5 reasons to stop washing your hair
Our writer finds out why the “no ‘poo” movement is gaining momentum. Plus, how you can ditch the shampoo for healthy, lustrous locks
By Diane Peters
I’m an active gal. When I run or do yoga, my thin little bob gets sweaty, so I’m tempted to wash it every day. But I also swim laps, so washing plus chlorine dries my hair to a crispy mess.
The rising “no ‘poo” movement caught my attention. Followers are ditching their shampoo bottle and using brushes and talc. They profess to having gorgeous locks and say hair in its natural state is healthier, better for the environment and looks fabulous with little work.
I gave the shampoo-free life a try for a little while. Here are five reasons why you might want to ditch the ‘poo too:
1. Avoid chemicals
Many of the unpronounceable ingredients on shampoo and conditioner labels come with safety concerns. Possible carcinogen and hormone disrupter diethyl phthalate (DEP) helps hair products hold fragrance. Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) makes shampoo foam up, but it irritates skin and could be cancer-causing. Parabens work as a preservative, but they’ve been found in breast cancer tumour tissue, says Rick Smith, executive director of Environmental Defence, and coauthor of Slow Death By Rubber Duck. He suggests washing less often or buying products without these ingredients.
2. Use less water
When you’re not washing your hair every day, you reduce your water consumption, which has environmental benefits. (I’ve found, on non-hair-wash days, a quick splash on my body from the tub faucet is all I need.) But also, reducing how much water your hair is exposed to is good for your locks, especially if you colour as the heat and minerals in your shower water strips colour from your strands. “Water alone can be responsible for 80 percent of colour fade,” says Jeni Thomas, principal scientist for P&G Beauty and Grooming in Cincinnati, OH. She recommends that when you do wash your hair, you expose it to as little water as possible.
3. Save time
Washing, conditioning and styling takes up a heck of a lot of time in the morning. When you wash your hair less often, you gain time to do other healthful things like taking a morning jog or sleeping in. Having some tricks to extend the time between hair washings lets you be more flexible. For instance, hold off on washing before a midday swim (a favourite trick of mine) or take a full shower after an evening tennis game.
4. Get healthier hair
The folks who don’t wash their hair for months on end claim that when they stop washing, their hair eventually produces less scalp oil, which is called sebum. The result: hair that’s shiny, moist and healthy — never greasy. Thomas agrees that sebum is good for your hair: “Scalp oils have a naturally protective quality — they’re nature’s conditioner.”
However, she says there are no published studies showing sebum works on a supply and demand model. “What you do when you remove oils is more of an external effect, I don’t know of any proof that this can impact the underlying biological process,” says Thomas.
5. Get to know your locks
In the end, I was able to go just two weeks without washing my hair. But brushing and talc was enough to keep grease at bay for about a week at a time. After a summer of infrequent washing, I improved my scalp health (all that brushing removed traces of dandruff), but I mainly learned a whole lot about my hair and let go of my own rigid rules about when it needed to be washed. I found my locks had more body when dirty than clean, and I could easily go three days without washing. But as a regular lap swimmer with thin hair, I also found that shampoo was something I did need, at least a few times a week.
How you can stretch the time between washes
• When you do wash, Toronto hairstylist Harry Josh says to really clean your scalp to rid it of oils.
• Brush your hair nightly with a boar bristle brush. This redistributes the sebum in your hair, moving it from your oily scalp down to the dry ends.
• Use talc on bangs to tame oil. Find a coloured talc so you don’t get a funny white residue at your roots.
• When things get nasty, “wash” your hair with a baking soda and water paste and rinse it out with diluted vinegar.
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Web exclusive, September 2011
Years ago I tapered off my hair washing. I went two days for a while and then three until I was only washing once a week. I noticed I did not lose anywhere near as much hair as I did when I washed every day. Once my girls became teenagers they of course thought they had to wash their hair every day and pretty soon our shower drains were clogged with their hair and hair was all over the countertops and floors in the bathroom where they combed it out. I convinced them to cut back on the hair washing and voila! the hair stays on their head! We usually have noticeable oil on the roots by the last day. I try to rub my fingers thru my scalp to pick up excess oil the last couple of day. I think brushing every day actually stimulates oil production but it's just a theory.
I tried no shampoo for about 3 years. Just gave it a quick soap while showering with the soap while washing my face. It looked great, no complaints from anyone, even my wife who had no clue. One thing I did do was use any left over beer from any parties we hosted and that seemed to help.
In my line of work, not washing my hair daily would not be healthy....
