May 2, 2007
I stopped washing my hair. Yes, you heard me correctly, but before you start saying “ewww, gross” read on.
I have naturally curly hair. For many years I fought with my hair. It varies from kinky curls, to ringlets, to barely a wave. I would try every type of shampoo and conditioner in an effort to control my wild mane. Every “solution” seemed to be worse than the last. I would try gels and frizz solutions, but to no avail. A few years ago, I picked up a book: Curly Girl. In the book the author explains the complex construction of curly hair. Did you know that curly hair is actually very fragile and all of my hair “solutions” were causing more problems?
The book recommends not washing your hair - and instead using conditioner to “wash.” This type of hair needs the natural oils in the scalp to control hair and reduce frizz. Yes - curly hair *needs* the oil from the scalp. So, I decided to give it a try. I stopped washing my hair. At first it was difficult and now I go without. Have you ever read the chemicals that are in a bottle of shampoo? Whatever you put onto your hair (onto your skin) gets into your bloodstream.
What is the chemical content of shampoo? From: http://www.naturalfamilyonline.com/go/index.php
/389/why-you-should-go-no-poo/Chemical content of shampoo
Following are just a small sample of the toxins found in most shampoos and their detrimental side effects.• Alcohol, isopropyl (SD-40) is a very drying and irritating solvent and dehydrator that strips your skin’s moisture and natural immune barrier, making you more vulnerable to bacteria, molds and viruses. It is made from propylene, a petroleum derivative, and is found in many skin and hair products, fragrances, antibacterial hand washes as well as shellac and antifreeze. It can act as a “carrier,” accelerating the penetration of other harmful chemicals into your skin.
It may promote brown spots and premature aging of skin. A Consumer’s Dictionary of Cosmetic Ingredients says isopropyl alcohol may cause headaches, flushing, dizziness, mental depression, nausea, vomiting, narcosis, anesthesia and coma. A fatal ingested dose is one ounce or less.
• FD&C color pigments are synthetic colors made from coal tar, containing heavy metal salts that deposit toxins onto the skin, causing skin sensitivity and irritation. Absorption of certain colors can cause depletion of oxygen in the body and death. Animal studies have shown almost all of them to be carcinogenic.
• Mineral oil is a petroleum by-product that coats the skin like plastic, clogging the pores. It interferes with skin’s ability to eliminate toxins, promoting acne and other disorders.
• Propylene glycol (PG) and butylene glycol are petroleum plastics which act as surfactants (wetting agents and solvents). They easily penetrate the skin and can weaken protein and cellular structure. Commonly used to make extracts from herbs, PG is strong enough to remove barnacles from boats!
• Sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and sodium laureth sulfate (SLES) are detergents and surfactants that may pose serious health threats. They are used in car washes, garage floor cleaners and engine degreasers — and in 90 percent of personal care products that foam. Animals exposed to SLS experienced eye damage, depression, labored breathing, diarrhea, severe skin irritation and even death.
Um, yeah. I want THAT in my bloodstream. So, I have found that from time to time I do need to wash my hair. When I do so, I use baking soda with about a tablespoon of water. I clean my scalp with that and then rinse. I then using apple cider vinegar and rinse my hair. This treatment actually seems to clean my hair better than any conventional shampoo I have tried. If I feel I need a little leave in “conditioner, ” I will add a small amount of olive oil to my hands and pat my head. yep - that is it.
My hair has never been better!
Do you want to try not shampooing your hair?
Getting Started
If you’re thinking about trying this method, be forewarned! Most people experience a week or two of “icky hair” while their scalp struggles to adjust to the new routine. It is worth it, however - at the end, your hair is very soft, clean, and luxurious.
Here are some basic instructions on living without shampoo.
- Rinse your hair daily with hot water and brush with a natural bristle brush. However, if you have curly hair, do not brush. Use your fingernails to clean your scalp in the shower.
- As often as needed (for some people, this is every few days, for some once a week is enough), scrub scalp with a baking soda paste and rinse well.
- Rinse hair with diluted vinegar. Apple cider vinegar or essential oils added to white vinegar smells great.
If the baking-soda-and-vinegar routine doesn’t seem to work for you, here are some variations:
- Add a honey scalp massage to help with dry hair or itchy scalp
- Use lime or lemon juice instead of vinegar.
