I'm not convinced, thoughts?

[baobhan sith]

HAIR FACTS
How often should I shampoo?

Hair cannot be washed too often!
Our ancestors washed their hair only rarely. We know that hair left unwashed for several weeks
turns into a matted, smelly mess. We can only imagine the state of the scalps beneath those elaborate powdered wigs we see in portraits on the walls of stately homes!
This doesn't fit with our modern image of cleanliness and health. Hair can be washed every day, even several times a day if necessary. Today's shampoos do not damage hair. Their conditioning agents positively protect the cuticle against harm from brushing and combing.
So how often you wash your hair is a purely personal decision, one for you alone.

http://www.pg.com/science/haircare/hair_twh_118.htm

[zift]

No, hair unwahsed for several weeks doesn't necessarily turn into matted smelly mess. I haven't washed for two months once and it didn't. :cool:
I believe it's a personal choice and I'm lazy these days so let it sit dirty yeeeah!

[Arctic_Mama]

Yeah, I suppose if you didn't wash your hair, scritch or rub your scalp, shake your ends around in the wind and let your hair dred in the worst way possible this might be true - but the simple act of not putting a soap or detergent to your hair? I call BS on this, too. Some of the best heads of hair I have seen are washed with more than just water less than once a year, and washed with water less than once a week. That doesn't mean it isn't combed or the scalp isn't cared for.


It's this sort of ignorant hair propaganda that has people like my mother thinking I am 'dirty' for not dousing myself in clarifying shampoo every day :mad:

[MemSahib]

Hair constantly living under wigs probably did get rank and turn into a "matted, smelly mess" but washing the daylights out of it is not necessarily the answer to that problem. Regular grooming combined with protective styles allow one to shampoo on a relatively irregular basis (or for some, not at all) and have excellent, beautiful tresses. This article, as so many are, is full of misunderstandings and false assumptions.

[RavennaNight]

I actually heard washing hair too much actually attracts lice. I'm a once-a-weeker, and my hair isnt dirty. I find sebum is the best natural oil.

[Copasetic]

Our ancestors probably didn't brush their hair, and thats why it turned into a matted mess. I have gone months without washing my hair, with no ill effects. P&G is just trying to sell more of their shampoo.

[BlackfootHair]

hmm....I personally like to wash my hair every day or every other day. It's a phycological thing for me. If I don't wash my hair I feel gross. As far as washing it several times a day? I suppose if you exercise or live in an area that makes you sweat a lot you could wash more than once without damage. Personally I don't wash more than once a day...unless it's disgustingly hot and humid out.

[Anje]

Not washing hair does not turn it into a matted mess. Not detangling hair does.

[SHELIAANN1969]

I must disagree on those points made in red.

For me, I was drying my hair out with endless washing. I used to wash my hair at least once a day with shampoo, sometimes twice.

Since I have cut down to washing once every four days and CO every other day, my hair has been healthier and mositurized.

I do have some splits on my top layer, but that is from not trimming the top layer in 18 months. ( I did a one year trim in August, but only on my bottom layer)

My hair is living proof that contradicts the statement bolded in red :)

Now, that said, everyone can do as they please with their own hair. If you feel that washing is for YOU, so be it, no one here is going to stop you. :flower:

But the majority can't be incorrect. :shrug: It's all about personal choices and respecting others decisions, even if they differ from our own habits and routines.

I personally couldn't go back to daily washing, it dries my scalp out badly, I had to change back to a gentler shampoo because the normal shampoo was causing dryness issues on my scalp. Even at twice a week my head was dry, sore, flaky and nasty.





HAIR FACTS
How often should I shampoo?

