Thank you Michelle! I've become so sick of all the pseudoscience in the curly hair community. After spending so much money on sulfate and silicone free haircare, I am going back to normal shampoo and conditioner and it does not damage my curls, in fact, they've never looked better! The sulfate and silicone free haircare I've used tends to have tonnes of irritating essential oils by the way.
Sulfates and silicones are not evil! However I just want to remind that everybody's hair different! My curly hair hates silicone with the passion of a burning sun, I wouldn't have known that if I haven't tried the curly girl method. I do use mild sulfates though. Some curly hair can tolerate sulfates and silicones, some don't. Honestly I kinda envy people whose hair can tolerate them because it would be sooo much easier to find products.
I agree. As a qualified hairdresser (and curly), there is lots of science behind the products that we're not taught on our training. I too got a bit fed up with the general ignorance, and found myself gravitating towards information from board certified dermatologists or cosmetic scientists. And my conclusion is that hair, like skin, is different for everybody, and, like skin care, we just have to try out different products instead of following dogmatic pseudoscience.
The curly hair community wants to feel special and UNiQUE, and they can do that by claiming to use better products or be more "informed". At the end of the day though, they're just getting swindled with the rest of clean beauty advocates. If they're going to advocate for sulfate and silicone free, they should come with a good reason like personal preference. Nobody can dispute that.
First and foremost, your title! I so appreciate when creators put IN THE TITLE about sponsorships/partnerships. Of course, honesty is just you, so I'm not surprised. But I greatly appreciate it, and it doesn't go unnoticed how transparent you are. And thank you for making science so interesting! I hope your channel keeps growing because the world needs you!!
Best. Ads. Ever. We come for the science, and you use the sponsored products to educate (and make me laugh, "It's like peer pressure but for molecules"). Brands should be throwing money at you. You're one influencer I would still trust even if every single video had sponsored content.
I am allergic to SLS, I get a very nasty rash when I use products containing them. And it's happened so many times I just avoid everything with it in. BUT I wouldn't tell my friends & family to stop using them in the absence of symptoms. My allergy is not their allergy. In the same way, I haven't stopped eating eggs because my friend is allergic to them.
Well stated. Took a lot of trial and error to figure out SLS was causing lesions on my scalp and the insides of my cheeks to slough off. Gross but true 😬 I'm grateful the trend has made SLS free cleansers and toothpastes readily available but it's not like everyone has to avoid it!
You’re getting a lot of hair requests from us recently but could you please do a scalp video as it’s technically skin but I feel like there’s a lot of conflicting information out there? I’d love to know which anti dandruff shampoos work too. Thanks for your informative videos!
Ditto for sure on wanting her to do a scalp and/or anti-dandruff shampoo video! I need better answers than the ones I found in journal articles (through google searching) that are either 1) sponsored by a specific hair or skin care company (leading to a possibly huge bias to make the company happy), 2) mainly opinion pieces with little to no credibility and/or sources (with possible personal biases, think "mom blogs"), 3) vague as all hell, or 4) completely unrelated. Getting good info on any self-care is astonishingly difficult, which is why I'm glad this channel, and the videos she makes, exists!
I gave up on the sulfate free shampoo when I realized my scalp issues were connected to those shampoos/conditioners. My scalp just wasn't getting cleaned properly. Going back to sulfate shampoos helped a lot. I love your channel for the straightforward and informative content!! It is very much appreciated.
I know men's beard care probably isn't your thing, but could you give any guidance or recommendations for what sort of ingredients I should look for in beard products?
I’m a woman but since I don’t see as many ppl talking about it I think it would be rly fair if she could do something related to this… Leaving a comment in hopes this can help!!
All of the beard care youtubers I can find have an this obnoxious macho dudebro on cocaine vibe, and they don't seem to know anything about the science
Add me to the list of people who need it, I feel like all the beard oils I use don't help with the itch, but I also have eczema, so idk if there even are beard oils that could help
As an aspiring science communicator, I just have to say I loved your incorporation of analogies, your whole channel philosophy, how you use humour and your personality, and more to make this science engaging and relatable. Thanks Michelle!
I read a book about the structure of hair for an assignment and it said that knots, which are prevented by making hair slippery using silicone, are the main cause of hair breakage! I was like why does everyone hate silicone then?
I know personally that when I use silicones my hair gets weighed down and oily super quickly. Does that refer to all silicones? Who knows? Often the ingredient list is just way too small and long to check especially in a shop with my toddler in tow. So I try to get silicon free products.
Silicon weighs down my hair and makes it limp in a day. Silicones are not the only ingredient that prevents knots during washing. Sulphates help with that. I like my shampoos silicon free with a huge dollop of sulphates. 🤣
@@barbaraz.5396 from another video, she talks about there being so many different types of silicones. You might have been using silicones that are heavier?
As someone with fine straight hair that tangles easily can confirm that silicones are a must have for me. I get my hair bleached and during the first no conditioner wash my hairstylist has to spend ages detangling
The 'natural' wellness craze has spooked people to be scared of ingredients they don't understand, but we're not all chemists, so of course we don't understand their function/ mechanisms! Thanks for sharing some of the evidence :)
Wow, I am really always completely immune to UA-camrs' sponsor ads, because they don't really sell the product to me well. I am actually looking into the The Ordinary shampoo now, because you broke it down _so well!_ Kudos!
I use function of beauty, but price wise im gonna convert to Ordinary hair care. I literally did a whole project on the idea of The Ordinary doing haircare before it came out so Imm super super excited!
I prefer sulfate-free shampoos and products in general because they are too drying on my skin, scalp and hair on an everyday basis. They felt even more drying when I used them in France because the water is so hard. Just, when I arrived in the US and Canada I've realised that the hardness of water was an important factor in the health of my skin and hair. Instantly I observed that they were less irritated, dehydrated. They felt good and confortable. My hair has always been shiny but damn it has never been so healthy. Just so you know I use the same products I used in France because I didn't want them to go to waste. Nevertheless, since a year I've began to incorporate more sulfate products in my hair and skin routine little by little and it felt great. I use from time to time an anti-dandruff shampoo for prevention. My scalp feels greasier more rapidly than with sulfate-free shampoos and the ends of my hair drier. It is just a feeling and I don't feel there is really a difference in the greasiness. I use sometimes a sulfate body wash when I've been wearing water-resistant sunscreen. It is easier that way and I don't need to double-cleanse.
Literally just used the Ordinary conditioner which I absolutely love on my afro hair hair. It really soften it. Beauty Bay have just created similar products I'm going to test some tonight.
Love this! I have super thick curly hair and when I started to learn how to take care of it I got into the 'sulfate/silicone-free' hype. The curly girl method worked really well for me and I really believed that it was because of the formulas of the hair care I used. These products were very expensive though and I couldn't afford them anymore and went back to 'normal' hair products. I do try to buy products that are specifically for drier hair types but always go for affordable drug store brands. I was surprised to see that the switch didn't make any difference and in fact that silicones made my hair way easier to handle and detangle. Looking back the only things in the curly girl method that really made difference to my hair were detangling with conditioner, not using heat tools as much and learning how to style and handle my hair while it is drying. My scalp also improved when I quit the curly girl method.
Your glowing recommendation for amodimethicone in your earlier hair care videi was so helpful to me. I have a lot of fine hair that tends to be unruly as it's a bit curly (but not curly enough to actually curl and look nice). Other silicones tend to weigh my hair down and it it feels dirty and lank quickly. I love my amodimethicone containing conditioner though. Leaves my hair silly, hardly any tangles and I still only need to wash twice a week 👌🏻 *edit * silky not silly 🤦🏻♀️
I have fine, wavy/curly hair. Out of curiosity, what shampoo and conditioner do you use? I'm trying to find something I like. I also got a giggle out of your typo.
I am so over sulfate-free stuff, and it's getting harder to find sulfates! I did curly girl method strictly for a year and going sulfate and silicone free genuinely ruined my scalp health and hair. I had horrific sores on my scalp and my hair started breaking off at the root. I even noticed some hair loss. But I persisted because it was "better." I finally gave up and went back to naughty sulfates and silicones and my scalp sores and itching went away and my hair slowly returned to being healthy.
