octocrylene: This ingredient is added as a stabilizer to prevent Avobenzone from degrading in sunlight.

These chemicals, when absorbed by the hair and exposed to UV light, can trigger a chemical reaction that leads to color changes in your hair extensions.

How to Protect Your Hair Extensions

To protect your hair, we recommend using mineral-based sunscreen products instead of conventional sunscreens. Mineral sunscreens do not contain Avobenzone and Octocrylene, which are responsible for causing color changes in hair.

Additionally, when you're out in the sun for extended periods, wearing a sun hat or treating your hair with a professional UV protection product can help minimize the damage caused by UV rays.