Natural Shampoo – is it Better for You
Making the switch to natural shampoo could be the best option for your hair. Especially if you suffer from dandruff or dry and thinning hair. The reason for this can be the reduction in the chemicals used in your normal shampoo. Many shampoos contain chemicals such as SLS and parabens. Whereas; natural shampoos do not contain these chemicals and should use natural ingredients to clean your hair.
What’s so bad about SLS?
SLS or sodium lauryl sulphate is a chemical used in many household products and is also found in shampoos and body washes. It acts as a surfactant and is used to create the suds in your shampoo whilst you wash your hair. SLS is a known skin irritant and has been shown to cause skin sensitisation and dermatitis. The reason why it’s widely used….it’s cheap! It’s added to just about most products that need a little foaming action and this includes toothpaste.
So if you think about the effects SLS can have on your hair and skin, it could well be the cause of your dandruff. I personally suffered from dandruff for years until a made the change to using natural shampoo. Now I simply no longer have dandruff, a coincidence you might think? Well, I’m not sure you can outgrow dandruff; in my opinion, dandruff has gone due to the natural shampoo bar I use.
I’ve tried all of our shampoo bars and I must admit my overall favourite is Sintra Naturals vegan shampoo bar. Its easy to use, foams up well and cleans my long hair perfectly! Once I’ve rinsed it out I run the conditioner bar through the length of my hair avoiding the scalp and rinse again for super soft knot free hair!
The best way to change to natural shampoo
By now your hair has become used to the chemicals in your current shampoo. You can almost hear it cringe when you get the shampoo bottle out! Transitioning to a natural shampoo can take a few days to a few weeks. It depends on how much chemical build-up there is on your hair and scalp and sometimes the product you choose. Your hair may feel different to start with while it adjusts to the natural ingredients. Just make sure you rinse well after shampooing as you might be a little fooled by the lack of foam. Many natural shampoos do not foam up as much as those containing SLS, they will however clean your hair just as well.
A few quick questions about natural shampoos
We often get asked questions about our shampoo bars so here are the myths and the yays and nays.
- Are all natural shampoos suitable for my hair? The simple answer is no. Like all shampoos you have to find the one that’s best suited for your hair and also your preferred scent.
- Will a natural shampoo help with thinning hair? If your hair is thinning due to the chemicals in your current shampoo, then a natural shampoo may help. If your hair is thinning due to age or illness the chances are it won’t make any difference…Sorry just being honest.
- Can I use natural shampoo on colour treated hair? Yes most definitely as they are natural they should not react with your hair colour.
- Can I use my natural shampoo on my dog? Err no not really the shampoos might be natural but some contain essential oils that may not be suitable for pets. Plus the PH of pet fur is different to the PH of human hair, we recommend using a natural soap designed for pets.
- Can I use a natural shampoo bar on my cat? No! The same rules that apply above for dogs are the same for cats. Use a shampoo designed for cats, not humans!
We hope you found this useful and if you want to have a go at using a natural shampoo you can see the full range in our shampoo bars category.
Want to read more about the effects of SLS we wrote an article on the reason you should avoid this chemical you might find interesting.
About Snooty Catz
Are you new to Snooty Catz? We are a small UK independent business that loves to live ethically for both ourselves and our pets. This is why we stock a fabulous range of natural wellbeing products for both people and their pets. As well as ethically sourced homewares and eco gifts.
Snooty Catz is an ethical business, and deeply cares about the environment. So each order is sent in eco-friendly, plastic free packaging. We have also partnered with Ecologi and will plant one tree for every order placed. There’s a lot of good happening over here!
Thanks for stopping by and have a fabulous day!