@@Celeste-.-mariesure, indidnt use shampoo for a long while at all, my haur is so dry even when i used to do shampoo, my bair was smooth and healthy but not anymore, should i use this free sulfate free profuct, i never used conditioner, and should i use natural oils to get my hair smooth and healthy again, if u guys have any advice, please and thank u
Can you please talk about Anti-Hair Loss shampoo? And why they usually don’t come with conditioner in anti-hair loss category. Is Rosemary and Caffeine really good to prevent hair loss. I am currently using Aromatica anti-hair loss range, which I quite like.
I guess an anti-hairloss conditioner wouldn't work, because your hair grows out of roots which are on your scalp. The visible hair is already dead, that's why cutting it doesn't hurt. Just like nails :)
Hi Michelle! This video makes me wonder about what your thoughts are on shampoo bars? Are there any that are well formulated (effective) and not too likely to irritate scalps?
Your problem there is going to be fragrance. Most of them have a bunch of fragrance and essential oils in them. Then you've got things like African Black Soap bars from Shea Moisture et. al. which I wouldn't touch with a 10 foot pole because it's literal soap with an extremely high pH. I've found one that doesn't really have fragrance in it (Shampoo with a Purpose) at least in Australia, but eh....it's full of oils and that just ain't that good for me personally re: back and face and also I just doubt it has the cleansing power I need it's more like a co-wash than a shampoo (I can get dandruff).
I have naturally coarse hair. A lot of people think my hair texture is due solely to dryness which... idk what to say, I'm just born with it. Because of this, a lot of hairstylists recommend sulphate free shampoos and tell me not to wash my hair every day. Honestly though I think if I skipped a wash day and got my hair done the next day, they'd probably change their tune. It is very frustrating when hairstylists do not believe me when I say a certain product doesn't suit me. Equally frustrating when they can't tell the difference between damage and my natural texture
Love, love love this!!! Could you do an up to date video on Keratin smoothing treatments , versus chemical/ permanent straighting systems on hair? I'd use it for my clients understanding. You're a fecking legend mate!
@SueRosalie depends on how often you wash, I wash mine once a week because it doesn't get greasy and I shampoo twice since it is dirtier than hair that is washed every day
I got the conditioner on a whim and man...my hair loves it. Specifically my scalp, which has always been my main struggle. It is very interesting to hear more info about how the product's ingredients work! Maybe I'll check out the cleanser. Just a shame the bottle is so small.
Thank you so much for this omg. I took minimal care of my hair until last year, only using cheap drugstore shampoo and conditioner and my hair was always smooth and healthy. Just started using expensive silicone free products last year and now my hair is a frizzy mess. Can't wait to use up my current products and replace them with a nice set of silicone containing Herbal Essences shampoo and conditioner again
Wow, I was wondering why some conditioners give me back acne and some not! Thank you for explaining this!!! I will never skip scrubbing after conditioning with those ingredients. ❤
Wow I learned more about hair care in this video than I have in 10 years old doing my own trial and error 😂 thanks so much Michelle! I know you don't have curly hair, but I would Love it if you could do a similar video that dives deeper into how to combat frizz and the chemistry behind frizz and how to define curls.
Thanks for another great video. I'd love to see one on eco friendly beauty products (e.g., shampoo and conditioner bars). I've made the change for reasons largely related to not shipping water weight and plastic free packaging but I'm less confident about the ingredients themselves. A lot of them seem to have bought into the whole sulfate and silicone free hype.
Good video:) I like reading comments, because it only shows that there's no one universal haircare spec: everyone seems to react differently to different ingredients. Personally, my hair is indifferent to silicon and so on, but the moment I use shampoos with sls, the skin on my head and down the back (where the shampoo is washed down) turns into Itch Central. A while ago I moved to the bar shampoos and conditioner, and that works great so far, and results in fewer bottles cluttering my shower!
I wash with just conditioner, and use a silicone scalp massager to get more physical removal instead of chemical. Would love to hear more about what effects types of conditioners have!
I don’t think you are washing your hair if you are just using conditioner and over time you make experience more buildup. Not a professional but I think you should clean your scalp at the least
Thank you for this! People never believe me when I tell them that Pantene conditioner works as well as many ‘luxury’ brands. It had everything a conditioner needs ( plus the silicone my hair loves best) and no unneeded ingredients ( eg organic plant oils and extras) which do nothing but drive up the cost. The shampoo actually cleanses better and leaves my hair feeling and looking better than specialty brands, which nearly all the time are ordinary shampoo in a costly bottle .
Clue with hair dyes like the one you had, especially red as that’s notorious for being the color that fades the fastest when washing, die to the size of the molecules, is to use pure color cream leave in product which you apply when showering, so you will have fresh colored hair every day without actually coloring it. Do use gloves as it stains. Comes in many colors and can be also used as toners on bleached or blonde colored hair…
Thanks so much for this! I've been so confused about hair care after trying the curly girl thing for a few years. I heard so much random advice and bought so many expensive products that never really helped my hair to look and feel nice. Would really enjoy more hair care science from you if you feel like making videos about that!
Something interesting to explore would be leave in conditioner vs regular conditioner. I live in California and hate wasting water to rinse conditioner from my hair, but I never know if the leave ins are as good!
I’ve been using the ordinary shampoo & conditioner for a couple of months now and am loving the results! My hair type is fine, frizzy and a mix of waves/curls (think Merida from Brave…). Previous scented shampoos have set off my acne, as well as my eczema on my hands and scalp, which in turn caused a lot of hair fall. With the ordinary products my acne and eczema have calmed down and my hair is thicker and shinier while still keeping my waves. Really impressed :-)
THANK YOU for explaining the cationic/fatty alcohol relationship! I had read that they had a synergistic relationship but couldn't figure out why. Surfactants (foaming ones, not emulsifiers) make my head spin. I can formulate a face cream from scratch, but the most I can do with cleansers is adjust the concentrations and swap out the other ingredients. I understand while someone is explaining how they interact and I can write it all down, but ten minutes later it's nonsense. Color: I've got dry hair thanks to wearing cotton scrub caps. I love washing my hair with conditioner containing 4% cocamidopropyl betaine. My color lasts much longer this way too! I do have to use regular shampoo every couple weeks and clarifying shampoo about once a month, but the cleansing conditioners are great for everyday use.
Definitely happy to see a hair video and would be happy to see more! I've got thin hair that gets greasy easily and a very sensitive, dry, and angry (very scientific term! lol) scalp, so I could use all the hair/scalp knowledge I can get.
I have this hair type too - I’ve been using the ordinary shampoo & conditioner for a couple of months now and I’m really impressed! My scalp isn’t irritated anymore and as a result I’m not losing as much hair in the shower, so my hair has gotten thicker! Still have to use dry shampoo though to deal with oil unfortunately 🥲
Something that's talked about in the curly hair community is that silicones will coat the hair and make it more difficult to refresh curls with water and more leave in conditioning products. Is there some truth to this? Are there silicones that will allow your hair to absorb water and conditioning ingredients without using shampoo first? I was thinking that using silicones, maybe amodimethicone, would create a film over the hair to hold in the conditioning ingredients and keep it smoother for longer. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this!! Thank you!
Awesome info! Can you do one about children's products - haircare, sunscreen and soaps? I have toddlers and I can't determine if I still need to buy child-specific products (mainly shampoos since they are young enough that they might get some in their eyes). But I know some parents with longer-haired/curly-haired kids aren't sure when it's OK to start using conditioners or detangling products.
Thanks for the info! I used a sulfate-free shampoo for colored hair that felt way too stripping. I’m curious what it is about the formulation that made the shampoo act exactly the opposite of how it was advertised
I love your channel -- thank you so much for your straightforward and educated explanations. Finally someone explains what's REALLY going on in products, based on actual science! I'd be very interested to see what you make of products that claim to repair damage at the molecular level like Olaplex and K18 (and maybe some of their lesser known wannabes).