- Use some oil on the very ends of hair to cut down on frizz and dry ends. I use olive oil.
May 2, 2007 at 12:48 pm
I started doing that a few weeks ago. I was already a twice a week shampoo person so now I’m a twice a week baking soda/vinegar person. I don’t fuss over my hair much, it’s long, straight-ish but with body. My dh was somewhat skeptical at first but was forced to admit my hair smelled and felt just fine.
May 2, 2007 at 1:35 pm
Yikes, those chemicals are in most “natural” personal care products as well as the regular brands. I have thick, wavy hair and don’t use shampoo every time I shower because it dries out my hair and scalp. Do you have any recommendations for conditioners that don’t have the chemicals? It seems that the natural brands don’t have a lot of the chemicals listed, but have either Sodium Lauryl Sulfate or Sodium Laureth Sulfate.
May 2, 2007 at 1:46 pm
I found this recipe at: http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/self/3345
Winter can be murder on hair: the combination of outdoor cold, indoor heat, and pervasive dryness can leave our tresses looking limp and lackluster. It’s time for Tress Rescue, a dandy formula from Annie that is all-natural, good for you and for the planet, and inexpensive to make. This healing conditioner will restore bounce and shine to your hair just in time for Spring.
INGREDIENTS
2 ounces aloe vera gel
1/2 teaspoon oil (avocado or jojoba are great)
2 ounces organic apple cider vinegar
1 ounce powdered milk
1. Combine ingredients in a bowl, stirring to blend.
2. Apply to just-washed damp hair. Allow to remain on hair for 10 to 30 minutes, then rinse thoroughly.
May 2, 2007 at 2:09 pm
Very cool idea. I have hair down to my waist and very dry scalp and hair. I am definitely going to give this a try. Lady Rose
May 2, 2007 at 3:08 pm
You may want to read about SLS in shampoo
http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/household/shampoo.asp
May 2, 2007 at 6:10 pm
My wife started doing this too and noticed a huge difference in her hair. It’s funny, the products that we’re told will make our hair beautiful really make it not so nice. Strange how that works.
May 2, 2007 at 7:35 pm
There is a product called Grandpa’s Pine Tar soap that I like. I think it’s made from some sort of vegetable oil and pine tar. It’s great for washing both body and hair. Rumor has it that women tend to dislike the way it smells - it smells like a pine forest. My wife is support for this generalization, as she dislikes it quite fervently. They sell it at Whole Foods and probably at some of the earthier co-op type places.
May 2, 2007 at 10:31 pm
Interesting stuff, Emme… My wife is a fan of “Curly Girl” also.
This does remind me of a comedian I once heard ranting about all of the hair care products his wife had, asking her, “Just how many heads do you have?!”
May 3, 2007 at 6:11 am
What an interesting idea! I’ll have to share your post with my mother, who has the World’s Frizziest Hair. She’ll appreciate an alternative, I’m sure.
May 3, 2007 at 10:25 am
Like Malval I’ve gone from twice a week shampoo to twice a week baking soda and apple cider vinegar. It works great, it’s especially good for my thin soft hair which often gets kind of like cotton candy winter. No more messy hair with apple cider vinegar.
May 3, 2007 at 11:26 am
From one curly head to another:
What changes have you noticed in your hair? Is it less frizzy?
I have been using store conditioner and after I’m done, will switch to some other homemade formulas. Am also thinking about using some of that Dr. Bronner’s soap mixed w/ some olive oil…What do you think?
May 3, 2007 at 11:57 am
I was wondering how everyone was doing with the No Poo experiment. I have been using Kiss My Face olive oil soap for body and hair. I think, I’m going back to the baking soda, apple cider vinegar rinse. I tried Dr. Bronner’s, too, but it’s too drying.
May 3, 2007 at 1:48 pm
Wow! Nothing like full-disclosure information to get one thinking differently.
I definitely get bed head every morning– with oily-ish and very fine hair. If I don’t wash every day it flattens completely out. That said, during the big Calif. drought that occurred during my college years, I washed it every other day and pulled my hair back in a pony tail on the off ones. It seemed to work OK, but as I moved from college gal to working woman, it was back to everyday styling.
