Is apple cider vinegar lightening my hair?

[ThisDreamer]

I've been pretty much water only this past yr. but had to start adding in acv to get it cleaner. I just couldn't take it anymore, the sticky,oily,look and feel is horrible. I had been pretty happy with the acv until I decided to add in some orange peels and let them infuse. I figured "orange oil cuts grease so this makes for a wonderfully sensible idea, aha!". Except I started noticing that my henna started to seem,a little less red,and a little more orange (I'm very sensitive to this). So I stopped, weather it was making it lighter or not. But, now I'm paranoid plain o'l acv is going to lighten my henna.

Does it? Any thoughts or experiences on this?

(I did make a new infused batch with hibiscus and rose buds for the time being to try and maintain the red. And boy, is this ACV batch RED.But I'm still horribly worried vinegar will just plain lighten, or orangen, my hair.)

[Unicorn]

AVC does lighten the hair. I used a AVC rinse 2-3 times a week for about 3 years. I now have a very subtle ombre effect on my very dark (usually described as black) hair. I rather like it so I may do it again over the summer. :D

Unicorn

[Anje]

I'd be inclined to suspect the oranges first, given the reputation that lemon has for hair lightening. I don't believe I've seen any reports of ACV lightening hair (hennaed or not), but I've seen a few where people have noticed it depositing a slightly coppery color over months of use.

[Berlie]

I know for sure ASV lightens the hair, but it's worth it if you don't mind a little color lift. Use it one day a month, and then rinse it out after letting it sit in your hair for about two minutes. I usually follow this routine, but deviated from it the other day. I poured the ASV and water mix over my freshly washed, soaking wet hair and didnt rinse it out. The results? My color gloss was lifted substantially, especially on my ends and they are lighter than they were before I rinsed with the ASV. So next month when I rinse, I'm going back to my regular routine of rinsing it out after letting it sit in my hair for a minute or two.

[meteor]

Yes, vitamin C in both orange peels and ACV can lighten. Vitamin C is also used to lighten/lift henna.
This lightening works on both skin and hair. Using orange peels and lemon peels is one of the traditional lightening treatments: http://www.wikihow.com/Whiten-Skin-With-Fruits
It shouldn't happen at high dilution levels and if you do it infrequently though.

Also, is there lots of sunshine where you live? Oranges (as all citruses) are very powerful photosensitizers, so be careful outside and protect your scalp.

[ThisDreamer]

thank you all for replying. this makes me very sad to hear acv does this, it seems everything I put on my hair lightens my henna in some form or another and nukes it's red tone. I live in Michigan and there's virtually no Sun here right now, so I'm thinking the sun has nothing to do with it.

[meteor]

thank you all for replying. this makes me very sad to hear acv does this, it seems everything I put on my hair lightens my henna in some form or another and nukes it's red tone.
If you use very small amounts of ACV diluted in lots of water, you should be fine. Just skip the orange peels, they are more lightening as they contain a lot more vitamin C.

When ACV is used for too long, blondes tend to get brassy/orangy tint on light hair, but brunettes rarely see any change in colour at all. I hope some henna-heads will contribute more to your thread.

[KittyBird]

I'm a hennahead and I noticed no lightening effect when I used acv in my rinses, not even when I lived in sunny Portugal. Now I've switched to white vinegar rinses, and those haven't made my hair lighter either. My colour only changes when looked at in different lights (bathroom light vs natural light, for example) and in clean vs dirty hair.

[MeowScat]

Switch to plain old White Vinegar. It's what I've been using for many months and my hair hasn't changed color at all.

[Berlie]

Really? White vinegar? Does it make your hair soft and shiny like with acv?

[ThisDreamer]

I actually used to use white vinegar, with what seemed more potent results, (shiny softness) not to mention cheaper. I stop when one day I read a post on the web that most white vinegars are petroleum (or some sort) based. Anyone ever heard of this?

[ErinLeigh]

I actually used to use white vinegar, with what seemed more potent results, (shiny softness) not to mention cheaper. I stop when one day I read a post on the web that most white vinegars are petroleum (or some sort) based. Anyone ever heard of this?

I don't know but I use white and ACV and I do feel a slight difference.
The ACV seems more "slippery" where the White seems more astringent if possible? I don't know if that is the word I am thinking, but something..slight difference..like the white removes more of something?

Color wise I have not noticed a difference yet.
I am going to look into the petroleum thing as I have not heard that but sounds interesting.

I would think mixing with oranges though could produce a slight vitamin C lift result however possibly.

[MeowScat]

Really? White vinegar? Does it make your hair soft and shiny like with acv?

Exactly like it, and it makes my hair so smooth and shiny. I use it everytime I wash my hair...even scalp washes. It's amazing and not as strong smelling when you open the bottle in the shower. Yuck-o!

[katiebeans]

I'm WO like you and used ACV for a while before recently switching to white vinegar. Can't remember why I did it but I don't think I have noticed any difference between the two. I never had a problem with my hair being lightened with ACV, however I have always applied it using a spray bottle rather than pouring it on. Not sure if that makes a difference.