I literally didn't use shampoo at all for years. I simply washed everyday with conditioner, lots of conditioner, lots of scrubbing/messaging scalp, lots of rinsing, and NO silicones. It worked great bc I was washing and styling everyday. Generally, if I didn't use silicones, then I didn't need shampoo, and my hair looked great. The problem was that if I didn't want to wash everyday (covid anyone?) then I had to use actual shampoo. But since I was using real shampoo I could also use silicones. And since the more you wet and wash, the more damage you cause, it actually worked better to wash less frequently with actual shampoo and use a silicone smoothie to coat. Sorry this is so long, but wanted to share that it's better to wash less frequently with "harsher" shampoo than daily with just a co-wash, even for my curly top.
I have the ordinary shampoo and conditioner and my hair has never been better. I used soap based shampoo for the past 5 years and before that lots of random things to avoid good old chemistry. My roots were never clean and my hair grew slower. I hope they launch a silicon conditioner or a a leave in spray/milk with silicon like amodimeticone
For decades, I lived with "dandruff" on my oily scalp, constant flaking of skin in my ears, small sores on my hands, red spots on my face, and sores in my mouth. Once I learned that this was caused by SLS and SLES in my soaps and toothpaste, I never looked back. There are lots of people who can handle SLS and SLES, but there are many of us who find it (literally) to be super-irritating.
I really liked this video, it was actually very informative learning how cleansing agents work. You should make a video discussing about window films that can protect against UV light. I know that a few exist on the market and some even can give protection into the UVA spectrum of light.
I actually developed sensitivity to SLS and now can no longer use it. It began without me suspecting: mild feeling of skin tightness after showering, my gums being sensitive while using certain toothpaste and dry skin on hands that cracks easily. It eventually escalated to eczema on my hands and full-body rash, with exception of my face (the only part of the body where I used a different cleanser). At the time I was using a lot of Lush products for the body that were full of SLS (it was the 1st ingredient on the list). Once I put 2+2 together and started avoiding SLS, my skin rash went away as well as eczema, and my gums are no longer as sensitive. I often wonder would I ever even develop this sensitivity, if I were using products where SLS was used more sparingly? who knows...
My FAVORITE shampoos PANTENE Pure Clean & Clairify a dye free, fragrance free, silicone free formula that uses Sodium Laureth Sulfate as the Primary Surfactant it is Deep Cleaning yet gentle.
SLS in toothpaste flakes off skin in my mouth and in shampoo, the skin off my scalp. SLES however, seems fine. If my conditioner has ' stronger ' silicones such as Dimethecone instead of ' weaker ' silicones such as Amodimethecone, will it still cleanse adequately? A lot of silicone free shampoos have coconut oil, something too heavy for my hair that also breaks me out while silicone shampoos make my hair feel a lot smoother and tangle a lot less without making it greasy and weighed down like coconut oil. Weirdly enough, the best my hair ever feels is when I use those one week hair color tinted treatment things! I've used the Etude House one and the Knight and someone ( in England ) one and they are both lovely, perhaps because of their coating and conditioning nature.
Awesome topic!! You probably just gave the good old fashioned “sulfate” shampoos a major boost in sales (not to mention The Ordinary), and people everywhere are breathing a sigh of relief that’s it’s okay to buy regular shampoos (and hopefully save some money as well).
That's absolutely how I feel. I have long, thick, wavy hair, and go through a lot of product. I couldn't afford to be buying bougie, sulfate and silicone free stuff and have returned to cheap Pantene, which works really well for my hair.
It is SO HARD to find fragrance free hair products😪 I’ve gotten away with using baby shampoo (the eucerin baby hair and body wash and it’s actually worked SO well!)
THANK YOU SO MUCH. for years i was desperate for why my hair was so terrible, eventho i did everything ive been told : no sulphates,no silicones etc etc. a year ago i shaved my whole head and since then been using cheap drugstore shampoos and conditioners and my hair looks good. ive wtached a few videos on silicones in haircare and im convinced now, that i lost 10 years of pretty hair, because i fell for pseudoscience.
I loved this video! Ingredient analysis of hair care products is interesting to me because it allows me to look at the ingredients label and get a good idea of whether I will like the product or not, without spending the money or time to try it myself. I'm wondering what the special ingredients or lack of ingredients makes a shampoo or conditioner curly-hair-friendly. Most curly hair tends to be dry, I believe, so conditioners are probably involved. But is there any specific ingredient that brings out the curl in hair? I very much enjoy your videos and appreciate learning the science behind products. Thank you for producing these videos!
I have a very oily scalp and i only use a clarifying shampoo. Pretty sure it has sulfates and my fine hair doesnt have any damage. The only ingredient i avoid are silicones just because they make my hair feel too slippery which feels greasy to me.
Thank you so much for creating awareness regarding sulphates. I don't like sulphate-free shampoos. They don't lather, and i feel like they are not cleaning my hair. Plus i end up using almost twice the quantity (and still don't feel clean).
Also, what do you think of dry shampoo Michelle? I see a lot of negative coverage, but often from the same people who fear monger about “chemicals”. I find it really helpful in not having to wash my (usually very oily) hair every day, especially in summer. But, are there long term consequences that will catch up with me eventually?
Thank you for this video. I get seborrheic dermatitis and needed another shampoo for my in between Nizoral Shampoo days. I had purchased Sukin shampoo, but didn’t think it was helping. I’m now going back to a normal sulphate shampoo
I fell for the sulfate-free, silicone-free bs for so long, and it wrecked my scalp. I have type 1A hair, and I actually got sores and ingrown hairs on my head because it wasn't actually getting clean. I've finally gone back to an SLES shampoo and my scalp and hair are so much happier.
@@amberghini yeah! the brand is "Hair Biology" and it's the full and vibrant volumizing shampoo, and since switching I can go so much longer between washes and I'm not dealing with itchiness, sores, and ingrowns anymore! I also alternate between the Ouai fine hair conditioner and the Headquarters oil away conditioner,, depending on how I'm feeling
I have very straight, oily hair and tried the free from everything shampoo thing, I ended up with acne on my scalp, neck and hairline. I use revolution salicylic acid shampoo now and my skin is so happy.
I’ve been getting my hair straight for half of my life but the time I used my natural 3A I had no problems with using these “bad” products… But every group has these issues due to uneducated people who just end up doing nothing good for our lives! In straight hair community I feel there is this obsession with a “frizz-less”, thick, “just got out of the saloon” (aka voluminously blowout) looking and shiny (but not oily hair). I’m mixed (White + Native Am.). I got my White mom’s 3A (but thin, even tho she’s actually Mediterranean) hair and my NA dad’s dark hair color. Here in Brazil hair industry is huge and so do those “procedures” to make it straight for months so you can wash it and still have it straight (been doing it for the longest time). Due to my natural ULTRA thin (I said ULTRA… And it was already this thin before the procedure) I could never dream about going “frizz-less” or something close to it (specially when the months pass and it’s getting closer to reapply the product that makes it straight). How I said, my hair is thin so n°2 would be a fail too (you can “fake it” but not change your hair “thickness as far as Ik). For the n°3 I’m always busy so (unfortunately) no time to do it (and I never happened to just simply get it as day after how some girls claim to get). N°4 I’ve got no complaints about (both of my parents have a decent amount of shiny looking hair and so am I). Since I started going the opposite way these girls tend to go my hair never looked so good (and my scalp never felt healthier)! Actually I’ve been following to more dermatologists/ nutritions/ doctors in general and less influencers (you can be straight, wavy, curly or coily but in case u feel to I would say: try it for 3 months)!
I love SLES - that +PQ-10 and CAPB = perfect shampoo for me. My conditioner of choice is stearamidopropyl dimethylamine (2.2%)+PQ-10. I make my own shampoo, conditioner, body wash.
