Hand Sanitizer as a detangler?

[Wravyn]

A family member was recently in the hospital for an extended period of time and hadn't had her hair brushed or washed in a while. Her hair is classic length and tangles easily. As a way to untangle her hair, a nurse used hand sanitizer. I've never heard of this before but it seemed to work.

Has anyone tried this before? How damaging do you think it is?

[milosmomma]

I would expect it to be super drying. Curious to see what others have to say.

[akurah]

Hand sanitizer is almost pure alcohol. I would not use it in my hair

[Begemot]

Nope, a hand sanitizer would have way too much alcohol for my hair. I do remember someone recommending hand sanitizer with aloe vera in it to treat SD (supposedly the alcohol would evaporate and leave aloe vera and such on skin) but I wouldn't use it on ends.

[H o n є y ❤]

Don't do it.

[Wavykate]

It would be a no from me!

[lapushka]

Oh gosh, why! Poor woman. Maybe the gel gave it the necessary slip, but what bothers me most is, wasn't there a family member that could do this properly for her? :)

[nycelle]

Aside from the drying effects, I'm just curious how a product that's mostly alcohol helps to untangle? I can't imagine it working..

[SurprisingWoman]

I would use No More Tangles before an alcohol base. So sorry about her hair. I hope they braided it after getting it detangled.

[enfys]

Is it possible the nurse was using it as it hadn't been washed in a while either? Maybe they hoped it would kill anything that was airborne and had settled on her hair? Hair can trap a lot of dust, lint, and presumably any germs etc in the air too. I cant imagine it having any benefit for the hair at all.

[lapushka]

Yes but they probably have products for that, and should not have to resort to hand sanitizer. Dear God.

I have Tena wash cream 3-in-1 (no rinse "washer") and it is for the body. They probably have something like that for hair as well.

No need for this fiasco!

But hey, if it worked... I would hate to have to deal with the remnants of what the nurse did, though! :(

Wravyn, is there a possibility that you could come to your family member's aid, since you are more knowledgeable about hair than probably anyone in her family.

[Cate36]

I googled it, and you would be amazed how many people are using it on their hair! It's mostly recommended for oily hair. I am using some scalp preparations which have ethanol in them and not getting them on my hair when I apply, is a nightmare to navigate and I fail all the time. They have been brilliant so I don't want to stop using them, but I am having to be really careful as they are all so drying. I tested them on sheds and they do cause breakage if the hair comes into contact and I pull too hard, so I would never use sanitiser on long hair. There are much better ideas for detangling..

[MusicalSpoons]

There are alcohol-free hand sanitisers (even used within the NHS) but I still don't know that it would be any good for hair.

If it was a usual alcohol-based one ... yikes :tmi:

[Joules]

Nooooooo! It's the worst idea ever! :tmi: Like others have already said, hand sanitizers are pure alcohol! Now I'm gonna be paranoid that if I get into a hospital some nurse would ruin my hair, I guess I should start carrying a note with the name of my go-to hair cream in my pocket, lol, I know I'm worrying about wrong things

[enting]

Hand sanitizer can dry out skin and cause it to crack, I don't even want to think about using it on hair. It's nice that nurse wanted to pay attention to her hair at all, but I'll admit I'm cringing at the thought of using hand sanitizer. Maybe as a one time thing, especially after not being washed for a long time, it could be okay. I hope her hair is no worse for it.

[lapushka]

How is she doing right now, Wravyn?

[Deborah]

We should probably be asking hospital nurses. Maybe they have a reason for this practice that we don't understand.

[Kat]

Yes but they probably have products for that, and should not have to resort to hand sanitizer. Dear God.

I have Tena wash cream 3-in-1 (no rinse "washer") and it is for the body. They probably have something like that for hair as well.

No need for this fiasco!

But hey, if it worked... I would hate to have to deal with the remnants of what the nurse did, though! :(

Wravyn, is there a possibility that you could come to your family member's aid, since you are more knowledgeable about hair than probably anyone in her family.

Yes, they do-- no-rinse shampoos, or shampoo caps.

[Dee94]

Yikes! That sounds very drying! Doesn't sound like a good idea.

[lapushka]

Yes, they do-- no-rinse shampoos, or shampoo caps.

Yes I thought I'd heard of those! :)

[ArabellaRose]

We should probably be asking hospital nurses. Maybe they have a reason for this practice that we don't understand.

I've had two years nurse training and been working in hospitals for five years and I've never heard of using hand sanitizer in hair before :D

We have shampoos on wards and little inflatable head baths to wash hair for bedbound patients.

[Wravyn]

How is she doing right now, Wravyn?

Oh gosh, why! Poor woman. Maybe the gel gave it the necessary slip, but what bothers me most is, wasn't there a family member that could do this properly for her?

Thanks for asking, Lapushka. She is doing slightly better, but struggling. And to answer your other question: no, she didn't really have anyone to care for her hair before now. The only person there to help her was her husband and there were so many pressing issues that it kind of became one of those things where he had to prioritize other things first (she has cancer).