[ThisDreamer]

I suppose I will do some experimenting , hopefully not at the expense of my red tones. It would seem to me this hibiscus infused acv is not pushing my hair towards orangey tones, and hearing some of you say you notice no lightening eases me (and then there's those that say they do) . After its used up I'll try with a little white again and see if I can deem any difference as far as color. more astringent would be nice, since my hair still doesn't come as I really need to look nice, but every time I get fed up with the greasies I just can't put my hand on the shampoo, natural or otherwise. (shampoo always did bring out the Orange in the long run.)

[Bombadillo]

I don't know but I use white and ACV and I do feel a slight difference.
The ACV seems more "slippery" where the White seems more astringent if possible? I don't know if that is the word I am thinking, but something..slight difference..like the white removes more of something?

Color wise I have not noticed a difference yet.
I am going to look into the petroleum thing as I have not heard that but sounds interesting.

I would think mixing with oranges though could produce a slight vitamin C lift result however possibly.

http://tinychoices.com/2008/05/07/is-vinegar-made-from-petroleum/ I did some looking too and this website seems to have made up a book report for just the sort of thing being spoken of. I'm just glad to not find that it is made from the refining of aluminum, though my memory tells me that it must be toothpaste that I was connecting to aluminum (at least that gets spit out)

[swearnsue]

I henna and use acv rinse every time I wash my hair which is about twice a week. I use diluted white vinegar, about 1Tbs per cup of water. I pour it on my scalp and hair, gently massage in and then rinse out with plain water after about 1 minute.

I don't think it has lightened my hennaed hair. I wish it would though.

[heidi w.]

1. It is a poor idea to use ACV for hair washing. ACV is capable of lightening dark colored hair, although it takes a bit of time. I noticed it colored my hair a tinge more redder after a while. Now I no longer use it. I recommend using lemon juice instead of orange juice. I now use an entirely different system. By bit of time, I am thinking/experiencing more like 5 or 10 years.
heidi w.

[Shatam1]

If it does lighten henna I will definitely try it:)

[Islandgrrl]

Funny, I have been using ACV rinses after CO, and if anything my hair looks darker. :/

[Panth]

Bear in mind that white vinegar is typically stronger than ACV (about 6% acetic acid, vs. 2-3% ish?), so you'll need to dilute white vinegar more. Any vinegar is going to cause a bleaching (and damaging) effect if used at too strong dilution or over long term. Of course, some people's hair is more resiliant than others.

ACV has the added potential side effect of causing brassiness in some blondes.

Lemon juice is also acidic and definitely causes bleaching (over long term, with the amount of bleaching depending on dilution and hair's resilience). The bleaching effect can (I think...?) be enhanced by sunlight. So, if you want to avoid bleaching don't just swap from vinegar rinses to lemon juice ones.

[Unicorn]

I'm wondering if the lightening from the ACV is due to the fact that I never rinse it out? I understand that vinegar increases/speeds up the oxidation process which causes hair to lighten with age. The fact that I leave the (diluted) ACV on my hair may make the difference in the lightening.

I do now use henna, but I've decreased the use of vinegar from 2-3 times a week to about once a month, since I started using henna.

Unicorn

[ErinLeigh]

I'm wondering if the lightening from the ACV is due to the fact that I never rinse it out? I understand that vinegar increases/speeds up the oxidation process which causes hair to lighten with age. The fact that I leave the (diluted) ACV on my hair may make the difference in the lightening.

I do now use henna, but I've decreased the use of vinegar from 2-3 times a week to about once a month, since I started using henna.

Unicorn

I have never left it in but I could see how it could probably lighten if left on hair.
Perhaps it reacts with environment or just the longer exposure to the hair with the acid? Is doesn't weaken you hair when left on? That was my concern but I haven't tried to research it or anything. Just went on assumption.

What does it feel like when left in? Softer? Less tangles? You just do final rinse and squeeze out ?

[Unicorn]

I have never left it in but I could see how it could probably lighten if left on hair.
Perhaps it reacts with environment or just the longer exposure to the hair with the acid? Is doesn't weaken you hair when left on? That was my concern but I haven't tried to research it or anything. Just went on assumption.

What does it feel like when left in? Softer? Less tangles? You just do final rinse and squeeze out ?

My hair is in locs, so I can't really tell is it has an effect on the softness, or if it weakens the hair. I used it for it's dandruff curing properties rather than anything else - yes it worked :) Locs do seem to make the hair more prone to oxidation, (I think because the same bits of hair are always exposed) but mine lightened far sooner than I've seen on others with my depth of colour.

I use it as a final rinse. I have a bowl of very diluted ACV, dip my length in it, then use a cup to repeatedly pour the water over my hair/scalp, ensuring the scalp gets plenty of attention. I do this for about 5 minutes, then just dry as normal.

Unicorn