Working in a hospital with sick people and germs everywhere, I don't want to spread this to my family. Sick people breathing in me and coughing all over me.....gross. ANd people with thick hair can not use talc powders or dry shampoos, they stay in the hair!
re: "Dry shampoos can help for those of us with fine hair (sometimes called 'in-between' shampoos) - Batiste uses a rice starch which helps absorb oil & grease, then just brush out."
I simply use all purpose flour: massage it into roots and brash the grease off, even with long hair, it will take 10-15 min, promise)
wow the comments here are really ignorant.
The fact that you get really oily scalp when you stop shampooing is a sign that your body has been overcompensating for so long because you have been using shampoo that strips your hair of its natural oils. Therefore, as you continue to stop using shampoo your scalp will adjust and realise that it doesn't need to produce so much oil anymore because there is no shampoo removing the oil from your skin!
People who don't shampoo do not have greasy hair and they do not smell. They probably did have greasy hair to begin with when they were transitioning from shampooing to not shampooing, but once the body has adjusted your hair will not be greasy.
Dry shampoos can help for those of us with fine hair (sometimes called 'in-between' shampoos) - Batiste uses a rice starch which helps absorb oil & grease, then just brush out.
because i dislike the chemicals as well, i use baby shampoo. i dont use in the shower conditioner, however i do have a leave in conditioner that i use after i towel dry my hair. I was so amazed at how quickly my hair regained its healthy appearance i shared the idea with my sister, who tried it. She had the same, almost immediate, results.
I agree with those with "thin" hair, and if you go to the gym 3-4 times a week sweating it out and doing good things for your health and body...you need to wash hair more often (at least every other day)!! And, as for that "sebum" comment....you know that hair all over the rest of your body, arms, legs, eyebrows....well sebum is not a 'limited supply' we produce it over and over and over ...look up sebaceous glands and learn something.
I haven't washed my hair for a month and I love it. It's less work for me and I've drastically reduced the number of chemicals in my daily regime. It's worth a try! http://wp.me/p1BAZi-66
I heard it's also fashionable not to shower or bathe every day, some people are even proud to say they go for a week or more without washing. It's better for you or the environment to be dirty, really?? I say it's only an excuse for laziness and it's downright gross. Please consider your peers before ditching soap and shampoo, not everyone wants to smell your B.O. or see your greasy hair!
Ever heard the word "SEBUM".??.Well keep washing and SHAMPOOING you hair and you nwont have any left..SEBUM,You only have so much ,,It lubricltes the hair under the scalp.Get rid of it by Shampooing..GOODBYE HAIR..Hello BALDIE..
This may work for people with dry hair, but not those with oilier hair. I tried the talc and my hair looked like it had powder in it, not matter how much I brushed. It also smelled like dirty, greasy hair. I'd like to go longer between shampoos, but I also like to look like I care about hygiene. This does not work for me. Shiny, clean, great smelling hair works for me.
I can only speak for myself, but if I go more than a day my head looks like an oil spill. I can literally comb it back and it will stay that way. It's also fine and not very thick, so it tends to part at the crown and cow licks. It's pretty gross. Any recommendations for a good natural shampoo?
Forgot to add that I do wash my hair every day and my hair looks perfect and healthy. Just use good shampoo and conditionier and you will be just fine
Despite the fact that washing every day may not be healthy I hate people with greasy, dirty hair....GRRRR!!! Some of my girlfriends at work wash their hair once a week and when I look at them I WOULD NOT TOUCH THEIR HAIR FOR ANY MONEY IN THE WORLD.
Some of them use dry shampoo not to wash their hair but in my opinien it's like covering s....with a bid of perfume. Wash it as often as you want and look great girls!!!!!!
I thought talc was bad for your respiratory system, that's why they don't put it in baby powder anymore.
I am so happy that the rest of North America has finally realized that more is not better. I have been following these points for years even though my family and friends have tried to change my mind.
"Just because we can does not mean we should"
Homeless down and out living on the street..Take a good look at these unfortunate people. THEY HAVE THICK GROWING LIKE MADE HAIR. Lots of it ,Why .They dont Shampoo..Period.
This article is so true! I've come a long way in the past year re looking after my hair. I colour my hair and used to use a perm. colour to cover greys for many years. I then changed to a semi-perm. colour and it covers grays as much as the one with ammonia, plus leaves it soft & shiny, not like straw as the perm. colour did. I changed from using the average drug store poo for colour treated hair, to one which is completely natural and doesn't lather but feels SO good. I also do not wash my hair that often - it depends. I usually go 4 - 5 days. The overall health, condition....and look of my hair is amazing!