Hair cannot be washed too often!
Our ancestors washed their hair only rarely. We know that hair left unwashed for several weeks
turns into a matted, smelly mess. We can only imagine the state of the scalps beneath those elaborate powdered wigs we see in portraits on the walls of stately homes!
This doesn't fit with our modern image of cleanliness and health. Hair can be washed every day, even several times a day if necessary. Today's shampoos do not damage hair. Their conditioning agents positively protect the cuticle against harm from brushing and combing.
So how often you wash your hair is a purely personal decision, one for you alone.

http://www.pg.com/science/haircare/hair_twh_118.htm

[sahiba]

Whether an unwashed hair will get turned into a matted mess or not I've no idea , but I just wanted to point out that our ancestors never had to face the smokes of factories or cars , nor was sun this harmful. The environment was as pure as it could be , so I think they could get away with it . But where we are , I think we need to get rid of dirt , and those who exercise , maybe they would want to get rid of sweaty smell ( I would always CO when I exercised ).

[Lamb]

This is different for everyone. If I, a curly, used shampoo every day, my hair would never grow past my shoulders and it would look like a haystack. (I tried and saw.) With every day CO or CWC, I am happy and my scalp is as clean as needs be.
Just an aside - air pollution was worse in, say, the 19th century than it is today. At least in big cities. All the soot, dirt, dust in the air ended up on your hair if you did not bun it and cover it with a hat or bonnet or shawl, which women did in those days. Of course, our standards of what counts as "acceptable" cleanliness really did change, I would rather take a bottle of shampoo than the 100 strokes of the brush and the pomade of Victorian days!

[spidermom]

I will continue to wash my hair whenever I think it needs to be washed, even if it's more than once per day. I had to wash my hair 3 times in a row one day to get python musk out of it, and my hair felt silkier than it had in a long time (I think I had buildup).

[Samikha]

I disagree about almost everything, except...


So how often you wash your hair is a purely personal decision, one for you alone.
Pity that everything else they say goes against that;) You can wash your hair as often as you like, but not as rarely as you want.

[Speedbump]

Whoever wrote that obviously has never read the Sebum Only and Water Only threads on LHC. :lol: I didn't wash my hair with shampoo for a lot longer than 30 days in a row and in fact toward the end of that experiment I didn't even WET my hair for more than 30 days in a row. It was never matted or messy looking, although toward the end it did get really, really greasy. :eyebrows:

[rags]

Ummm......People who work for Proctor and Gamble wrote that article. Proctor and Gamble sell shampoo. No, not convinced!

[Aisha25]

HAIR FACTS
How often should I shampoo?

Hair cannot be washed too often!
Our ancestors washed their hair only rarely. We know that hair left unwashed for several weeks
turns into a matted, smelly mess. We can only imagine the state of the scalps beneath those elaborate powdered wigs we see in portraits on the walls of stately homes!
This doesn't fit with our modern image of cleanliness and health. Hair can be washed every day, even several times a day if necessary. Today's shampoos do not damage hair. Their conditioning agents positively protect the cuticle against harm from brushing and combing.
So how often you wash your hair is a purely personal decision, one for you alone.

http://www.pg.com/science/haircare/hair_twh_118.htm

My ancestors never had hairs like this or wore wigs:confused:
But my ancestors were once a week washers in the river and had the best thick black loooong hair. But its like how sahiba say in olden times no pollutions,healthier foods does make a difference;)

[Lamb]

Pity that everything else they say goes against that;) You can wash your hair as often as you like, but not as rarely as you want.
Ha! Good catch. ;) I noticed this, too - perhaps because the question always looks like "Is it bad if I wash my hair often?" not "Is it bad if I wash my hair only once a week?" since traditional wisdom usually says that frequent washing dries out the hair and the scalp.

[cobblersmaid]

Uh, this person obviously has no idea what they are talking about. Our 'ancestors' did not have hair that was a matted mess, and (in western culture at least, I don't claim to know that much about the rest of the world) it was washed once a month, to every few months (maybe less in earlier times, it is hard to say). I have never seen a single painting, or later, photo showing nasty hair. If this was normal, wouldn't it have been portrayed?

Hair was washed with soap ('poo bars!!!), and sometimes a vinegar rinse was used. Oils and pommades were common as well. Then the hair was kept up, and often covered to protect it from dirt. Combs were used by some, and often made of horn.

I dunno, that doesn't sound like a matted mess, it sounds sort of familiar...

(Note this is mostly about the 16th-19th centuries, I know less about earlier times, but from painting I have seen, I assume hair will still cared for.)

