What Causes Hair Static and 7 Ways to Fight it

by | Apr 12, 2023 | Hair

Frizz and flyaways happen to the best of us. No matter how often we moisturise our hair during the winter, escaping static electricity seems impossible. To better understand how to tame your hair static, you need to know a little bit more about what causes it.

What Causes Hair Static?

Static electricity is created when two, unlike objects, rub against each other. The process causes electrons from one object to be transferred to the other. The object that loses the electrons gets a positive charge, while the object that gains electrons get a negative charge. Take hat hair for instance. When the material of your hat rubs against the strands of your hair, they swap electrons. This swap causes a kind of electric charge to build upon your hair. If there is humidity in the air, the charge can usually just go away. However, if there isn’t any humidity or moisture in your hair, like on a dry winter morning, the charge causes your strands to repel from one another like a magnet. In short, your hair is literally so full of electrons that it can’t stand itself. Now, that you know what causes static electricity lets talk about ways that you can fight it.

Here Are Seven Ways to Fight Off Static Electricity in Your Hair

1. Turn to Hair Oils

One of the reasons that your hair is conducting an electric charge is that it’s dehydrated. During the winter, our strands can become dry due to a lack of moisture in the air. Needless to say, the cold winter winds and warm indoor heat are not doing your hair any favours. Give your hair some TLC by moisturising your strands with smoothing hair oil. We would recommend Macadamia oil.

2. Is it Time to Upgrade Your Hairdryer?

In order to help balance your hair’s natural charge, try using an ionic hairdryer when drying your strands. Ionic dryers work by emitting negative ions to help separate water molecules. This process not only helps to dry your hair faster but also helps to reduce heat damage that could dry out your strands.

3. Fight Frizz

Don’t let flyaways get the best of your hair. Pop some of KMS’s Tame Frizz De-Frizz oil onto the hair to instantly smooth and tame static. The De-Frizz line helps to enhance smoothness, manageability and shine.

4. Swap Out Your Hat

It’s time to ditch your cotton-lined or acrylic hats in favour of options with silk or satin lining. By having a smoother fabric on your hair, your strands can lie flatter and won’t be roughened up by the material. Instead, your hair will glide across the material, which will help to prevent frizz and dreaded hat hair.

5. Comb With Hairspray

Don’t leave your house without hairspray or a metal comb this winter. They are the perfect travel companions for taming your mane during the colder months. Simply spray your metal comb with hairspray and comb from root to tip. The hairspray will help to tame any flyaways without causing the hair to feel crunchy or hard. Also, the metal comb itself helps to remove any built-up static in your hair as the static will attach to the metal rather than your strands. How cool is that?

Not sure which hairspray is best for you? Check out our product page and see our favourite brands.

6. Constantly Condition

Another great way to feed your hair the moisture it needs is by using a leave-in conditioner throughout the winter. The product will help to hydrate the strands and defend them against varying temperatures and weather conditions. Simply spray the product throughout your strands and comb through to evenly distribute. If you have hair that’s on the coarse side and is in need of some intense nourishment you can also try using a leave-in moisturising lotion which can hydrate parched strands without weighing them down. We recommend KMS’s Tame Frizz Smoothing Lotion.

7. Replenish Hair's Moisture

You may find that harsh winter weather can zap your hair of its moisture and leave it feeling dry. If this is the case, try using a shampoo that contains Argan oil to soften brittle hair and leave it feeling manageable. For hair that’s severely dry and coarse, a superfood-infused moisturising shampoo that contains hydrating aloe vera gel can be helpful for bringing it back to life and minimising static. We would recommend Redken’s All Soft Mega range for a moisturising treat for the hair.