Hair straightening is a hair styling technique which involves the flattening and straightening of hair in order to give it a smooth, streamlined, and 'sleek' appearance. It may be accomplished by using hair irons and hot comb

Hot comb

A hot comb is a metal comb that is used to straighten moderate or coarse hair and create a smoother hair texture.-Overview:...

s, chemical relaxer

Relaxer

A relaxer is a type of lotion or cream generally used by people with afro textured hair, which makes hair less curly and also easier to straighten by chemically "relaxing" the natural curls...

s, Japanese hair straightening, or Brazilian hair straightening

Brazilian hair straightening

Brazilian hair straightening is a method of temporarily straightening hair by sealing the hair with a liquid keratin and a preservative solution with a flat hair iron.- Characteristics :The Brazilian Keratin Treatment is a...

. In addition, some shampoo

Shampoo

Shampoo is a hair care product used for the removal of oils, dirt, skin particles, dandruff, environmental pollutants and other contaminant particles that gradually build up in hair...

s, and conditioners

Hair conditioner

Hair conditioner is a hair care product that alters the texture and appearance of hair.-History:For centuries, natural oils have been used to condition human hair. These natural products are still used today, including essential oils such as tea tree oil and carrier oils such as jojoba oil...

 and hair gel

Hair gel

Hair gel is a hairstyling product that is used to stiffen hair into a particular hairstyle. The results it produces are usually similar to, but stronger than, those of hair spray and hair wax, and weaker than those of hair glue.-Types:...

s can help to make hair temporarily straight. The process is often called "rebonding" in Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...

 (e.g. Malaysia and Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

).

Hair irons and hot combs can only temporarily modify hair texture, whereas relaxers and the other methods permanently alter the structure of the hair, although new hair growth is not affected. The drug interferon alpha has been reported as being shown to modify hair follicle

Hair follicle

A hair follicle is a skin organ that produces hair. Hair production occurs in phases, including a growth phase , and cessation phase , and a rest phase . Stem cells are principally responsible for the production of hair....

s causing permanent change in a person's hair texture.

Afro-textured hair

Hair straightening using a hot comb or relaxer has a long history among women and men of African descent, reflected in the huge commercial success of the straightening comb popularized by Madam C. J. Walker in the early 1900s. While the practice has at times been a controversial issue in discussions of racial identity, visits to the hair salon have become embedded in black culture, fulfilling an important social role especially for women.

See also

• Afro-textured hair
• Conk
  Conk
  The conk was a hairstyle popular among African-American men from the 1920s to the 1960s. This hairstyle called for a man with naturally "kinky" hair to have it chemically straightened using a relaxer , so that the newly straightened hair could be styled in specific ways...
  
  
• Curling hair
• Good Hair
  Good Hair
  Good Hair is a 2009 American comedy documentary film produced by Chris Rock Productions and HBO Films, starring and narrated by comedian Chris Rock. Premiering at the Sundance Film Festival on January 18, 2009, Good Hair was released to select theaters in the United States by Roadside Attractions...
  
  
• Jheri curl
  Jheri curl
  The Jheri curl is a hairstyle that was common and popular in the African American community especially during the 1970s and 1980s . Invented by and named for Jheri Redding, the Jheri curl gave the wearer a glossy, loosely curled look...