[Katze]

First of all there is a difference between the hygiene standards of pre industrial peoples and that of the middle ages or baroque times, for goodness' sake!

Tribal or pre-industrial people bathed, but in different ways (smoking, airing, oiling, herbal washes, etc). Yes, under those baroque wigs was probably pretty nasty, but this is comparing apples and oranges. Read your history, silly industry writers!

I regularly go 7 or so days without washing my hair. My scalp does get a bit flaky, but I am sure if I oiled and brushed it more I could get rid of that over time. I just prefer my hair wavier, with more body, and lighter in color - the dirtier it gets, the darker, sleeker, and flatter it is.

However, I am also convinced that some kind of cleansing is necessary for most people. While brushing and distributing sebum is good, for most of us some extra 'grease cutting' is necessary.

That said, all the WO, no 'poo, SO, etc people here with beautiful healthy hair also prove that the above quoted article is, again, based on faulty (industry funded?) information.

[Mugili]

May it be, that my hair will not be damaged by every-day-washing, my scalp will.
I have a dry and sensitive scalp and anything more than once or sometimes twice a week is too much für me.

[cobblersmaid]

Also, during periods when wigs were popular, most people wore their hair short underneath, so they didn't have to care for their hair very much. I imagine it would have been fairly clean then. Now the wigs themselves...that's another story.

[~GypsyCurls~]

Today's shampoos do not damage hair.

This part to me is the most BS. Harsh detergents certainly do damage hair (if drying it out counts as damage), especially if it's shampooed several times a day.

Not washing your hair will not cause it to mat, not detangling it will.

[frizzinator]

I have not washed or rinsed my hair for 17 months. My husband does not know what I'm not doing, but believe me, he and some other folks in my life would certainly tell me if my hair was smelly. I don't talk about not washing or rinsing in real life because I don't think anyone wants to hear about it. The benefit I get from not washing or rinsing is that it calms my frizzy hair, which only became frizzy as I entered middle-age.


I don't think it's obvious that I don't wash or rinse. The photos in my photo album were taken between the fourth month of when I started this "Sebum Only" method up until the tenth month. I do have one full length hair photo that was taken around the one year mark, but I've had camera problems since then so I don't have any newer photos to show, but my hair looks exactly the same as in those photos. I need to shop for a new camera.

[Forever_Sophie]

hmm....I personally like to wash my hair every day or every other day. It's a phycological thing for me. If I don't wash my hair I feel gross. As far as washing it several times a day? I suppose if you exercise or live in an area that makes you sweat a lot you could wash more than once without damage. Personally I don't wash more than once a day...unless it's disgustingly hot and humid out.
I totally agree w/ all of this.

[lapushka]

Washing all depends on how fast your hair gets oily, that's all. There are people who have to wash every other day, and there are people who can wait weeks to a month before you see the greasies. It depends on your sebum production. There's no such thing as dirty hair if you have dry hair and you don't wash it for weeks. Please! Same goes for skin, there are people with oily skin, dry skin, normal skin too and combination skin even. I have very dry skin and I can't wash my face that much if at all, so I cleanse with oil or a greasy cream so as not to disturb my skin too much.

I'd say that as long as you are gentle with your hair, know what your hair is like and what it needs, then you're where you want to be.

"Articles" and "facts" be damned. Research might help. :roll:

[Diamondbell]

My ancestors never had hairs like this or wore wigs:confused:
But my ancestors were once a week washers in the river and had the best thick black loooong hair. But its like how sahiba say in olden times no pollutions,healthier foods does make a difference;)

But if hair is washed after a week/2 weeks, won't there be more shedding?

[Aisha25]

But if hair is washed after a week/2 weeks, won't there be more shedding?
I think the only thing that will show up is if you didnt comb your hairs everyday and so the shed hairs that normally leave us will show up on the time you wash. But if you comb them everyday then no it wont be more shed. Well thats how it is for me.

[BlackfootHair]

I will continue to wash my hair whenever I think it needs to be washed, even if it's more than once per day. I had to wash my hair 3 times in a row one day to get python musk out of it, and my hair felt silkier than it had in a long time (I think I had buildup).