My psoriasis and eczema on my scalp thank your for your knowledge and levelheadedness! Now I know I can look for gentle sles shampoos that will clean my nasty noggin without making it upset. 😊
Please review them without trying them. I mean the ingredients. Do they make sense? My experience is that you need so much product to cover your scalp, much more than “a few drops”.
Thanks for the content, I really appreciate the sciencey explanations as someone who is starting out on a bit of a haircare journey. Could you possibly make a playlist with all your haircare vids? That would be super helpful :)
As a hair stylist.. I do agree with the information on silicones.. but on sulphates.. especially on black hair(African decent)..naah!!. The sulphates are still harsher . Ofcourse hair is similar especially in structure but the difference come in the shape of the follicles which influences the texture(curl pattern) of the hair (straight,wavy,curly,coily).. and also the amount of sulphur bonds varies.. . African hair is generally dry inasmuch as there's sebum production ( which also varies in amount because we have dry scalps ,normal and dandruff prone..), due to the tight curls, the oil doesn't spread evenly along the hair fiber..when it's produced from the scalp. Compared to straight or curved hair types. A good visual would be applying oil on a straight thread vs on a spring wire assuming they are the same thickness. The oil would flow easily downwards on the straight piece vs the springy one. So the sulphates especially if they don't have other moisturizing ingredients can really leave the hair supper dry. A good alternative especially when using shampoos with sulphates is to apply the shampoo on the scalp then allow it to spread as it lathers to the hair. The scalp needs more cleaning.. (especially those with oily , dandruff prone scalps or those that use heavy oils on the scalp or other styling products) The green beauty channel really explains this well from a science point of view. Also the book" science of black hair explains this well" Curly and kinky hair types cannot have an exactly similar hair care regimen as Caucasian hair types . Please if you can,kindly shed more information on the specific types and what works for which types and why.
Thank you for uploading this. My mom is hell bent on only using salon hair care. Not that it's bad but I don't notice much difference in using them compared to what I buy at Costco or my local grocery store. I do like the hair mask It's a 10 though, I find it hard to find the drug store version of that product.
Thank you for this! I am getting sick of these attention-hungry fearmongers all over the internet that try to spread misinformation without backing it up. I sub and liked as soon as I listen. Greetings from sunny Florida!! I am Asian so I have oily skin and hair. I have thought about shampooing Les maybe every other day, or use less, so it's less damaging. I don't really have any symptoms like itchiness or fallout but at 39 I need to start watching out 😅
Vani cream shampoo and conditioner has no fragrance and it's not horribly expensive. I get mine from Target. I've tried dozens of shampoos to reduce or eliminate scalp itch and this is one brand that works. Hope this helps someone.
I tried the sulfate free route and my hair has never felt more oily and dirty. The shampoo I bought was impossible to wash out because it stuck to all the oil.
I only learned a few things because as a hairdresser, and formerly a biochemist, I already studied this from my teachers or by myself 🤫 But this is an outstanding, state-of-the-art video to explain how shampoos and conditioners are working, with genuine science logic, and fight those myths (some of them beeing absolutely ridiculous) surrounding some ingredients 🤗😍
I don't mind sulfates, but I prefer sulfate free only because I have a hard time finding shampoos in Korea that don't completely ruin my type 4 hair. In the usa though, I had no trouble with finding sulfate shampoos that didn't completely destroy my strands though.
The easiest way to tell if you are actually allergic to SLS is if regular toothpaste gives you canker sores or if you’re gums are itchy after brushing your teeth. Most toothpastes have high amounts of SLS, and canker sores are usually an allergic reaction. If your oral mucous membranes are fine, you’re not allergic to sulfates.
It's more likely irritation than an allergy - I get canker sores with some toothpastes (which rarely have any of the mildness techniques mentioned here) but SLS in skin products are fine. SLS is often used as the positive control in irritation studies.
Do one about dry shampoo, please! My fine oily hair has benefitted immensely from dry shampoo (dove volume&fullness dry shampoo) but I hate the rough feeling it gives my hair. Are there better formulations?
I can't even begin to tell you how much I love your content! 💜 The best thing is that you don't only tell us what product is bad or good, but give us the tools to learn and decide ourselves 😍🦕🥳
I'm pretty sceptical of hair products like shampoos and conditioners because my hair was always frizzy and would lose half of it's curl. It only got better with "natural" products but I'm starting to wonder if it just helped protect my hair from a heavy handed towel dry lol I'd love to hear recommendations on shampoos and conditioners and I wonder about soap bar forms. I've also been using coconut oil before I shampoo like you've recommended and it works really well, but would conditioner even do anything for your hair after that?
Thank you so much for this. Your channel has saved my life lmao. Could you please make a video about hair styling products? Or do you have any recommendations for sources to read about this? I'm so confused about them and what different ingredients do and what types of hair benefit from what. I can't trust 99% of sources because it's all just trying to sell a product.
Something that I would like to know about all that subtances is how they affect water after washing your hair. If they are easily biodegradable afterwards or not
So I know diy skincare is potentially harmful to dabble in, and normally I'm not a proponent of it. But it would still be really interesting to see a video on which products, if any, could be safe to make at home, and still be effective. I'm mainly interested in making my own syndet body wash bars, and I'd love to hear your thoughts on whether that's a good idea to do at home and whether it's as simple as it seems. I've read some blogs that provide basic information on the chemistry behind it, provide recipes, instructions, and make it look very simple, but I'm still nervous and skeptical.
is this meant to be colour safe?? i have fragrance allergies and upon seeing your video i night this recently. never has my color bled so much, and i only used a small amount as its a lot stronger than most shampoo i’ve used
Thank you Michelle! I've become so sick of all the pseudoscience in the curly hair community. After spending so much money on sulfate and silicone free haircare, I am going back to normal shampoo and conditioner and it does not damage my curls, in fact, they've never looked better! The sulfate and silicone free haircare I've used tends to have tonnes of irritating essential oils by the way.
I went through the same thing. So much money on different products, and I ended up going back to the sulfate-full shampoo I've used since the 1980s.
Sulfates and silicones are not evil! However I just want to remind that everybody's hair different! My curly hair hates silicone with the passion of a burning sun, I wouldn't have known that if I haven't tried the curly girl method. I do use mild sulfates though. Some curly hair can tolerate sulfates and silicones, some don't. Honestly I kinda envy people whose hair can tolerate them because it would be sooo much easier to find products.
I agree. As a qualified hairdresser (and curly), there is lots of science behind the products that we're not taught on our training. I too got a bit fed up with the general ignorance, and found myself gravitating towards information from board certified dermatologists or cosmetic scientists. And my conclusion is that hair, like skin, is different for everybody, and, like skin care, we just have to try out different products instead of following dogmatic pseudoscience.
The curly hair community wants to feel special and UNiQUE, and they can do that by claiming to use better products or be more "informed". At the end of the day though, they're just getting swindled with the rest of clean beauty advocates.
If they're going to advocate for sulfate and silicone free, they should come with a good reason like personal preference. Nobody can dispute that.
Yes those added essential oils can be so upsetting to my scalp as well
First and foremost, your title! I so appreciate when creators put IN THE TITLE about sponsorships/partnerships. Of course, honesty is just you, so I'm not surprised. But I greatly appreciate it, and it doesn't go unnoticed how transparent you are.
And thank you for making science so interesting! I hope your channel keeps growing because the world needs you!!
I SO agree about the title 👏Hiding sponsorships feels so slimy, and this doesn't make me trust the info any less! Yay for this channel ❤️
sponsorships need to be disclosed by law 🤭
Title is major next level transparency. ❤
Best. Ads. Ever.
We come for the science, and you use the sponsored products to educate (and make me laugh, "It's like peer pressure but for molecules").
Brands should be throwing money at you. You're one influencer I would still trust even if every single video had sponsored content.
And THIS is why I love watching your channel. I usually come away feeling smarter than when I started. Cheers.
That's fantastic to hear! 😊
I am allergic to SLS, I get a very nasty rash when I use products containing them. And it's happened so many times I just avoid everything with it in. BUT I wouldn't tell my friends & family to stop using them in the absence of symptoms. My allergy is not their allergy. In the same way, I haven't stopped eating eggs because my friend is allergic to them.