Well, I use almost no hair products these days (my hair is beyond any help that mousse, hairspray, gel, etc. can provide), but I haven’t examined my shampoo lately. TIME TO CHANGE! I’l let you know what works! Thanks Emme.
May 4, 2007 at 5:53 am
I haven’t used shampoo for about 8 weeks now. I used the baking soda paste twice in the first couple of weeks and then….just water. I think it is great. It doesn’t smell (so I am told) and I don’t get hathead or bedhead anymore. My hair is shiny and has body. The best thing is that it looks and feels the same everyday - no bad hair days. It feels like it used to the 2nd or 3rd day after a wash. My hairdresser says he only washes his once a month and he feels that people overwash their hair.
May 4, 2007 at 9:57 am
Hey there! Nice layout! I have it too :p
I have a gore-y tale about how shampoo is nasty. One friend of mine one time got a horrible sunburn after just 20 minutes in the sun. By horrible, I mean really horrible- 2nd degree burns. Turned out she had washed her hair with Fructis that morning, which of course ran down her body as she rinsed. And we could actually see the burns had what looked like a flowing pattern. You could tell that the parts where the shampoo ran down were more burned. She went to a dermatologist, who told her it must have been the fruit acids in the shampoo. BEWARE of shampoo!!!
May 4, 2007 at 7:01 pm
I can’t believe you signed the Compact just over a year ago! I am in awe and feel incredibly wasteful and ridiculous…I have definitely made a concerted effort to reduce, reuse and recycle these past two months, but those are just baby steps…I guess we all need to start somewhere though right? I would be interested to converse with you via e-mail if possible to find out Farmer’s Market and good CSA info for the Rochester area. I have been going to the Good Food Store as I live close to there, however I know there must be many resources that I don’t even have a clue about…I know you are quite a busy lady, but if you have a few minutes here and there to converse via e-mail and kind of ‘mentor’ me let me know. If not, no worries—with 5 kids, a job and homeschooling—it wouldn’t shock me if you don’t have time! Thanks for considering.
May 7, 2007 at 2:15 pm
nalani, - soft and much less frizz. Love it!
Alina - yuck. thanks for sharing the story.
just ducky - perhaps we can meet at the co-op for a local low impact support group!
May 10, 2007 at 11:26 am
I have wavy, curly hair, but lately I’ve found that it feels all weighed down and yucky. I’m going to try your suggestions and see what happens.
-Cheri
May 10, 2007 at 1:48 pm
*PLEASE* post a follow-up on this in another month or so! My hair is the one small thing I’m still vain about, so this one matters! I did stop using a blow dryer many years ago. I’ll even go places with a wet head, if necessary. (Interestingly, though, as my hair recovered from hair dryer damage, it now dries a lot faster anyway.) I also don’t use a lot of “stuff” on my curly hair. If I run out of conditioner, I don’t use. No more brushes, mousse or hairspray either. I detangle DRY hair with a wide-tooth comb *before* washing (a little trick to avoid breaking fragile, wet hair!), A little no-frizz cream (supposed to be for dry hair, but I use it on wet), scrunch, and go. It looks better than it has in years. .. many compliments, too. But I’m still scared to change what finally works. So I look forward to hearing many follow-up comments on this one!
May 11, 2007 at 12:16 am
wow, and i thought i was the only one who needed industrial strength stuff to control my hair! yeah, i have noticed that the oil on my scalp makes my hair much more cotrollable, but it just seemed icky to not shampoo it off. will definitely give this a try and let you know how it went.
May 11, 2007 at 5:30 pm
I have long fine straight hair and it doesn’t hold up well to not shampooing at all.
But I have found that taking a shampoo vacation of 1 or 2 days over the weekend is that best thing I ever did for my hait.
Blessings
Mama Kelly
May 12, 2007 at 8:49 am
Here’s my dirty little curly hair secret. I don’t brush my hair. I comb it with a wide mouth comb ONLY when wet after a shower. I wash my hair about two or three times a week, so I do absolutely NOTHING to my hair on the days I don’t wash it. I can’t or it turns into Bozo the clown hair.