Boy, I bet there are few people who can say that! lol :)

[A'eorryn]

I personally DO have to wash my hair every other day or so even if I am just sitting at home with it tied up, because my scalp is like an oil well, but even still I know that that article is complete BS (but then I am also anti-commercial/synthetic products anyway). What the truly sad thing is, the vast majority of people actually wholeheartedly believe it - and don't they look at us funny when we try to explain that this an industry-produced fallacy generated to make sales and therefore profit? Yeah, I don't usually tell people how I wash my hair, it's just a waste of time *sigh*

~A'eorryn

ETA: I only wash the length as well as the scalp right now because, while in itself it is very dry, it is still relatively short enough that the trigger-happy sebum reaches down most of it - when it gets long enough that it is beyond the scalp oil's journeying capabilities I fully intend to go to the scalp-wash-only route and forgo washing the length at all other than to perhaps rinse dirt out, but possibly not so much as wet it even then. If is ain't broke don't fix it.

[Kirin]

Whether an unwashed hair will get turned into a matted mess or not I've no idea , but I just wanted to point out that our ancestors never had to face the smokes of factories or cars , nor was sun this harmful. The environment was as pure as it could be , so I think they could get away with it . But where we are , I think we need to get rid of dirt , and those who exercise , maybe they would want to get rid of sweaty smell ( I would always CO when I exercised ).


Just a notation here for information. In the past indoor air pollution was WORSE than it is now. Home energy sources from cooking and heating were extremely dirty, sooty, and downright dangerous. Burning of wood, coal, peat, whale oil, kerosene and other unsavory things was likely more polluting to your hair (considering half the time you would be two feet away from it) than today's pollution outdoors.

[Kirin]

I meant to mention too in my post..... not all of the article is BS. Even though hair may seem and look clean without washing, I wouldn't wear clothes for a week without washing. Thats usually why people flip and wig out hearing others don't wash their hair.

Its not just about the oil. Now I know many have great luck with not washing or very infrequent washing, but hygenically its not something I'm willing to risk. I touch my hair, handle it with bare hands, my husband kisses my head, my kids sneeze on me..... the list is endless. The choice is up to the individual, however I don't feel that frequent washers are somehow brainwashed into doing so.

I am, in my own opinion, completely convinced frequent washing of hair is more beneficial to the person, not nessesarily the hair. I really would like to see some studies and experiments done on hair for this purpose, not just the health of hair.

Again its just me, but I know people who rub the tassels of their braids against their lips....... yet don't frequently wash their hair. There's something about that that sends me right over the "ick" edge LOL.

[spidermom]

I was thinking something similar, Kirin. Even when my hair doesn't look dirty, if I look at it under the halogen lamp upstairs, I can see dust, lint, bird frass (from him flapping his wings in the cage and sending out a shower of little feathers and empty seed hulls), dog hairs, and who knows what all. The idea of never washing or rinsing it gives me the willies. Those of you who don't - do you live in a sterile environment? I can't imagine just leaving that stuff in there to build up.

[Feline]

If I don't wash my hair in for, say, four days, my scalp will start to itch but the hair will still look good. About a week seems to be my limit before it starts looking cruddy, depending on season. Having said that, the longest I ever went was nearly a month when I got really sick and was not "up" to doing any kind of shampooing. As soon as I recovered enough to stand in the shower long enough to shampoo, I was back to a normal routine. As long as I keep it detangled, it will look decent if not spectacular.

FTR, I would normally be shampooing tonight, but probably won't, it's too gosh-darned cold to air-dry! :sad

[A'eorryn]

Its not just about the oil. Now I know many have great luck with not washing or very infrequent washing, but hygenically its not something I'm willing to risk. I touch my hair, handle it with bare hands, my husband kisses my head, my kids sneeze on me..... the list is endless. The choice is up to the individual, however I don't feel that frequent washers are somehow brainwashed into doing so.