Well stated. Took a lot of trial and error to figure out SLS was causing lesions on my scalp and the insides of my cheeks to slough off. Gross but true 😬 I'm grateful the trend has made SLS free cleansers and toothpastes readily available but it's not like everyone has to avoid it!
You’re getting a lot of hair requests from us recently but could you please do a scalp video as it’s technically skin but I feel like there’s a lot of conflicting information out there? I’d love to know which anti dandruff shampoos work too.
Thanks for your informative videos!
Ditto for sure on wanting her to do a scalp and/or anti-dandruff shampoo video!
I need better answers than the ones I found in journal articles (through google searching) that are either 1) sponsored by a specific hair or skin care company (leading to a possibly huge bias to make the company happy), 2) mainly opinion pieces with little to no credibility and/or sources (with possible personal biases, think "mom blogs"), 3) vague as all hell, or 4) completely unrelated.
Getting good info on any self-care is astonishingly difficult, which is why I'm glad this channel, and the videos she makes, exists!
I gave up on the sulfate free shampoo when I realized my scalp issues were connected to those shampoos/conditioners. My scalp just wasn't getting cleaned properly. Going back to sulfate shampoos helped a lot. I love your channel for the straightforward and informative content!! It is very much appreciated.
Wait, you might be on to something… I’m gonna go back to sulfate shampoos to see if that’ll help my scalp issues
I know men's beard care probably isn't your thing, but could you give any guidance or recommendations for what sort of ingredients I should look for in beard products?
I’m a woman but since I don’t see as many ppl talking about it I think it would be rly fair if she could do something related to this… Leaving a comment in hopes this can help!!
Leaving a like and comment just because beard community need help as well. (Although I don't have any)
All of the beard care youtubers I can find have an this obnoxious macho dudebro on cocaine vibe, and they don't seem to know anything about the science
Just the fact you are even acknowledging it needs product makes you a God amongst men x
Add me to the list of people who need it, I feel like all the beard oils I use don't help with the itch, but I also have eczema, so idk if there even are beard oils that could help
As an aspiring science communicator, I just have to say I loved your incorporation of analogies, your whole channel philosophy, how you use humour and your personality, and more to make this science engaging and relatable. Thanks Michelle!
❤❤❤
I read a book about the structure of hair for an assignment and it said that knots, which are prevented by making hair slippery using silicone, are the main cause of hair breakage! I was like why does everyone hate silicone then?
I know personally that when I use silicones my hair gets weighed down and oily super quickly. Does that refer to all silicones? Who knows? Often the ingredient list is just way too small and long to check especially in a shop with my toddler in tow. So I try to get silicon free products.
Silicon weighs down my hair and makes it limp in a day. Silicones are not the only ingredient that prevents knots during washing. Sulphates help with that. I like my shampoos silicon free with a huge dollop of sulphates. 🤣
@@barbaraz.5396 from another video, she talks about there being so many different types of silicones. You might have been using silicones that are heavier?
As someone with fine straight hair that tangles easily can confirm that silicones are a must have for me. I get my hair bleached and during the first no conditioner wash my hairstylist has to spend ages detangling
@@barbaraz.5396 Yes! there are different types of silicones!
I've been using the ordinary haircare for a couple of months and my scalp has stopped being irritated. Love it!
The 'natural' wellness craze has spooked people to be scared of ingredients they don't understand, but we're not all chemists, so of course we don't understand their function/ mechanisms! Thanks for sharing some of the evidence :)
Wow, I am really always completely immune to UA-camrs' sponsor ads, because they don't really sell the product to me well. I am actually looking into the The Ordinary shampoo now, because you broke it down _so well!_ Kudos!
I use function of beauty, but price wise im gonna convert to Ordinary hair care. I literally did a whole project on the idea of The Ordinary doing haircare before it came out so Imm super super excited!
I prefer sulfate-free shampoos and products in general because they are too drying on my skin, scalp and hair on an everyday basis. They felt even more drying when I used them in France because the water is so hard. Just, when I arrived in the US and Canada I've realised that the hardness of water was an important factor in the health of my skin and hair. Instantly I observed that they were less irritated, dehydrated. They felt good and confortable. My hair has always been shiny but damn it has never been so healthy. Just so you know I use the same products I used in France because I didn't want them to go to waste.
Nevertheless, since a year I've began to incorporate more sulfate products in my hair and skin routine little by little and it felt great. I use from time to time an anti-dandruff shampoo for prevention. My scalp feels greasier more rapidly than with sulfate-free shampoos and the ends of my hair drier. It is just a feeling and I don't feel there is really a difference in the greasiness. I use sometimes a sulfate body wash when I've been wearing water-resistant sunscreen. It is easier that way and I don't need to double-cleanse.
Literally just used the Ordinary conditioner which I absolutely love on my afro hair hair. It really soften it. Beauty Bay have just created similar products I'm going to test some tonight.
does the conditioner have enough slip to detangle?
@@jiafeistan7657 yes
Do you have 4C hair? 😃
@@BabyGirl-cw6uj I have 4A-4B hair
Would LOVE your recommendations for thinning hair for seniors. Thanks!!
Me too!
@@bluecurlygirl I advocate for caffeine products that stay on the scalp.
Love this! I have super thick curly hair and when I started to learn how to take care of it
I got into the 'sulfate/silicone-free' hype. The curly girl method worked really well for me and I really believed that it was because of the formulas of the hair care I used. These products were very expensive though and I couldn't afford them anymore and went back to 'normal' hair products. I do try to buy products that are specifically for drier hair types but always go for affordable drug store brands. I was surprised to see that the switch didn't make any difference and in fact that silicones made my hair way easier to handle and detangle. Looking back the only things in the curly girl method that really made difference to my hair were detangling with conditioner, not using heat tools as much and learning how to style and handle my hair while it is drying. My scalp also improved when I quit the curly girl method.
some of those cgm groups are full of hysteria and fearmongering
Your glowing recommendation for amodimethicone in your earlier hair care videi was so helpful to me. I have a lot of fine hair that tends to be unruly as it's a bit curly (but not curly enough to actually curl and look nice). Other silicones tend to weigh my hair down and it it feels dirty and lank quickly. I love my amodimethicone containing conditioner though. Leaves my hair silly, hardly any tangles and I still only need to wash twice a week 👌🏻
*edit * silky not silly 🤦🏻♀️
Yay! Yes amodimethicone is so underrated, glad it worked for you! 🥳
I have fine, wavy/curly hair. Out of curiosity, what shampoo and conditioner do you use? I'm trying to find something I like. I also got a giggle out of your typo.
I have the same hair too. Yes please tell us your secrets!
which conditioner you use?
I am so over sulfate-free stuff, and it's getting harder to find sulfates! I did curly girl method strictly for a year and going sulfate and silicone free genuinely ruined my scalp health and hair. I had horrific sores on my scalp and my hair started breaking off at the root. I even noticed some hair loss. But I persisted because it was "better." I finally gave up and went back to naughty sulfates and silicones and my scalp sores and itching went away and my hair slowly returned to being healthy.
Same! CGM gave me dandruff and hair loss. now that I use silicone again my hair stopped snapping off and breaking.
@@Celeste-.-mariesure, indidnt use shampoo for a long while at all, my haur is so dry even when i used to do shampoo, my bair was smooth and healthy but not anymore, should i use this free sulfate free profuct, i never used conditioner, and should i use natural oils to get my hair smooth and healthy again, if u guys have any advice, please and thank u
Can you please talk about Anti-Hair Loss shampoo? And why they usually don’t come with conditioner in anti-hair loss category. Is Rosemary and Caffeine really good to prevent hair loss. I am currently using Aromatica anti-hair loss range, which I quite like.
In my experience (a.k.a. no studies being cited here) caffeine does help to grow hair faster and longer. I think giving it a shot is a good idea.