May 15, 2007 at 3:32 pm
pantene
pantene
May 17, 2007 at 3:11 pm
If I use shampoo my hair gets very oily.
I stopped using shampoo about 11 years ago and my hair settled down to what it regards as enough oil to lubricate itself.
Very occasionally I might use a little shampoo if things get out of balance. That’s about twice a year. Other than that I put my head under the shower and give my scalp a good scratch.
My ancestors never had shampoo. Why should I?
May 18, 2007 at 4:45 pm
This was a great tip. At first I was skeptical and it did sound a little gross. But I have weird hair (don’t know how to describe it…I’m no hair stylist). It gets really frizzy and poofy after washing it…especially when it grows out a little. I now just use water whenever I shower and it’s been working out great.
May 18, 2007 at 4:52 pm
I’ve switched to baking soda and vinegar for cleaning my house, but I never thought about using them on my hair. I just purchased the super-duper size of both, so look out hair, here they come. I also have long, very curly & frizzy hair. I used to wash it everyday, but now once a week. I have been looking for head suds that are chemical free, but the FDA dosen’t require beauty products to be labeled! (we gotta do something about that). I will try this formula. It will be fabulous if I no longer need to use “product” on my hair. What a waste of money and when we wash our hair, it all goes down the drain into the watershed! Poor lil fishies! Thanks for the wonderful tips. P.S. I found this website as a link on pathtofreedom.com.
May 18, 2007 at 5:34 pm
How many people here who find that the baking soda, or plain water, is enough have long hair?
I know quite a few people with short hair who don’t use anything, or who use the soda/vinegar, but it’s rare to find people with long hair. It seems to be much easier if your hair is short.
May 21, 2007 at 8:16 pm
I had been using Dr B’s with olive oil for a couple years, washing about twice a week and it was working well for me. I was given a bottle of expensive salon shampoo as a gift so I tried using it for awhile…it made my scalp break out. And that made me realize that my scalp had been breaking out before I started using the Dr B’s and that it had stopped when I tried making my own shampoo mix with the olive oil. I’m going to try the baking soda and vinegar before I try anything else, but I’m never going back to regular shampoo. I do have curly hair and have found that washing twice a week and not using a hair dryer makes a tremendous difference in the health of my hair. Regarding hair length, if anything needs to be cleaned it’s generally your scalp only. That’s my two cents!
May 24, 2007 at 3:30 pm
I’ve got thick, wavy, dry hair and have not ‘pooed’ for a while now. The only difference - I use coconut oil. I use it like body lotion, hair conditioner, face lotion, lip balm . . .
And it’s a great immune system booster too - when your feeling the ickys coming on, take a few tables spoons twice a day. It’s tough going down, but the results are worth it.
May 26, 2007 at 8:32 pm
I use baking soda in baths to alkalize my body and soften my skin, but if my curly hair gets in the water, it gets very stripped of shine by the baking soda. Vinegar is not a solution for me because I, like many people, have a bad reaction to strong acids (people with IBS, IC, GERD, etc., should be able to relate) when they enter my body (and , of course, they do through my scalp). Any ideas?
I did use the honey this morning. My husband thought I was a bit nuts, but when I pointed out I’ve used a sugar scrub without thinking twice–just because it came from a bath store–he realized it probably wasn’t so odd. I pointed out that there is no reason for a natural product to be less effective than a chemical one.
I’ve been unhappy with shampoos and conditioners for quite some time now, so I’d love to switch to something natural!
May 27, 2007 at 2:49 am
I wrote about this on my blog last week, and have only shampooed once in ten days - and that was only because I colored my hair and had to wash out the color. As a hairdresser I find the no-shampoo treatment very interesting, and I can’t wait to see the long term results!
May 27, 2007 at 6:43 am
I have been considering this for a little while, and when I saw this via a link on pathtofreedom.com, decided to jump for it. Haven’t used shampoo in five days now, used baking soda and vinegar once, and things seem to be balancing out. I will report back later, but my original skepticism has abated. Now, if only my sweetie doesn’t get squicked, I am good to go!