I am, in my own opinion, completely convinced frequent washing of hair is more beneficial to the person, not nessesarily the hair. I really would like to see some studies and experiments done on hair for this purpose, not just the health of hair.
edge LOL.

I know this is referring to hair specifically, and I am not refuting that whatsoever, though I do take care more to prevent unclean hair than to treat it (but of course I don't have do deal with things like, as the for instance, children snotting on my head) - but in a general sense it just made me want to point out the theory that our relatively-recent germ paranoia and hygiene-craze, especially in the US, is actually not only making us more susceptible to illness and disease but is also encouraging more resilient strains of bacteria and viruses - we're creating super-bugs and at the same time diminishing our own natural means of defending against them. Major plagues notwithstanding, people are a lot sicker nowadays than they used to be, when they didn't have all this chemically-supplied anti-germ warfare NOR the idea that they needed any. I'm not saying I don't believe in bathing - I make soap for a living after all! - but my grandma bleaches, scrubs, and disinfects everything in sight and can't figure out why she's sick all the time, whereas I am a bit more lax in my cleaning habits and NEVER catch colds, the flu, or any other temporary illness. I'm just saying people can (and are encouraged to - $$$ after all) easily take the idea of 'clean' way too far. DIRT is not DIRTY :)

~A'eorryn

[nastasska]

HAIR FACTS
How often should I shampoo?

Hair cannot be washed too often!
Our ancestors washed their hair only rarely. We know that hair left unwashed for several weeks
turns into a matted, smelly mess. We can only imagine the state of the scalps beneath those elaborate powdered wigs we see in portraits on the walls of stately homes!
This doesn't fit with our modern image of cleanliness and health. Hair can be washed every day, even several times a day if necessary. Today's shampoos do not damage hair. Their conditioning agents positively protect the cuticle against harm from brushing and combing.
So how often you wash your hair is a purely personal decision, one for you alone.

http://www.pg.com/science/haircare/hair_twh_118.htm


Utter Pfiffle:(

[Sissy]

I was my hair everyday or sometimes every other day. However, I find that website paragraph a load of crap. I know that some people can go perfectly well washing their hair once a week. For some reason I cannot... mine gets greasy looking after a day. Still, it's obvious they want to sell their products :)

[Demetrue]

Not washing or not shampooing does not necessarily mean not cleaning - it just means not cleansing with water, or with soap and water. I think that if someone oiled their hair with a light-weight oil and some sweet smelling essential oils and then kept it bunned all day, took it down at night and brushed with a BBB, braided it, brushed it and put it back up the next morning, you could keep it relatively germ and dirt free without using soap/detergent. There are also herbal rinses, clay cleaning methods, etc. There is baking soda, vinegar, lemon juice, soapnuts, etc. Your hair and scalp can be cleansed without P & G shampoo products.

[SimplyLonghair]

People didn't wash as often, and for certain things were healthier then as now.

My Dear Dad and I have talked about this often. He has told me about how in the winter, he and his brothers often didn't bath, not even on the Saturday nights as it was just too cold. But they were healthy.

But back then many died of things like cholera and the like, things that are prevented nowadays due to better hygiene.

I for one like being clean :bigeyes:

But the statements that the modern day shampoos don't cause damage, is based on people that keep short hair, or at least the BSL and no longer that most hairdressers push. As if hair cannot grow longer and be heathy. But then, by their methods, unless you have very strong hair it won't be healthy.

P&G is in the product business so they want to sell more product.

If I used the product the way that it is recommended, my hair would be fried. Oh wait.....it was!

But having said that, it you washed as much as they say but used LHC methods to do so, such as CO or CWC or thinning the shampoo with water before putting it on your hair. Or any of the other, too numerous to mention here, things that we do so that we can grow to great lengths. Then no it doesn't damage your hair :p

[Kirin]

I'm curious as to how anyone comes to the thought we are "sicker now than in the past". Every thing from mortality rates to tooth decay are lower now than ever in history. I am not trying to be argumentative, just that the ideology is a little strange as it flies in the face of what we know about sanitation and hygene.

