Lacklustre locks, excess sebum, dry tips. To treat your locks with a targeted haircare regime, the first step is to determine your hair type. Here are three criteria for a quick assessment.

First criteria: The amount of sebum secreted

Essential for nourishing and protecting the hair fibre, sebum is not secreted by everyone in the same way.

You have normal hair if your locks are lightweight, flexible, shiny and soft to the touch even two days after having washed them. You are lucky: it is a sign that your locks are in perfect health. To keep your hair in good condition, opt for mild shampoos and do not overuse haircare products.

You have greasy hair if your roots are quick to go greasy and your hair is limp and lifeless. The solution? Wash your hair less often and use purifying hair products.

Your hair is dry if it is lacklustre, dried out and feels course to the touch. Your locks get tangled easily and sometimes break during detangling. You have split ends . The solution? Make up for the lack of sebum by using nourishing masks.

You have combination hair if your roots are greasy but you have dry hair from the mid-lengths down to the tips. Sebum is secreted in sufficient amounts but gathers at the roots instead of hydrating the whole length of the hair fibre. What should you do? Purify your scalp with a green clay mask and use a hydrating oil soak on the lengths.

Second criteria: The diameter of your hairs

Study one of your hairs while holding it up to the light.

● If it is almost translucent and you can hardly feel it between your fingers, you have fine hair .

● If you can see it clearly and it has the texture of cotton thread, you have average thickness hair.

● If it is very easy to see and you can clearly feel it between your fingers, you have thick hair.

Third criteria: How wavy the hair is

Your hair is straight if the hair shaft is poker straight or relatively flexible. Conversely, your hair is curly if your hair shaft forms large rounded curls. Is your hair between the two? This means that you have wavy hair. If you have tight curls, your hair is frizzy.

Good to know: your hair type can change over the years. Overuse of hair colouring treatments, tiredness, illness, pregnancy, hormonal imbalance… There are many possible causes. Keep an eye on your hair’s appearance, as it may be trying to tell you something!