Sleeping with wet hair: do's & don'ts

Many people love to take a hot shower before going to sleep. The only question: is sleeping with wet hair good for you? We asked our Keune hair experts. Discover the do's and don'ts for sleeping with wet hair.

The Keune hair experts advise you not to go to sleep with wet hair. Your hair is a lot more fragile when it's wet.

When your hair is wet, your hair cuticles open. This allows the water to enter. When the water stays in your hair for a long time, your hair can swell. You can compare it with roof tiles; if you blow-dry the hair smooth, your hair cuticles lie neatly over each other. When you go to sleep with wet hair, your hair cuticles go in all directions - as if the roof tiles are uneven. This is because you scrape hair all over your pillow. This will break your hair and give you a frizzy look.

In addition, sleeping with wet hair is not good for your scalp. Your scalp remains moist, causing the skin to dry out. This puts you at an increased risk of eczema.

If you decide to shower and wash your hair at night, make sure you have enough time to dry your hair. You can do this by, for example, taking a shower a little earlier and letting your hair dry in the open air. Or you can blow dry your hair after showering and use a good heat protectant. Also, make sure to dry your scalp well with your towel. By taking a little more time for this, you don't have to sleep with wet hair and you keep beautiful hair.

But can sleep with wet hair if you put it in a braid or bun? That's not a very wise thing to do either. It is best to sleep with loose hair. If you are going to braid it or put it in a bun, it squeezes the hair cuticles together. This prevents the moisture in your hair from evaporating. It results in dry hair and you take the elasticity out of your hair. With dry and loose hair, your hair springs back to its natural shape.

But what about the heatless waves videos on TikTok? Don't you also make this by going to sleep with wet hair? Curling your hair with a curling iron as well as curling your hair "naturally" with wet hair is not the best thing you can do for your hair. Use a good heat protectant for your hair when you use a curling iron. Or make sure you use good care products and smooth your hair cuticles as much as possible before wrapping it around a band.

An extra tip is to use a satin pillowcase instead of a cotton pillowcase. Satin pillowcases are softer and therefore ensure that your hair chafes less on the pillowcase.

Try to avoid brushing/combing your hair when it is wet. Therefore, brush out the tangles before showering and only brush or comb it again when it is dry. Do you still want to run a comb through it when it's wet? Then use a wide-tooth comb.