June 8, 2007 at 2:11 pm
Thanks for writing about your solution to shampoo. I’ve been searching for an alternative for a couple years or more. I ran out of shampoo last week, so I am trying the baking soda and vinegar. I already brush my teeth in baking soda, and feel it is one of the best changes I’ve made so far. But I think getting rid of the shampoo is going to be even better. I hope you don’t mind if I link to this post on your blog. I think I’d better write about my experiment.
June 20, 2007 at 5:51 pm
@ Annika: I was wondering about this for colored hair. Doesn’t the vinegar strip the color?
June 21, 2007 at 2:43 am
I am a white woman but have hair like Diana Ross. Usually I shampooed every other day and then use all sorts of products to control my kinky curly hair. 100% of the time the lower 3/4’s of my hair was dry and so I had to use another group of products to either moisturise or make it look less dry, daily. I had tried to go more then 2 days without a shampoo but the scalp area got very oily after 2 days. The whole procedure got very old but I love my hair longer so I had to deal with it. I read this blog back in May and decided immeadiately to try it. WOW!!! I have not once put shampoo in my hair in 5 weeks now. Maybe twice a week I use the baking soda rinse ( I use a full cup of water due to the volume of hair I have). This controls the oil and “sweetens” the smell of my hair. Once I used a conditioner. My hair is consistent (doesn’t go from dried out to oily every other day), it’s more manageable, it almost seems like somebody else’s hair. What a remarkable difference. Funniest part of my whole experiment, is that my husband has a remarkable nose and I figured I would not get away with not shampooing for more then a week before he would be complaining about the smell of my hair. He has not even noticed.
June 27, 2007 at 1:17 pm
[...] web projects and dog chasing while baby napped), I stumble upon THIS gem!!! It starts with “unshampoo“, something I’ve been thinking about but haven’t had much luck with…it is, [...]
July 19, 2007 at 4:40 am
[...] Once a week would be a dream, but I have to say that I am still a little skeptical of the whole no poo thing. I even tried it once, but that didn’t quite work out for me. And I know there are [...]
July 19, 2007 at 7:04 am
I’ve been a no-poo believer for several years now. I was down to washing once or twice a week when I read Curly Girl, and just decided to go for it.
It does work.
July 23, 2007 at 12:50 am
I would just like to know what do you do if you use relaxer’s on your hair and if you are AfroAmerican.I used to only wash my hair 1 a month but I’m using a new product that I like and I have stared a routine of washing every two week’s now it seem’s ok but I also need input about latherless shampoo..I checked out Dr.B . He seem’s to have great stuff but will it work for black women such as me…
July 23, 2007 at 7:04 am
Jamillah - no, I do not use relaxers. And I am not AfroAmerican (Scotch/Irish instead). I have found that switching to the baking soda/vinegar system was great. It did, however, take about a month for my scalp and hair to adjust to the new system. I almost gave up. Please let us know what you find works for you - I am sure that others wonder the same thing.
August 17, 2007 at 11:11 am
I’ve been doing baking soda and vinegar for maybe 2 months now and my hair is awesome! It comes out great everyday except for the actual washing day, I think I’ll try the olive oil on those days. I had some dandruff and it has pretty much disappeared since switching to no ‘poo. I also have curly hair and it is just so easy to deal with now! Thanks for blogging about this, I love it! Also, no smelly hair here!
August 27, 2007 at 6:01 pm
Hi
I’ve been using baking soda and vinegar for about 5 weeks now and I’m not satisfied with the results. My hair feels sticky and too oily. Could it be our hard well water? Any suggestions?
Jeannie
September 3, 2007 at 10:52 am
I don’t use the baking soda anymore, I don’t know if it adds anything. Try just vinegar and see how it does. Also if you have long hair you should be brushing it more than usual. My spouse and I both have long hair and brushing helped with the oily feel.
October 16, 2007 at 5:37 pm
Hmm… I have straight, naturally oily hair (and skin). We joke that it is all that oil that keeps me looking so young.
I’m very curious about your baking soda and vinegar method but have doubts. We’ll see.
February 3, 2008 at 11:04 am
[...] Unshampoo [Simple Reduce ] If you’re thinking about trying this method, be forewarned! Most people experience a week or two of “icky hair” while their scalp struggles to adjust to the new routine. It is worth it, however - at the end, your hair is very soft, clean, and luxurious. read more [...]