No poo?

[decemberlov]

I'm curious if anyone here does the "no poo" thing - Meaning no shampoo. I've read so many related articles lately and was really curious to try it out. It's not that you don't wash your hair anymore but instead of using shampoo & condition you replace it with a baking soda and apple cider vinegar rinse.

Basically, traditional shampoos are really just detergents. They use chemicals to strip your hair and scalp of dirt and oil. Good right? Not really. Shampoo strips the hair shaft and scalp of sebum (the natural oils created by your scalp). So after you shampoo, you condition your hair. Why? To replace the natural oils in your hair that your shampoo has stripped away. The result, clean hair that has to be shampooed daily (or almost daily).....I find the same thing too with chapstick...it seems the more often I use it, the more my lips really depend on it!

So out of curiosity I decided to try it! I'm on day 5 and my hair looks fine. On day 3 it was a little greasy looking so I did the BS/ACV rinse and my hair felt great! Clean and shiny :) I don't think I'm anywhere near out of the woods yet though lol I heard it could take up to a month for my hair to get back to where it should be, naturally.

Have any of you ditched your shampoo and conditioner?

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/30337386/ns/health-skin_and_beauty/t/ditching-shampoo-dirty-little-beauty-secret/#.UYkaoMqcETo

[Jilly]

I tried that a couple of years ago when my hair was really long, three feet or more. It was a terrible failure. My hair was dry and looked like heck. I went back to shampoo and have not made another attempt. I was so horrible.

Now that my hair is very short, I have been thinking about it again. The whole shampoo being detergents and stripping, I think, is probably more related to overuse of the product. I use just a teeny bit, so little that there is not much lather, rinse well and do not use conditioners of any kind. The woman who cuts my hair always wants to use something and I decline. Even when my hair was long I did not use conditioner or other products of any kind.

My hair is soft, manageable. I am interested in saving money, though, and have tried to compare the cost of shampoo versus baking soda and vinegar. The latter wins out, but not by much, since I use so little shampoo product.

I like the idea and might try it again. Not anytime soon, I am thinking.

[decemberlov]

I tried that a couple of years ago when my hair was really long, three feet or more. It was a terrible failure. My hair was dry and looked like heck. I went back to shampoo and have not made another attempt. I was so horrible.

Now that my hair is very short, I have been thinking about it again. The whole shampoo being detergents and stripping, I think, is probably more related to overuse of the product. I use just a teeny bit, so little that there is not much lather, rinse well and do not use conditioners of any kind. The woman who cuts my hair always wants to use something and I decline. Even when my hair was long I did not use conditioner or other products of any kind.

My hair is soft, manageable. I am interested in saving money, though, and have tried to compare the cost of shampoo versus baking soda and vinegar. The latter wins out, but not by much, since I use so little shampoo product.

I like the idea and might try it again. Not anytime soon, I am thinking.

How long did you try it for? I did hear some mention that you could use a small amount if coconut oil for dry hair...sound a little yucky too me though, like it would make it super greasy instead of super dry (not sure which is worse)...:~)

I will say I'm a little scared to see how this experiment turns out but I'm hoping for the best!

[catherine]

I did it for a while when my daughter gave me a gift of a hair cut from a trendy salon in Brooklyn. It was one of those scrunch and go cuts--no blow-dry allowed. The "messy" look was intentional, but there's messy that looks good and messy that looks bad when you get cuts like that. Of course, I had no clue what to do with my hair after I left there.. and it tends to be frizzy and dry, so I knew that my messy was not going to be the good kind.

So I looked online and found no-poo. I tried it for a while and it worked OK. It did help me manage that hair cut.

My anti-frizz go-to product is Redken's Smooth-Down Heat Glide. I use it when my hair is damp and before blow drying (yes, I'm back t the blown-dry look). You use just a teeny bit but it makes such a huge difference in the frizzies. I bought my last bottle in Burlington, VT Christmas week 2011, so I think that cost per use is pretty darn good.

[Kestra]

I've been doing the baking soda, apple cider vinegar thing for many years. On the rare occasion I use shampoo my hair seems so greasy afterwards - like I can't get all the shampoo off or something. Now I hate using shampoo - I only do it to save time or in a hotel or something. No 'poo has worked well for me - I "wash" every 5 days or so. But I couldn't care less about how my hair looks, so I'm probably not the best person to ask. My sister, the hair dresser, did say my hair was super healthy. But I also use no product, no colour and hardly ever blow dry. I tend to forget to look in the mirror as well.

[redfox]

I use a simple, gentle, basic shampoo that lacks all the sulfate type ingredients, it only has botanical ingredients in it. I wash twice a week -- I have long gray hair -- and use an equally gentle, basic conditioner, small amounts of both. Because my hair is grey, it dries out rather easily. I'm happy with this ritual, and have never wanted. Try dropping shampoo. I am interested in your process, though. It might get more adherents with a more interesting title!

[iris lilies]

You know, not everyone uses conditioner. I didn't use it for decades. Now I use a tiny bit only because I discovered that it's easier to comb out my hair. I use a bit of inexpensive Suave shampoo and wash my hair about once a week. It's not a big deal and it's not expensive. That seems the simplest to me and in line with simple living.

