There’s not much information on the effectiveness of palm rolling, but it may help your dreads to a small degree. 

Some people see improvements in their loc shape and maturity if they stick to a habit of palm rolling. Many people don’t see noticeable effects. And well, others like myself, get too lazy to make palm rolling a part of their maintenance routine. 

Whether you choose to do it or not, palm rolling does not necessarily speed up the process of your dreadlocks becoming mature. If anything, it helps to keep their shape nicely rounded. 

I’ve heard before that palm rolling became popular around the time when dreadlock waxes were created. I can’t say for sure that it happened that way but it would make sense. Think about it— adding wax to your locs would require that you rub the product into the loc, therefore palm rolling would be the easiest method to go about doing that. 

But what’s the point of palm rolling if you’re not adding wax (or any other sticky substance) to your locs? [Ps. I do not encourage the use of wax, so please don’t. Learn the truth about wax here.]

What excessive palm rolling might do is: 

• Maintain the round shape of your locs
• Give you a good arm workout
• Smother your locs with the oils from the palms of your hands
• Cause unnecessary tugging and pulling of your roots 
• Waste your time

Your dreads will mature naturally. Palm rolling is not a requirement to obtain ‘perfect’ locs. 

Loops, frizz, and a few wild hairs are just part of the process. Don’t sweat it! 

Enjoy the journey, my friends.