Wravyn, is there a possibility that you could come to your family member's aid, since you are more knowledgeable about hair than probably anyone in her family.

My SO and I just moved closer so that we can help her, and from now on I'll be helping her care for her hair and other things. Right now she is so sick and weak that she can't even walk to the bathroom. I'm trying to figure out how I can wash all that sanitizer out because it's making it impossible to comb her hair. At her request, I cut about 10 inches off today, but I'm still at a loss on how to get the tangles out if I can't wash and condition.

[Wravyn]

I would use No More Tangles before an alcohol base. So sorry about her hair. I hope they braided it after getting it detangled.

Yes, they did braid her hair after, thankfully. But by the time she came home from the hospital, it was matted again. So frustrating.

[lapushka]

Thanks for asking, Lapushka. And to answer your other question: no, she didn't really have anyone to care for her hair before now. The only person there to help her was her husband and there were so many pressing issues that it kind of became one of those things where he had to prioritize other things first (she has cancer).

I'm so sorry to hear that. OMG, could that nurse have thought, that hair is probably not going to stay on her head anyway? NOT NICE, but could that explain her motivation, maybe?


My SO and I just moved closer so that we can help her, and from now on I'll be helping her care for her hair and other things. Right now she is so sick and weak that she can't even walk to the bathroom. I'm trying to figure out how I can wash all that sanitizer out because it's making it impossible to comb her hair. At her request, I cut about 10 inches off today, but I'm still at a loss on how to get the tangles out if I can't wash and condition.

That is very nice of you!

Ow she might be slowly saying goodbye to her hair; maybe kid's detangler, that Suave one?

[Cate36]

I would do a pre condition wash... and comb with the conditioner in? This is such a sad story :(

[lapushka]

I would do a pre condition wash... and comb with the conditioner in? This is such a sad story :(

It might be easier (with cancer and with hair falling out) to do it on dry hair with a spray detangler. Wet hair coming out in chunks is never a good experience. Dry? It's a little more do-able. Just easier for the person doing this. Yes, I have experience with this, unfortunately (aunt and grandma).

[Wravyn]

I'm so sorry to hear that. OMG, could that nurse have thought, that hair is probably not going to stay on her head anyway? NOT NICE, but could that explain her motivation, maybe?


Ow she might be slowly saying goodbye to her hair; maybe kid's detangler, that Suave one?

She had to stop her treatment for a while so that she build back up some of her strength, so I don't foresee it falling out any time soon. I think I might give a detangler a try... although I'm wondering how hard it would be to try an wash it from her bed.




I've had two years nurse training and been working in hospitals for five years and I've never heard of using hand sanitizer in hair before

We have shampoos on wards and little inflatable head baths to wash hair for bedbound patients.

ArabellaRose, I noticed you said there are head baths for patients. Do you have any suggestions on how to use these without getting her and the bed all wet? I'm thinking I might be able to give something like that a try if she is up for it.

[SurprisingWoman]

I am so sorry you are dealing with this. Here is a link to Amazon with some bed baths: https://smile.amazon.com/s?k=bed+hair+washer&crid=14K1SCO2NWZ3P&sprefix=hair+washer+bed%2Caps%2C202&ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_15

[Wravyn]

I am so sorry you are dealing with this. Here is a link to Amazon with some bed baths: https://smile.amazon.com/s?k=bed+hair+washer&crid=14K1SCO2NWZ3P&sprefix=hair+washer+bed%2Caps%2C202&ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_15

Thank you, SurprisingWoman. :blossom:

[milosmomma]

Have you tried kinky curly knot today? Its a great detangler and it can be watered down and stretch the bottle and it's still just as effective watered down. Maybe even just spray her down with a spray bottle and keep her hair in a braided style? I wish you and your family the best :hugs:

[sumidha]

When I was in school to be a nursing assistant they taught us to wash hair in bed using pillows, rolled up towels and a large trash bag; you use the pillows and rolled towels to make like, a little lake with a waterfall going off the bed into a small trash can, then you spread out the plastic over everything. The head went into the 'lake' and that way you could rinse the hair thoroughly, and just empty the little trash can as needed into a sink as it gets full.

I realize that's probably way too vague to be helpful so I'm looking for a video that shows how to do it.

ETA: Here's one not using exactly the technique I was trying to describe, but she is washing classic length hair! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thb7LGhu-uk

[GRU]

We should probably be asking hospital nurses. Maybe they have a reason for this practice that we don't understand.

As an RN, I'm wondering if the hand sanitizer had some moisturizers in it that provided some "slip" for detangling? Or it's possible that the nurse didn't even use hand sanitizer at all - people often misunderstand what is being said, it might have been hand lotion or some other product.

And for the people who are worried about this happening to them -- no worries, this is definitely NOT a regular occurrence in the hospital!

For the OP now trying to detangle the hair, regular conditioner, watered down and in a spray bottle, plus a Tangle Teezer brush or wide-toothed comb.