I guess an anti-hairloss conditioner wouldn't work, because your hair grows out of roots which are on your scalp. The visible hair is already dead, that's why cutting it doesn't hurt. Just like nails :)
Hi Michelle! This video makes me wonder about what your thoughts are on shampoo bars? Are there any that are well formulated (effective) and not too likely to irritate scalps?
Would love to know this too !!
Your problem there is going to be fragrance. Most of them have a bunch of fragrance and essential oils in them. Then you've got things like African Black Soap bars from Shea Moisture et. al. which I wouldn't touch with a 10 foot pole because it's literal soap with an extremely high pH. I've found one that doesn't really have fragrance in it (Shampoo with a Purpose) at least in Australia, but eh....it's full of oils and that just ain't that good for me personally re: back and face and also I just doubt it has the cleansing power I need it's more like a co-wash than a shampoo (I can get dandruff).
They seem to use a lot of non-fragrant oils as their basis and one mild surfactant. ..then all the essential oils or herbal extracts on top.
General cleansing you've got QV and DermaVeen in Australia that offer fragrance free soap-free bars.
I'm curious what you think about Necessaries products that are pH balanced for skin care. This includes their shampoo and conditioner.
"It's like peer-pressure but for molecules" LOVE IT
the world needs more science communicators like you, we're surrounded by so much misinformation!
Thank you!
I have naturally coarse hair. A lot of people think my hair texture is due solely to dryness which... idk what to say, I'm just born with it. Because of this, a lot of hairstylists recommend sulphate free shampoos and tell me not to wash my hair every day. Honestly though I think if I skipped a wash day and got my hair done the next day, they'd probably change their tune. It is very frustrating when hairstylists do not believe me when I say a certain product doesn't suit me. Equally frustrating when they can't tell the difference between damage and my natural texture
Love, love love this!!!
Could you do an up to date video on Keratin smoothing treatments , versus chemical/ permanent straighting systems on hair? I'd use it for my clients understanding.
You're a fecking legend mate!
Would love to see a deep dive on other haircare products ie. Leave in conditioner, hair masks etc ❤
“Sulfate-free” is a brilliant marketing move. People will use excessive amount of shampoo because psychologically we associate foam with cleanliness.
exactly - and you don't need to do it twice either
@SueRosalie Right. Lathering twice all of the time wrecked my hair.
Sulfate - Free does not mean Foam - Free you can have a sulfate - free formula that lathers well.
@SueRosalie depends on how often you wash, I wash mine once a week because it doesn't get greasy and I shampoo twice since it is dirtier than hair that is washed every day
I've been looking for a video like this for years! I can't thank you enough for explaining so thoroughly and succinctly!!!!! 🤩
I love your transparency on the ad disclosure. Love your content! Keep up the good work
I got the conditioner on a whim and man...my hair loves it. Specifically my scalp, which has always been my main struggle. It is very interesting to hear more info about how the product's ingredients work! Maybe I'll check out the cleanser.
Just a shame the bottle is so small.
Thank you so much for this omg. I took minimal care of my hair until last year, only using cheap drugstore shampoo and conditioner and my hair was always smooth and healthy. Just started using expensive silicone free products last year and now my hair is a frizzy mess. Can't wait to use up my current products and replace them with a nice set of silicone containing Herbal Essences shampoo and conditioner again
which herbal essence products you use?
Give away your current ones on an app like olio. It's not worth the trauma ❤️
Wow, I was wondering why some conditioners give me back acne and some not! Thank you for explaining this!!! I will never skip scrubbing after conditioning with those ingredients. ❤
Wow I learned more about hair care in this video than I have in 10 years old doing my own trial and error 😂 thanks so much Michelle! I know you don't have curly hair, but I would Love it if you could do a similar video that dives deeper into how to combat frizz and the chemistry behind frizz and how to define curls.
Thanks for another great video. I'd love to see one on eco friendly beauty products (e.g., shampoo and conditioner bars). I've made the change for reasons largely related to not shipping water weight and plastic free packaging but I'm less confident about the ingredients themselves. A lot of them seem to have bought into the whole sulfate and silicone free hype.
Good video:) I like reading comments, because it only shows that there's no one universal haircare spec: everyone seems to react differently to different ingredients.
Personally, my hair is indifferent to silicon and so on, but the moment I use shampoos with sls, the skin on my head and down the back (where the shampoo is washed down) turns into Itch Central.
A while ago I moved to the bar shampoos and conditioner, and that works great so far, and results in fewer bottles cluttering my shower!
Thank you and I mean thank you. I am so sick of those who believe in this “greening” idea. Sulfates are actually great for anti fungal use.
I wash with just conditioner, and use a silicone scalp massager to get more physical removal instead of chemical. Would love to hear more about what effects types of conditioners have!
I don’t think you are washing your hair if you are just using conditioner and over time you make experience more buildup. Not a professional but I think you should clean your scalp at the least
Brilliant work, as usual. Thank you for the thorough breakdown of shampoos and conditioners in such a clear, concise manner.
Thank you!
Thank you for this! People never believe me when I tell them that Pantene conditioner works as well as many ‘luxury’ brands. It had everything a conditioner needs ( plus the silicone my hair loves best) and no unneeded ingredients ( eg organic plant oils and extras) which do nothing but drive up the cost. The shampoo actually cleanses better and leaves my hair feeling and looking better than specialty brands, which nearly all the time are ordinary shampoo in a costly bottle .
Pantene pioneered silicones in hair products and made a fortune
@@SueRosalie I had no idea! Kind of cool
Clue with hair dyes like the one you had, especially red as that’s notorious for being the color that fades the fastest when washing, die to the size of the molecules, is to use pure color cream leave in product which you apply when showering, so you will have fresh colored hair every day without actually coloring it. Do use gloves as it stains. Comes in many colors and can be also used as toners on bleached or blonde colored hair…
Thanks so much for this! I've been so confused about hair care after trying the curly girl thing for a few years. I heard so much random advice and bought so many expensive products that never really helped my hair to look and feel nice. Would really enjoy more hair care science from you if you feel like making videos about that!
Something interesting to explore would be leave in conditioner vs regular conditioner. I live in California and hate wasting water to rinse conditioner from my hair, but I never know if the leave ins are as good!
Leave ins are wonderful! Try it out & you’ll see.
I’ve been using the ordinary shampoo & conditioner for a couple of months now and am loving the results! My hair type is fine, frizzy and a mix of waves/curls (think Merida from Brave…). Previous scented shampoos have set off my acne, as well as my eczema on my hands and scalp, which in turn caused a lot of hair fall. With the ordinary products my acne and eczema have calmed down and my hair is thicker and shinier while still keeping my waves. Really impressed :-)
That was intense! Thanks for bringing the science HARD 🤘⚡
Glad you enjoyed it! 😄
Thanks for explaining the basic chemistry and I'm loving the use of structural formulas 😍
So glad you made this video to rid me of my guilt of using products with sulfate
THANK YOU for explaining the cationic/fatty alcohol relationship! I had read that they had a synergistic relationship but couldn't figure out why.
Surfactants (foaming ones, not emulsifiers) make my head spin. I can formulate a face cream from scratch, but the most I can do with cleansers is adjust the concentrations and swap out the other ingredients. I understand while someone is explaining how they interact and I can write it all down, but ten minutes later it's nonsense.
Color: I've got dry hair thanks to wearing cotton scrub caps. I love washing my hair with conditioner containing 4% cocamidopropyl betaine. My color lasts much longer this way too! I do have to use regular shampoo every couple weeks and clarifying shampoo about once a month, but the cleansing conditioners are great for everyday use.
Definitely happy to see a hair video and would be happy to see more! I've got thin hair that gets greasy easily and a very sensitive, dry, and angry (very scientific term! lol) scalp, so I could use all the hair/scalp knowledge I can get.
