I’m going to miss all the curly hair subs, it’s a niche topic but something I feel like I know a lot about. I really wanted a text based of the main sub though, apparently I found r/curlyhaircare is like that. Going to not go on reddit though as much as possible.

Shameless plug for !curlyhair@lemmy.world it’s a community about all things curly hair related.

I use coconut oil with success but it is true that some people’s hair reacts badly to it. I just quoted the video but maybe should have added a warning to the advice. It felt weird for me to correct a doctor lol

Coconut oil’s “miracle ingredient” is medium-chain triglycerides, a variety of fat or oil. Human sebum (skin oils) only contains around 35% triglycerides in general, and far less (maybe 10-15%) are shorter to medium-chain triglycerides.

In addition to the somewhat unique medium-chain triglyceride content, coconut oil is also high in saturated fats (those which solid at cooler room temperatures). Saturated fats tend to penetrate hair well also. This is another characteristic of coconut oil which may create a problem for hair. The oils produced on our skin contain some triglycerides and saturated fatty acids. But not as much as coconut oil contains.

Coconut oil is so good at penetrating the hair because the medium-chain triglycerides are both small enough to seep between cuticles and they have polarity (a charge) that attracts them to the protein in your hair. Coconut oil is actively drawn to the inner portion of your hair whereas other oils need to seep through slowly. This is unlike most other plant oils. The saturated fats with short carbon chains can slowly soak in to hair as well. No wonder coconut oil can behave so strangely!

https://science-yhairblog.blogspot.com/2014/06/coconut-oil-makes-my-hair-stiff.html