Is Sea Salt Spray Bad For Your Hair?

Sea salt spray has become the go-to hair product for effortless, textured hairstyles. In addition to creating beachy waves, it can be used to add volume and style and refresh second-day hair. It holds like a hairspray and refreshes like a dry shampoo. Plus, it smells like vacation in a bottle. It’s a multitasking superhero, but is sea salt spray bad for your hair? Salt is dehydrating afterall, so is it really a good idea to be putting it in your hair? If you use sea salt spray, we’re breaking down everything you need to know about it; including the pros, the cons and the best tips for using sea salt spray effectively. Read ahead for all the sea salt spray details!

Sea salt spray is one of the most versatile styling products. Below are some the benefits:

• It creates beachy waves on straight or fine hair types
  
• It enhances waves and curls in naturally curly hair
  
• It adds texture to all hair types
  
• It adds volume and body to all hair types
  
• It reduces frizz
  
• It perks up lifeless, thinning hair
  
• It absorbs grease and refreshes oily hair 
  
• It adds grip for better hold in hairstyles like updos and braids
  
• It tames thick hair
  
• It can be used in place of wax or pomade for styling short hair
  

Sea salt spray is a hairspray that contains sea salt or saltwater. The salt absorbs moisture and gets trapped inside the hair cuticles. This adds volume and the texture to the hair. It also dries it. So while there's no indication or evidence suggesting that sea salt spray is bad for your hair, it can have the following negative effects if you use it too frequently:

• It depletes moisture. Salt disrupts the hair’s structure by extracting its water content. Because your hair is made of mostly water (and proteins), this leads to the structural changes to the hair shaft you see as bendy, beachy waves. It also leads to fragile strands that are prone to breakage. Moisture is a must for strong, healthy hair.
• It fades color. Not only is dehydrated hair rougher, less manageable and susceptible to breakage, but it also can’t hold on to color. As salt removes the hair’s natural moisture, it pulls out the pigment in the process. Salt also acts as an exfoliant, directly affecting hair color.
• It disrupts the cuticle. As the salt extracts the moisture from the strand, it disrupts the cuticle in the process. This roughing up of the cuticle makes strands more vulnerable to environmental and styling damage. This leads to frizzy hair, split ends and breakage- especially in curly hair.

To combat the drying effect on your hair strands while you’re using a salt spray, use a moisturizing shampoo and conditioner. Swap in a clarifying shampoo weekly to prevent salt buildup on your hair and scalp. Because you’re depleting moisture, add it back in with a weekly hydrating hair mask. To enhance your natural curl and avoid drying out your strands too much (leading to breakage) follow these other tips when using sea salt spray.

Because of how drying salt is, don’t overuse your sea salt spray; and use it sparingly, a little goes a long with this product!

Start with freshly washed hair or re-wet second or third day hair before styling with sea salt spray. It works best on wet stands.

Removing knots and tangles allows the salt to enter the hair shaft easier.

Sea salt sprays contain pisces of salt that can settle over time. Before you start spritzing, shake it to make sure the formula is properly mixed.

It’s a good idea to combine your sea salt spray with a leave-in conditioner, detangler, or hair serum to avoid stripping away too much of your hair’s moisture and shine. 

Spritz your hair one section at a time, focusing on the roots and mid-length of your strands. Avoid the ends as they’re more likely to get dried out. 

Unlike using a dry shampoo, spraying too close to your scalp can cause residue to build up and make your strands sticky.

Avoid using heating tools too frequently and use a heat protectant when you do.

If you must blow-dry, use a diffuser to minimize heat damage. Tilt your head and place the diffuser on your roots, gently massaging the diffuser’s prongs on your hair. 

In addition to hair masking, lather your hair in coconut oil weekly and let it sit for at least 20 minutes — or cover your hair with a shower cap and let it sit overnight.

Drinking 2-3 liters of water per day will hydrate your strands from the inside out.

The most optimal method for adding texture and volume to hair differs from person to person. In addition to sea salt spray, there are lots of alternatives for gettting big volume. These are a few of our favorite products and styling hacks for mimicking the effects of a sea salt styling product. 

This waterless style extender absorbs oil and impurities leaving behind a soft and natural finish. It adds volume at the root and helps to prolong the duration of a hairstyle.

This styling spray gives the hair an instant full-bodied and tousled look without weighing it down. It gives a piecey, defined texture and hold.

For adding airy volume to any type of hair, this mousse is perfect for giving your hair light and natural-looking body.

This dry shampoo spray refreshes and adds volume as it absorbs excess oil, immediately giving body to the hair so that it looks full and airy.

For instant, long-lasting volume and workable texture, this dust creates structured hold, fullness and refreshes day-old styles without leaving any residue.

Use a teasing comb to section off the top of your hair from your temple to the back of your head. Starting in the back, take an inch-wide section and hold the comb horizontally as you lightly press the comb in from the back and push down, angling slightly. Continue the same technique throughout the hair and finish by combing the hair on top to smooth it out. 

If you normally part your hair on the left side, try parting it on the right. Your hair gets used to laying the way you part it, so flipping it to the other direction will make your roots stand up. 

Too much conditioner at the roots can weigh your hair down drastically. Apply it only at the ends of your hair. Unless you have knots, in which case you can use conditioner at the roots but only if you follow up with another shampoo to remove residue.  

Sea salt spray is a trusted styling product for beachy waves and textured hairstyles. It’s great for adding instant texture and volume to your hair, enhancing your hair's natural curl pattern, and even refreshing second and third day hairstyles. It’s one of the most versatile hair products to have in your collection, but sea salt spray can dehydrate your hair, making it dry, brittle and prone to damage. If your hair tends to be very dry, to begin with, sea salt spray may not be the best product for you. Most hair types can benefit from using sea salt spray though and in most cases the advantages far outweigh the very minor disadvantages — which can be remedied with a proper hydrating and conditioning routine. Remember to incorporate our hair tips to keep your strands moisturized and use only a high-quality sea salt spray like the one from Davines.

by Jaclyn LaBadia, featured contributor