Have you noticed a grayish build-up clinging to your hairbrush bristles that looks similar to lint? If so, you might ask yourself, why is there lint in my hairbrush?
The lint build-up that you see in your hairbrush is not only lint. It’s mostly a combination of dead skin cells, dirt, oils, and product residue. It can occur because of dandruff, excess hair products, or hair accessories.
Did you know that hairbrush lint contains, on average, about 3500 colonies of bacteria per square inch? The rest of this article will help you learn more about the lint in your hairbrush!
Why is There Lint in My Hairbrush?
Finding lint in your hairbrush means that your brush is doing its job by removing debris from your hair. But what causes the lint to appear?
Scalp rejuvenation period
Your scalp is constantly changing as hair, and skin cells die, making way for new growth. During the rejuvenation period, the dead scalp peels off when you brush your hair. These dead cells remain on your hairbrush.
The same thing happens to our skin cells on the rest of our body, but it peels off when we shower- making it less noticeable.
Dandruff turning into lint
If you have a dandruff issue, your hair brush will attract dandruff into its bristles, adding it to the lint build-up.
On top of that, dandruff also dries out your scalp, making it more susceptible to an increase of dead skin cells.
Hair product residue
Product residue occurs when you regularly use hairspray, mousse, or other hair products without properly cleaning your scalp after. Some of these products tend to have a heavier consistency that gets trapped easier in your scalp.
These products not only create blob-like flaky debris in your hair but also clog your hair follicles, resulting in scalp irritation and more lint-like debris on your brush.
Similarly, using shampoo too frequently can also create a lint build-up. When you wash your hair, you strip the scalp of its natural oils, thus drying it out.
Hair accessories
You might find lint and fuzz on your scalp if you wear a headband regularly or other accessories like scrunchies, hair ties, or scarves.
These accessories, while cute, often leave a little fuzz behind in your hair that your brush can collect as lint.
Dust and debris from your surroundings
Your hair goes everywhere and touches a lot of things. From walls to furniture to your pillow, there’s no shortage of places your hair could pick up dirt.
Your pillow tends to be a hotspot where your hair could pick up dust since you spend an average of 6-8 hours of sleep every night. Changing your pillowcase can diminish the amount of debris in your hair.
How Often Should You Clean Lint Out of a Hairbrush?
Lint build-up in your hairbrush is gross. When you use your hairbrush without cleaning away the lint, you brush all that debris and oil back into your scalp.
How often you clean your hairbrush depends on how much product you use regularly.
If you use hair products daily or semi-daily, you should clean your hairbrush once a week. If you don’t use products regularly, you can get by with washing the brush every two to three weeks.
Cleaning your hairbrush is easy and won’t take long- making it an excellent and necessary addition to your cleaning routines.
Conclusion
Hair brushes are home to lots of debris and gunk, such as dandruff, dead skin cells, hair products, fuzz, and dirt. It’s important to keep your brushes clean to avoid brushing the bacteria-filled lint back into your hair.
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