I have this hair type too - I’ve been using the ordinary shampoo & conditioner for a couple of months now and I’m really impressed! My scalp isn’t irritated anymore and as a result I’m not losing as much hair in the shower, so my hair has gotten thicker! Still have to use dry shampoo though to deal with oil unfortunately 🥲
I'd love your opinion on strengthening/protien treatments (hydrolysized silk, keratin, amino acids, olaplex, ect)
Something that's talked about in the curly hair community is that silicones will coat the hair and make it more difficult to refresh curls with water and more leave in conditioning products. Is there some truth to this? Are there silicones that will allow your hair to absorb water and conditioning ingredients without using shampoo first? I was thinking that using silicones, maybe amodimethicone, would create a film over the hair to hold in the conditioning ingredients and keep it smoother for longer. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this!! Thank you!
She breaks it down it makes so much sense TY
Awesome info! Can you do one about children's products - haircare, sunscreen and soaps? I have toddlers and I can't determine if I still need to buy child-specific products (mainly shampoos since they are young enough that they might get some in their eyes). But I know some parents with longer-haired/curly-haired kids aren't sure when it's OK to start using conditioners or detangling products.
Thanks for the info! I used a sulfate-free shampoo for colored hair that felt way too stripping. I’m curious what it is about the formulation that made the shampoo act exactly the opposite of how it was advertised
I love your channel -- thank you so much for your straightforward and educated explanations. Finally someone explains what's REALLY going on in products, based on actual science! I'd be very interested to see what you make of products that claim to repair damage at the molecular level like Olaplex and K18 (and maybe some of their lesser known wannabes).
I literally didn't use shampoo at all for years. I simply washed everyday with conditioner, lots of conditioner, lots of scrubbing/messaging scalp, lots of rinsing, and NO silicones. It worked great bc I was washing and styling everyday. Generally, if I didn't use silicones, then I didn't need shampoo, and my hair looked great.
The problem was that if I didn't want to wash everyday (covid anyone?) then I had to use actual shampoo. But since I was using real shampoo I could also use silicones. And since the more you wet and wash, the more damage you cause, it actually worked better to wash less frequently with actual shampoo and use a silicone smoothie to coat. Sorry this is so long, but wanted to share that it's better to wash less frequently with "harsher" shampoo than daily with just a co-wash, even for my curly top.
I have the ordinary shampoo and conditioner and my hair has never been better. I used soap based shampoo for the past 5 years and before that lots of random things to avoid good old chemistry. My roots were never clean and my hair grew slower.
I hope they launch a silicon conditioner or a a leave in spray/milk with silicon like amodimeticone
For decades, I lived with "dandruff" on my oily scalp, constant flaking of skin in my ears, small sores on my hands, red spots on my face, and sores in my mouth. Once I learned that this was caused by SLS and SLES in my soaps and toothpaste, I never looked back. There are lots of people who can handle SLS and SLES, but there are many of us who find it (literally) to be super-irritating.
I really liked this video, it was actually very informative learning how cleansing agents work. You should make a video discussing about window films that can protect against UV light. I know that a few exist on the market and some even can give protection into the UVA spectrum of light.
A video on biodegradability of ingredients plz
I actually developed sensitivity to SLS and now can no longer use it. It began without me suspecting: mild feeling of skin tightness after showering, my gums being sensitive while using certain toothpaste and dry skin on hands that cracks easily. It eventually escalated to eczema on my hands and full-body rash, with exception of my face (the only part of the body where I used a different cleanser). At the time I was using a lot of Lush products for the body that were full of SLS (it was the 1st ingredient on the list). Once I put 2+2 together and started avoiding SLS, my skin rash went away as well as eczema, and my gums are no longer as sensitive. I often wonder would I ever even develop this sensitivity, if I were using products where SLS was used more sparingly? who knows...
Same here. My dermatologist says that it's really common nowadays, since SLS is just everywhere.
My FAVORITE shampoos PANTENE Pure Clean & Clairify a dye free, fragrance free, silicone free formula that uses Sodium Laureth Sulfate as the Primary Surfactant it is Deep Cleaning yet gentle.
SLS in toothpaste flakes off skin in my mouth and in shampoo, the skin off my scalp. SLES however, seems fine. If my conditioner has ' stronger ' silicones such as Dimethecone instead of ' weaker ' silicones such as Amodimethecone, will it still cleanse adequately? A lot of silicone free shampoos have coconut oil, something too heavy for my hair that also breaks me out while silicone shampoos make my hair feel a lot smoother and tangle a lot less without making it greasy and weighed down like coconut oil. Weirdly enough, the best my hair ever feels is when I use those one week hair color tinted treatment things! I've used the Etude House one and the Knight and someone ( in England ) one and they are both lovely, perhaps because of their coating and conditioning nature.
Awesome topic!! You probably just gave the good old fashioned “sulfate” shampoos a major boost in sales (not to mention The Ordinary), and people everywhere are breathing a sigh of relief that’s it’s okay to buy regular shampoos (and hopefully save some money as well).
That's absolutely how I feel. I have long, thick, wavy hair, and go through a lot of product. I couldn't afford to be buying bougie, sulfate and silicone free stuff and have returned to cheap Pantene, which works really well for my hair.
It is SO HARD to find fragrance free hair products😪 I’ve gotten away with using baby shampoo (the eucerin baby hair and body wash and it’s actually worked SO well!)
THANK YOU SO MUCH. for years i was desperate for why my hair was so terrible, eventho i did everything ive been told : no sulphates,no silicones etc etc. a year ago i shaved my whole head and since then been using cheap drugstore shampoos and conditioners and my hair looks good. ive wtached a few videos on silicones in haircare and im convinced now, that i lost 10 years of pretty hair, because i fell for pseudoscience.
I loved this video! Ingredient analysis of hair care products is interesting to me because it allows me to look at the ingredients label and get a good idea of whether I will like the product or not, without spending the money or time to try it myself.
I'm wondering what the special ingredients or lack of ingredients makes a shampoo or conditioner curly-hair-friendly. Most curly hair tends to be dry, I believe, so conditioners are probably involved. But is there any specific ingredient that brings out the curl in hair?
I very much enjoy your videos and appreciate learning the science behind products. Thank you for producing these videos!
I would love a video on hyaluronic acid in haircare. Is it even possible for the hair to be hydrated?
I have a very oily scalp and i only use a clarifying shampoo. Pretty sure it has sulfates and my fine hair doesnt have any damage. The only ingredient i avoid are silicones just because they make my hair feel too slippery which feels greasy to me.
Thank you so much for creating awareness regarding sulphates. I don't like sulphate-free shampoos. They don't lather, and i feel like they are not cleaning my hair. Plus i end up using almost twice the quantity (and still don't feel clean).
you don't need lather, it is not related to how much the product is cleaning your hair, but these ingredients are added because consumers like them.
Also, what do you think of dry shampoo Michelle? I see a lot of negative coverage, but often from the same people who fear monger about “chemicals”. I find it really helpful in not having to wash my (usually very oily) hair every day, especially in summer. But, are there long term consequences that will catch up with me eventually?
Yes! I always adore these videos and learn so much
Thank you for this video. I get seborrheic dermatitis and needed another shampoo for my in between Nizoral Shampoo days. I had purchased Sukin shampoo, but didn’t think it was helping. I’m now going back to a normal sulphate shampoo
I fell for the sulfate-free, silicone-free bs for so long, and it wrecked my scalp. I have type 1A hair, and I actually got sores and ingrown hairs on my head because it wasn't actually getting clean. I've finally gone back to an SLES shampoo and my scalp and hair are so much happier.
I have the same type of hair, may I ask which shampoo you're using?
@@amberghini yeah! the brand is "Hair Biology" and it's the full and vibrant volumizing shampoo, and since switching I can go so much longer between washes and I'm not dealing with itchiness, sores, and ingrowns anymore! I also alternate between the Ouai fine hair conditioner and the Headquarters oil away conditioner,, depending on how I'm feeling
@@eusphyrablochii Thank you! I'll see if I can find it. :)
I have very straight, oily hair and tried the free from everything shampoo thing, I ended up with acne on my scalp, neck and hairline. I use revolution salicylic acid shampoo now and my skin is so happy.
@@Elespeth ooh I'm definitely going to have to check that out!!
