ARE YOU READY FOR A NATURAL REVOLUTION?

Have you ever contemplated going "natural" i.e going back to your Afro textured roots? Are you "relaxed" and have wanted to go back to being "natural" but are worried about what your natural curls will look like and how they will be received? Perhaps you have even tried going "natural" and ended up going back to relaxers because your natural curls was "tough", "difficult to manage" or "too high maintenance"? You could also be a veteran (i.e. been natural for years) and are a it bored and need a change or you would like to improve your lifestyle by adopting healthier habits for your beauty, nutrition and fitness regimens?
Regardless of which category you fall into in respect of the above questions, this blog will have something for everyone. There is a global revolution that is gaining momentum concerning women's lifestyles and regimens. Think Janet Jackson's "Rhythm Nation" video and the soldiers (or comrades as I would call them) are shaking their Afros in the wind whilst marching along mixing up Shea butter/coconut oil mixtures and juggling a bottle of water at the same time. This is a natural revolution and you should be part of it!
For black women, it has been the norm for decades to "relax" their hair. "Relaxing" is the process by which a cream is applied to curly-textured hair in order to straighten the curls. The cream used to straighten the curls will either be a lye relaxer (containing sodium hydroxide) or a "no-lye" relaxer (using a slightly weaker alkaline agent being potassium hydroxide  lithium hydroxide, guanide hydroxide or ammonium thioglycolate,the latter being used for permanent waves,commonly known as "perms"). The work of the relaxer is to alter the hair texture by a process of controlled damage to the protein structure of the hair shaft. The reason being relaxers was to provide "soft and manageable" hair, as Afro textured hair was, and continue to be viewed in some quarters , as "tough" and "difficult to manage"
However, there are many risks associated with relaxers including breakage, alopecia and even Uterine Leiomyomata (fibroid inside the uterus). Nevertheless, there are societal pressures to maintain a certain look and image, including the way we wear our hair(who could forget Chris Rock's surprisingly pseudo-documentary, and the opinions expressed therein-"Good Hair"?). But over the decade, black women all over the world are abandoning the relaxers in droves to embrace their natural curls, kinks and coils.  In fact, the numbers are so large that the hair industry has woken up to this fact and has bee forced to respond appropriately. Numerous companies have sprung up to cater for naturalistas including Carol's Daughter, Miss Jessie's and Shea Moisture  whilst long-established relaxer companies like Dark & Lovely and Soft Sheen Carson have recently launched product lines/ranges specially targeting women wearing their hair in natural Afro-textured state.

In addition, beauty companies are using and promoting healthier and ore natural ingredients rather than cheap and/or more harmful ingredients such as mineral oil and sulphates. Of course they have to do this because they are facing some tough competition...from their own customers. Naturalistas are more DIY in their beauty regimen-they are more hands on and therefore more likely to experiment with creating their own hair products and mixtures so the industry is having to wrest back creative control of customer products from customer itself. I will be sharing tips and recipes for hair mixes for all you budding mixtresses out there!
In line with our changing attitudes to our beauty regimens, we are also becoming more cognizant of what we are putting in our bodies i.e. what we eat. Whilst life at times seems to be going at a faster pace than normal, we are beginning to take more time to reflect on the ingredients of our beauty products (see above) as well as our foods. People want to eat more fresh food, more fruits and less processed food. We want more organic foods, because we are becoming more and more aware of the dangers associated with genetically modified products. I will also be sharing some food recipes and tips on good foods to eat. As well as changing our beauty and nutrition regimens, we are also doing more in relaxation to fitness and exercise. We all want to stay healthy and live long fulfilling lives so we're being a bit more careful by doing a little exercise to ensure that happens. People walk more, are taking up sports, or following a tailored exercise regimes in order to stay fit and remain in tip top shape. I'll review and provide fitness tips to keep in shape and live an all-round healthier lifestyles.
Having said all that,would you like to be part of our Natural Revolution?