[Simpler at Fifty]

I washed my hair Sunday and am getting a cut today. By the 3rd day of not washing it my scalp is very itchy. I don't think I could go more than 3 days without washing it. I have use ACV as a rinse but it does not seem to make my grays less unruly. I always think I need the shampoo to get my scalp AND hair clean.

[Jilly]

How long did you try it for? I did hear some mention that you could use a small amount if coconut oil for dry hair...sound a little yucky too me though, like it would make it super greasy instead of super dry (not sure which is worse)...:~)

I will say I'm a little scared to see how this experiment turns out but I'm hoping for the best!

I did it for nearly six months. The person who encouraged me to try going without shampoo kept insisting that 'just one more week' and I would see good results. I admit that as the months went by that my hair was less dry, but only marginally. My regular hair condition is not the teeniest bit dry. I have great hair, frankly, it is my only decent feature.

I have seen a couple of more natural, less detergent-type shampoos, but they are out of my budget. So, I use whatever is on sale, or the least expensive, use a tiny amount, wash my hair once per week and so it goes.

The only thing I use coconut oil for is making soap. :D

[nswef]

I know I have posted before about using Mrs. Myers laundry detergent Lemon Verbena scent for my hair. It doesn't take much. So the cost is not high.

I then rinse out the soap with warm water, ending with cold water and a glass of water with a tablespoon or two of apple cider vinegar. It really makes my hair feel healthy.

I had read about others who use All no additives for shampoo, body wash and anything else they would need soap for.


I didn't have much luck with the using Mrs. Myers as body wash.

I also did not have much luck with the baking soda only and cider vinegar wash- it smelled like dirty hair for me.

[lhamo]

I have marble tiles in my shower so I can't do the vinegar thing. But I've decided to try reducing my use of shampoo -- going to start with only washing every other day. I do rinse with water on the no poo day -- i have naturally curly hair and it gets all smashed down when I sleep, so I need to rinse it and let it dry so I don't have bed head all day. Worked fine yesterday.

I am familiar with the no poo concept but to be honest when I saw the title of this thread I thought it might be about how to deal with constipation :) Time for another cup of coffee....

lhamo

[pony mom]

I did this for awhile; at first I liked it. But, it was a huge pain in the butt to do in the shower, my hair/scalp smelled dirty, and it didn't stay cleaner longer. Then I got my hair highlighted and went back to washing with conditioner. I've since added once a week wash with Pureology shampoo for damaged hair (darn highlights).

I've gone from shampooing almost daily when I had short hair to washing with conditioner twice a week and shampoo once a week with longer hair. I really wanted to like the no poo method but it wasn't worth the effort.

[Zoebird]

I do all sorts of iterations.

Currently, I do baking soda/water after the pool to get the salts and stuff out, and then I go home and I do a honey-coconut oil rinse which conditions and lightens hair. That's on monday.

On Thursday, I do a vinegar rinse.

[Tiam]

So, what's the honey coconut oil rinse? Also, for those doing the no shampooing ( I can't stand the phrase No-Poo), does age make a difference? I mean, I'm at an age where I'm very dry and not producing much oil in any area: face, hair, skin, in general. If I'm really struggling with dry hair, how well does this work?

[Zoebird]

No, age doesn't make a difference because I do the baking soda bit for DS, and then a honey coconut oil rinse for him, too.

There are two ways to do it -- one as a lightening treatment, and the other as a simple rinse.

It's 1/4 cup honey to 3/4 cup water with 2 tsp coconut oil. If you let it stand for 45 minutes and then put it on your hair and let it soak for 30 minutes or so and then rinse -- it lightens and conditions the hair. If you just run it through your hair and rise it out, then it's just going to condition your hair.

I would also recommend oil washing for your face and body. Typically, when I'm very dry (winters), I'll do sponge baths first (water), and then follow up with oil cleanse which is basically rub oil it, let it sit for a few minutes, and then wipe it off with a clean, soft cloth. It's amazing how un-dry you'll be.

Some people just do honey-coconut oil rinse 2x week, then sponge bath and oil-cleanse (whole body). You could cut out showers altogether this way, but I find showers pleasurable so I still do them (sometimes I oil cleanse after a shower which also moisturizes me).

[cindycindy]

I haven't done the no poo thing. But I wash my hair a lot less often now. My husband was told to only use conditioner when washing his hair and to actually wash it only twice a month. His hair looks a lot less dry and healthy.

[rodeosweetheart]

My daughter in law is doing this. When I just saw her last month, she was using cornstarch with cocoa as a brush through --she has very striking dark hair, and she said the cornstarch alone left greyish streaks. Her hair smells good.

This would not work for me at all since I have an oily scalp and very curly hair and live in a frizzy climate. I do wash my hair less now that I am older--if I am not going out where I care how I look, I go a couple of days without washing it. Maybe I will try the Mrs. Meyers. My husband has started washing his hair with Mrs. Meyers basil handsoap.

I think it's partly where you live--when I go visit my parents in the mountains, mine stops frizzing and looks like a completely different haircut.

Curly hair--a lifelong trip.