Give It A Try - No Poo, Take 2
Posted on August 23, 2007 by
About a month ago, I attempted to give up shampoo in favor of baking soda and apple cider vinegar, but I wasn’t impressed with the results. A few weeks ago I read about going “no poo” by using conditioner only, so I tested it out.
The theory is that most conditioners contain mild surfactants that will remove dirt and oil gently when you rub them through your hair. When harsher detergents found in shampoo are used, they strip natural oils from the scalp. This encourages the scalp to produce more oil, which is why hair gets greasy when it isn’t washed.
I was skeptical, but I figured I’d give it a try.
After a week of using only conditioner, my hair was soft, tangle-free, and not the least bit greasy, even when I skipped a day of washing my hair. I’ll still probably wash my hair with shampoo once a week, but I like this version of going no poo so much, that I plan to keep it up.
To use conditioner only, gently work it through your hair as you would shampoo. Rinse, and then apply again and leave in for a minute, rinsing with cool water. I like to use a wide tooth comb to distribute the conditioner through my hair and get the tangles out.
If you decide to give it a try, let me know how it works out!
I will be the ultimate test as I have very oily hair. I will try it but am VERY skeptical. Hmmm
My hair tends to get oily too, but it wasn’t a problem. The only thing that might be an issue is if you use a lot of styling products. I’m not sure if conditioner will break those down as well.
Let me know how it works for you!
I was once told by a hairdresser that it takes the root of the hair 24h to dry up completely (even if you use a hairdrier on the hair itself), so if you wash it everyday, the root is permanently wet. She said you should only wash it two days in a row, if you needed to wash off some substance that was even worse for your hair (salt, swimming pool chemicals, that sort of thing).
I wash my hair every other day, and it looks great. Plus, I’ve cut down my use of hair products in half.
I might give the conditioner thing a try, though.
Another option is using sulfate-free shampoo. I’ve been doing that and it makes my hair feel super-healthy!