When I started making things for myself about 4 or 5 months ago, I knew I would get around to shampoo eventually. I was more focused on replacing my cleaners and detergents. But one night in mid-February, I sat down with my shampoo bottle - a brand I've used for years - and looked up some of the unrecognizable ingredients. I was horrified and stopped using it immediately.
Shampoo is in no way an exception to all the toxic chemicals that the personal care product industry uses. These synthetic chemicals coat our hair to make it look "shiny and beautiful," but at the expense of allowing these harmful ingredients to enter our bodies.
Here's an article from naturalnews.com:
Popular Shampoos contain toxic chemicals linked to nerve damage
...it may surprise you to learn that manufacturers can put practically any chemical they want into shampoos, even if it is a hazardous chemical listed in the RTECS database of toxicity and even if it is considered a toxic waste chemical by the EPA. The FDA allows all sorts of chemicals to be used in these products, including chemicals that are known carcinogens and that contribute to liver failure and nervous system disorders. How's that for protecting public health?I found another article about shampoo at mercola.com:
Do You Know What's in Your Shampoo?
When you put shampoo or conditioner onto your scalp, the 20 blood vessels, 650 sweat glands, and 1,000 nerve endings soak in the toxins.
...when toxins are absorbed through your skin, they bypass your liver and enter your bloodstream and tissues -- with absolutely no protection whatsoever.
The article also lists 5 common - and toxic - shampoo ingredients. See if your bottle contains these.
For me, knowing that the chemicals in my shampoo bottle are doing some definite harm, I had no problem turning to a natural homemade solution...
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What to use instead?
*First I want to note that any time you transition from commercial shampoo to anything natural/homemade, your hair will have to adjust. Shampoo over-strips your hair of its oils, so your scalp has to compensate. Now you have to train your scalp to slow down the oil production. The transition time is different for everyone, but for me, it took 3 to 4 weeks.
For the first month after ditching the bottle, I used a recipe I found online that used 6 natural ingredients. It worked okay, but I wasn't in love with it. It also wasn't as inexpensive as I wanted, so I looked for something different.
I started reading about the "no-poo" movement (as in no shampoo). I'm not sure when this got started, but the basic idea is to clean your hair without any commercial products. Mostly, this involves using baking soda to clean your hair and apple cider vinegar as a "conditioning" rinse.
Here are some others who have written about it:
Info: Shampoo Free
Shampoo-Free: Why and How
Going no-'poo?
So I've been using diluted baking soda followed by diluted apple cider vinegar for about a month and it's working quite well. I have tweaked my proportions a few times, but I think I'm settled on what's working best for me.
I recently found the article listed above (Info: Shampoo Free) that helped me clarify what proportions I should be using and why using too much baking soda - which I was - was not giving me great results (too much can dry your hair out and make it frizzy).
The article also gives some info about the history of shampoo, along with tips if the baking soda/ACV rinse isn't working very well. It's worth a read through.
So here's one way to go 'poo free:
Baking Soda "Shampoo"
1 cup water
1 Tbsp baking soda
Mix into a squeeze bottle. Shake up before each use. After applying to hair, let it sit for about a minute before rinsing off.
Apple Cider Vinegar Conditioning Rinse
8oz water
2 Tbs Apple Cider Vinegar
I prefer to mix this in a small spray bottle (can also be kept in any kind of container that pours or squirts).
Use minimally. Too much can leave your hair greasy. When rinsed, your hair should not smell like vinegar.
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Everyone's hair is different, so I am not convinced that this will work well for every single person. But there are many suggestions out there as to how to make your own shampoo so that you can quit buying from the store. A simple Google search should give you many, many options (one being to use castile soap: Use Natural Liquid Castile Soap for Safe and Wonderful Homemade Shampoos)
Just find what works for you. Happy hair cleaning :)
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