I’ve been getting my hair straight for half of my life but the time I used my natural 3A I had no problems with using these “bad” products… But every group has these issues due to uneducated people who just end up doing nothing good for our lives! In straight hair community I feel there is this obsession with a “frizz-less”, thick, “just got out of the saloon” (aka voluminously blowout) looking and shiny (but not oily hair). I’m mixed (White + Native Am.). I got my White mom’s 3A (but thin, even tho she’s actually Mediterranean) hair and my NA dad’s dark hair color. Here in Brazil hair industry is huge and so do those “procedures” to make it straight for months so you can wash it and still have it straight (been doing it for the longest time). Due to my natural ULTRA thin (I said ULTRA… And it was already this thin before the procedure) I could never dream about going “frizz-less” or something close to it (specially when the months pass and it’s getting closer to reapply the product that makes it straight). How I said, my hair is thin so n°2 would be a fail too (you can “fake it” but not change your hair “thickness as far as Ik). For the n°3 I’m always busy so (unfortunately) no time to do it (and I never happened to just simply get it as day after how some girls claim to get). N°4 I’ve got no complaints about (both of my parents have a decent amount of shiny looking hair and so am I). Since I started going the opposite way these girls tend to go my hair never looked so good (and my scalp never felt healthier)! Actually I’ve been following to more dermatologists/ nutritions/ doctors in general and less influencers (you can be straight, wavy, curly or coily but in case u feel to I would say: try it for 3 months)!
I love SLES - that +PQ-10 and CAPB = perfect shampoo for me. My conditioner of choice is stearamidopropyl dimethylamine (2.2%)+PQ-10. I make my own shampoo, conditioner, body wash.
My psoriasis and eczema on my scalp thank your for your knowledge and levelheadedness! Now I know I can look for gentle sles shampoos that will clean my nasty noggin without making it upset. 😊
Michelle what about the other Ordinary scalp products? The density booster and the HA moisturiser? Love your videos . X
I haven't actually tried them, sorry!
Please review them without trying them. I mean the ingredients. Do they make sense? My experience is that you need so much product to cover your scalp, much more than “a few drops”.
Thanks for the content, I really appreciate the sciencey explanations as someone who is starting out on a bit of a haircare journey. Could you possibly make a playlist with all your haircare vids? That would be super helpful :)
As a hair stylist.. I do agree with the information on silicones.. but on sulphates.. especially on black hair(African decent)..naah!!. The sulphates are still harsher .
Ofcourse hair is similar especially in structure but the difference come in the shape of the follicles which influences the texture(curl pattern) of the hair (straight,wavy,curly,coily).. and also the amount of sulphur bonds varies..
. African hair is generally dry inasmuch as there's sebum production ( which also varies in amount because we have dry scalps ,normal and dandruff prone..), due to the tight curls, the oil doesn't spread evenly along the hair fiber..when it's produced from the scalp. Compared to straight or curved hair types.
A good visual would be applying oil on a straight thread vs on a spring wire assuming they are the same thickness.
The oil would flow easily downwards on the straight piece vs the springy one.
So the sulphates especially if they don't have other moisturizing ingredients can really leave the hair supper dry.
A good alternative especially when using shampoos with sulphates is to apply the shampoo on the scalp then allow it to spread as it lathers to the hair.
The scalp needs more cleaning.. (especially those with oily , dandruff prone scalps or those that use heavy oils on the scalp or other styling products)
The green beauty channel really explains this well from a science point of view.
Also the book" science of black hair explains this well"
Curly and kinky hair types cannot have an exactly similar hair care regimen as Caucasian hair types .
Please if you can,kindly shed more information on the specific types and what works for which types and why.
I've actually seen some hair stylists who specialise in African hair agree with me on the sulfates issue 🤷🏻♀️ Monarch Curl for example
@@LabMuffinBeautyScience aah okay.. I'll check her out
Thank you for uploading this. My mom is hell bent on only using salon hair care. Not that it's bad but I don't notice much difference in using them compared to what I buy at Costco or my local grocery store. I do like the hair mask It's a 10 though, I find it hard to find the drug store version of that product.
Thank you for this! I am getting sick of these attention-hungry fearmongers all over the internet that try to spread misinformation without backing it up. I sub and liked as soon as I listen. Greetings from sunny Florida!!
I am Asian so I have oily skin and hair.
I have thought about shampooing Les maybe every other day, or use less, so it's less damaging. I don't really have any symptoms like itchiness or fallout but at 39 I need to start watching out 😅
This is the video I have been waiting for! Thanks so much. Have you done a breakdown of bar shampoo/ conditioners?
Vani cream shampoo and conditioner has no fragrance and it's not horribly expensive. I get mine from Target. I've tried dozens of shampoos to reduce or eliminate scalp itch and this is one brand that works. Hope this helps someone.
I tried the sulfate free route and my hair has never felt more oily and dirty. The shampoo I bought was impossible to wash out because it stuck to all the oil.
Please make a video on best products for thinning hair, great video. Thanks
I only learned a few things because as a hairdresser, and formerly a biochemist, I already studied this from my teachers or by myself 🤫
But this is an outstanding, state-of-the-art video to explain how shampoos and conditioners are working, with genuine science logic, and fight those myths (some of them beeing absolutely ridiculous) surrounding some ingredients 🤗😍
I don't mind sulfates, but I prefer sulfate free only because I have a hard time finding shampoos in Korea that don't completely ruin my type 4 hair. In the usa though, I had no trouble with finding sulfate shampoos that didn't completely destroy my strands though.
The easiest way to tell if you are actually allergic to SLS is if regular toothpaste gives you canker sores or if you’re gums are itchy after brushing your teeth. Most toothpastes have high amounts of SLS, and canker sores are usually an allergic reaction. If your oral mucous membranes are fine, you’re not allergic to sulfates.
It's more likely irritation than an allergy - I get canker sores with some toothpastes (which rarely have any of the mildness techniques mentioned here) but SLS in skin products are fine. SLS is often used as the positive control in irritation studies.
Do one about dry shampoo, please! My fine oily hair has benefitted immensely from dry shampoo (dove volume&fullness dry shampoo) but I hate the rough feeling it gives my hair. Are there better formulations?
I can't even begin to tell you how much I love your content! 💜 The best thing is that you don't only tell us what product is bad or good, but give us the tools to learn and decide ourselves 😍🦕🥳
I'm pretty sceptical of hair products like shampoos and conditioners because my hair was always frizzy and would lose half of it's curl. It only got better with "natural" products but I'm starting to wonder if it just helped protect my hair from a heavy handed towel dry lol I'd love to hear recommendations on shampoos and conditioners and I wonder about soap bar forms. I've also been using coconut oil before I shampoo like you've recommended and it works really well, but would conditioner even do anything for your hair after that?
Thank you so much for this. Your channel has saved my life lmao. Could you please make a video about hair styling products? Or do you have any recommendations for sources to read about this?
I'm so confused about them and what different ingredients do and what types of hair benefit from what. I can't trust 99% of sources because it's all just trying to sell a product.
Something that I would like to know about all that subtances is how they affect water after washing your hair. If they are easily biodegradable afterwards or not
Thanks Michelle! This was very enlightening 👌
Can you make a video about ingredients that proven to help with hair growth?
Would love a video from near infrared light with all your knowledge!💕
Thanks for this.
Very interesting, particularly about the conditioners.
So I know diy skincare is potentially harmful to dabble in, and normally I'm not a proponent of it. But it would still be really interesting to see a video on which products, if any, could be safe to make at home, and still be effective. I'm mainly interested in making my own syndet body wash bars, and I'd love to hear your thoughts on whether that's a good idea to do at home and whether it's as simple as it seems. I've read some blogs that provide basic information on the chemistry behind it, provide recipes, instructions, and make it look very simple, but I'm still nervous and skeptical.
is this meant to be colour safe?? i have fragrance allergies and upon seeing your video i night this recently. never has my color bled so much, and i only used a small amount as its a lot stronger than most shampoo i’ve used