Natural/homemade Neutralizers

I recently got a question about natural/homemade neutralizers for after relaxing, which is a very good topic. Here's the question:

"how do i make a homemade neutalizer for relaxed hair? I had a formula but lost it."

First of all, thank you for your question. Neutralizing your relaxer is probably the most important step when relaxing. A relaxer is actually a chemical reaction taking place in the strand of your hair. The normal pH of our hair is around 4 or 5. When we relax our hair, the pH is heightened to around 12 or 13, causing the bonds in our hair to break and become straight. Once the hair is straight, we stabilize the hair by bringing it back down to it's regular pH of 4 or 5. This is where the neutralizer comes in. Leaving the hair to stabilize itself can lead to damage and breakage. This vital step cannot be skipped or "under done". Now, you ask about a recipe for an all natural neutralizer.



There is no "natural recipe" that I know of, however there are many natural things you can use on your hair to neutralize it after relaxing. APPLE CIDER VINEGAR is one of the best "natural" neutralizers. Why? Like I mentioned before, when we relax our hair the pH makes it more basic (12 or 13 pH). To bring the hair back down to it's more acidic state (4 or 5 pH) you need to use something that has a very low/acidic pH. Apple Cider vinegar has a pH of about 2. This will work perfectly to stabilize that hair after relaxing. Just use 1 part ACV to 2-3 parts water (or see my article on ACV rinses for specifics). Apply to your hair and let it sit for a while, then rinse. You may want to do this twice, just to make sure. Remeber, this is the most important step to HEALTHY relaxing and it must be done correctly. If you don't like ACV, feel free to experiment! To neutralize your hair, you must find a susbstance with a low pH. There are many things other than ACV that are safe for the hair out there.
I must ask your reasoning, however, in wanting to use a natural/homemade neutralizer. I wouldn't recommend doing that unless you really know what you are doing. There really is no benefit to using an at home or "natural" neutralizer unless you it's an emergency (you forgot to buy one, or ran out). The store bought ones are much more efficient as most of them have color indicators. I highly recommend using a store bought neutralizer rather than a natural/homemade one (unless of course you know what you are doing). Thanks again for your question, and I hope that helped!