Monday, March 13, 2017

The problem with Shampoo (1)

This is going to be a three-part article because there is so much to discuss with regard to commercial shampoo.

Most commercial shampoos available in the market are not good for your hair or scalp. Advertisements for shampoos would have us believe that if we did not shampoo our hair everyday and use a conditioner on top of that we would be left with dry, frayed, and gritty hair - nothing could be further from the truth. 

The truth is most shampoos are in reality cocktails of chemicals and detergents that can cause more harm than good. The table* below gives a summary of generic ingredients that go into making a shampoo:



Ingredient Purpose Remarks
Detergent/Surfactant Remove dirt, sebum, and skin scales from scalp
Foaming agent Build froth/suds Not essential. Present because consumers believe foam equals better cleansing (though the two are unrelated)
Conditioner Smoothens hair after sebum removal by detergent
Thickener Thickens shampoo consistency Not essential. Present because consumers believe thick shampoos are better
Opacifier To make shampoo opaque as opposed to translucent Only for aesthetic reasons. Not essential ingredient
Sequestering agent Prevent soap scum from sticking to hair, particularly in the presence of hard water Basic difference soap bar and liquid shampoo
Fragrance Enhance consumer acceptance Not essential
Preservative Prevent microbial and fungal contamination during storage
pH stabilizers To prevent damage to hair from shampoo as Hair is acidic and most shampoos / cleansers are alkaline Present only to minimize damage caused by the shampoo itself
Special Additives Usually marketing aids, specific to each brand Marketing gimmick, not essential

As we can see from the above table, out of the 10 generic ingredients listed, 5 ingredients are not essential, 1 ingredient (Conditioner) is optional, 1 other ingredient (Preservative) has nothing to do with hair cleansing but is added only to increase product shelf-life, and finally, 1 ingredient (pH stabilizer) which is present only to minimize the damage that the shampoo itself causes to your hair! 

That leaves us with 2 ingredients that are essential but with debatable safety records. 

In the second part of this article, each of these ingredients will be discussed in greater detail along with a look at some of the top brands, what they actually contain, and how their "customer promise" is just a lot of bunkum. The third and final part will look at natural and traditional alternatives to shampoo

*Table adapted from: Draelos DZ. International Journal of Trichology. 2010;2(1):24-29.





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