What’s Actually in your Shampoo??

When we look for quality hair products, we tend to look for bottles that say their products is paraben/sulfate/silicone -free or “natural” or “organic” because we are told that is what’s better for us.  Do any of us even know what all of that means? I want to break down a product’s ingredient label. What are we actually putting in our hair and what is the purpose of these ingredients??

I want to start off by saying that not all products labeled “organic” or “natural” are certified, nor does a product need to have 100% organic ingredients to be certified.  There is a difference between being organic or natural and containing organic or natural ingredients.   

So, what is a paraben?  Parabens are chemicals that are used in our products to prevent bacteria and act as a preservative.  Products without parabens will have a much shorter shelf life than those containing parabens. You are not likely to find products that read “CONTAINS PARABENS” directly on the bottle so you will need to look for chemicals such as butylparaben, methylparaben, and propylparaben on your ingredient label. 

What’s the damage?

Parabens enter the blood stream through your scalp and remain in your tissue.  Fun Fact: it only takes about 26 seconds for these chemicals to get into your blood stream.  Parabens mimic estrogen, disrupting hormone function.  Therefore, they can trigger breast cell division and lead to the growth of tumors.  However, there is no actual scientific evidence that parabens lead to cancer, but that they can remain in the tissue.

Let’s move on to sulfates.  

Sulfates are used as surfactants in your shampoo because they are what causes your shampoo to foam when lathering into your hair.  They will be labeled as sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) or sodium laureth sulfate (SLES).  The surfactant is what does the bulk of the work when it comes to cleaning your hair; they surround dirt and oil so it will be washed away when rinsed with water.  Like parabens, sulfates are also rumored to cause cancer; however, there is no scientific evidence leading them to cause cancer directly.  What sulfates do, though, is dry and irritate the scalp and can even fade color treated hair and cause the hair to fall out easier.  Sulfates become a problem for someone with sensitive skin.  Also, some like sodium laureth sulfate can produce a byproduct (that isn’t required to be labeled) like 1,4 dioxane that has been linked to liver and kidney damage.  Though not life threatening in any way, sulfates are pretty unnecessary to have in your shampoo.  Foam in your shampoo has nothing to do with whether it cleans the hair and is used mainly for aesthetics; people just expect their shampoo to lather and foam.  If you are looking for a product that is in fact sulfate-free, do be careful of companies that swap sulfates for other toxic chemicals.  It is best to look for products with fruit or vegetable-based cleansing ingredients. 

Another “red flag” ingredient that we are told to avoid in shampoo is silicone. On a label a silicone will end in “-one” such as dimethicone.  Silicones are in place to add smoothness and shine to your hair.  Silicones tend to build up and sit on the hair strand and act as a mask rather than actually making your hair naturally shiny or smooth.  Silicones will cause buildup on your hair, so someone with thin or fine hair will have trouble with silicones.  While not really damaging, over time without a proper clarifying routine, silicones can cause hair to look lifeless and weighed down.   The easiest way to avoid too much weigh down or build up is to make sure any silicones in your product are water- soluble.  Look for products that contain cyclomethicone.  This is the most common water- soluble silicone in hair products.  Examples of this are: anything starting with PEG-, dimethicone copolyol, or lauryl methicone copolyol.  

What's the Solution?

Because we are told to avoid all these things in our hair products, there is no need to freak out.  Though these ingredients will not cause cancer or kill you, there are definitely alternatives.  If you still want to avoid any of them, opt for organic or raw ingredients, (make sure it is certified organic).  Plant based cleansing ingredients are a great way to avoid bad sulfates.  To rid your hair from the buildup from silicones, apple cider vinegar is a great cleanser.  And lastly, to avoid parabens in shampoo, look for products with natural oils, herbs, or natural preservatives that will ward off bacteria. Our Kevin Murphy line at UBU offers paraben FREE products at great prices! 

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