Can I Use a Leave-In Conditioner Every Day?

woman touching her curly hair

It’s not a good idea to use a leave-in conditioner every day. Why?

Your hair will be greasy and dull.
Your hair will be stiff.
You could dry out your hair. I’ll tell you why.
Leave-in conditioner could clog your scalp pores and cause flaking and hair loss.

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How much leave-in conditioner should I use? What if I use too much?

As you can see, there are several reasons why using a leave-in conditioner every day isn’t a good idea.

Some of those reasons may be almost insignificant. For example, you may not mind that your hair looks greasy and dull, because after all, most of the time, you’re wearing it tied up.

However, other reasons not to use a leave-in conditioner every day carry a lot of weight. , You might dry out your hair so much that it’ll break and fall out.

Ouch, scary, isn’t it?

fallen hair on the pillow

Good for you caring about moisturizing and nourishing your hair. However, like all things in life, there’s balance.

If you’re thinking about applying a leave-in conditioner to your hair every day, you’re concerned about your hair’s health. But if you apply it every day, you’ll get the opposite effect you want. That is, you’ll damage your hair. And we’ll discuss why later.

Before we do, I want you to know that you should choose the right leave-in conditioner for your hair:

If your hair is fine, you'll need a spray conditioner to keep it from weighing it down.
If your hair has frizz, a cream conditioner will solve it.
If you want to shape your mane, a gel conditioner can be a big help.

You should know that you shouldn’t use conditioner every day. The correct frequency of use is once or twice a week.

That said, let's look at all the reasons why you shouldn't use leave-in conditioner every day

If you use a leave-in conditioner every day, your hair will become greasy and dull

a bottle of leave-in conditioner

Can you apply moisturizer to your skin every two hours? I don't think any dermatologist would recommend such a thing. Eventually, your skin would become oily.

Something similar happens with leave-in conditioner. It leaves oily residues that accumulate day after day on the outer layer of the hair.

As a result of excessive leave-in conditioner, your hair will lose its natural shine.

If you apply leave-in conditioner every day, your hair will be stiff

This has to do with the buildup of leave-in conditioner in the hair.

Let me give you an example. A sheet of paper is light and thin. If it gets caught in a breeze, it can move like a feather in the wind.

However, if we glue several sheets of paper together, that lightness is lost. And if a breeze catches it, it’ll fall to the ground under its own weight.

If you apply conditioner to your hair every day, it’ll build up day after day, leaving your hair heavy and stiff.

So far, it doesn't seem like such a big deal to use a leave-in conditioner every day. However, looks can be deceiving. Don’t you believe me? Read on.

Using a leave-in conditioner every day could dry out your hair

woman tries to detangle her frizzy hair

Yes, just as you read it.

Even if you plan to use a leave-in conditioner every is to moisturize your hair, all you’ll achieve is drying it out.

It’ll produce what's called "over-moisturizing." Hair absorption has a limit.

If you saturate your hair, nourishment, and hydration will eventually not occur. Therefore, your hair will dry out and frizz will appear.

However, the bad news continues.

If you use leave-in conditioner every day, you may clog your scalp pores

In that case, flaking and hair loss can occur.

woman holds fallen lock of her hair

The scalp has pores through which it breathes, just like all the rest of your skin. Through these pores, natural oils protect your roots. Sweat takes place at the cellular level.

If the pores become clogged, your scalp will begin to dry out and you can suffer from seborrheic dermatitis, dandruff, and even lacerations.

When you comb your hair, you’ll notice white flakes, easily visible on dark clothing. This will be the result of flaking of your scalp, which can often end up weakening the hair from the root, causing it to fall out.