Its not nessesary to wash with the harshest thing around and the hardest scrubbing. Simple soap and water works, and most germs in the household can be cleaned with water, vinegar, baking soda and tea tree oil. Add in Borax and occassional bleach for mildew, and thats all i use in my house.

I don't always wash with shampoo......... the shampoo companies would love that too much LOL, conditioner washes occassionally, dilluted shampoo, and sls free shampoos, and even bars all work well and do the job.

[frizzinator]

I meant to mention too in my post..... not all of the article is BS. Even though hair may seem and look clean without washing, I wouldn't wear clothes for a week without washing. Thats usually why people flip and wig out hearing others don't wash their hair.

To respond to your clothing analogy, some clothes are dry cleaned, and some delicate silk evening dresses have instructions indicating no washing or dry cleaning. For some clothing, airing and brushing can do a fairly good job of maintaining freshness.

As for my environment, I don't handle children, birds or snakes, and thus far have had no problems with dirty hair.

[SimplyLonghair]

I'm curious as to how anyone comes to the thought we are "sicker now than in the past". Every thing from mortality rates to tooth decay are lower now than ever in history. I am not trying to be argumentative, just that the ideology is a little strange as it flies in the face of what we know about sanitation and hygene.

I was referring to mainly things of diet and the like, as I stated they sicknesses that they did have were things of hygiene as I stated in the post. Heart attacks were almost unknown. So as stated Certain Things that is what I was referring to not much else, but they didn't get sick (My family)I was NOT referencing the general population. Again my family, didn't get colds, didn't have the runny noses and different things that we deal with on a regular basis, due to more contact with more people. It was that simple. :flowers:
Sorry that I didn't make that clear.:o

[frizzinator]

I'm curious as to how anyone comes to the thought we are "sicker now than in the past". Every thing from mortality rates to tooth decay are lower now than ever in history. I am not trying to be argumentative, just that the ideology is a little strange as it flies in the face of what we know about sanitation and hygene.


I think she is refering to the theory that something like a virus will eliminate mankind, and some folks continue to do things that reduce their resistance to those microbes.

[Darkhorse1]

I do think today's shampoos are less concentrated than in the olden days, when people probably used a direct cleansing agent, rather than having choices of cleansing agents.

However, women in the olden days had other factors: A) environment--they had to work a lot harder, and less than favorable conditions lead to less time to wash/preen. B) diet back then was probably not complete, therefore the health of hair was deemed to be poor due to lack of essential foods that you couldn't preserve in the 'olden' days. C) limited use of hair accessories to keep hair back. Braiding was probably the most common style, and bunning or both. I don't know when the elastic band was invented, but I think bobby pins were more used.

Washing hair is an individual thing. I know people who can go weeks without washing, but if I did that? Uggggh. It'd be grossssss! I washed my hair yesterday and it's already greasy tonight. That's life :D

[frizzinator]

I believe product residue requires a lot of rinsing to be completely gone from the hair and scalp. It is only the product residue that starts to stink without washing or rinsing. I use nothing on my hair or scalp except my fingers, combing and occasionally brushing ...no water, no oils, nothing.

[frizzinator]

I can't imagine just leaving that stuff in there to build up.

The thing that builds up is product residue, and it attracts dust. My experience indicates that sebum is incredibly clean and as long as I scritch, massage and preen, my scalp and hair seem to respond much better than when I used products and washed or rinsed.

Here's a visual: Which looks better?

4 months before I started Sebum Only:

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee178/frizzliz/10408009.jpg


Or one year after starting Sebum Only:

http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee178/frizzliz/8508.jpg

[Radulfr]

Can I like them both? :D

Great length pics!

[frizzinator]

Thank you Radulfr, but you are not allowed to like my frizzy hair photo!

[Radulfr]

Thank you Radulfr, but you are not allowed to like my frizzy hair photo!
I take it back! ;)

[Elenna]

P&G wants to sell more shampoo and hair products.

In the past, how did people take care of their hair? Wouldn't it be the cleansing methods available and cultural traditions about hair care. I do agree that detangling and some kind of cleaning method is neededful. Wasn't long hair the norm for most females until the 20th century. Oils and herbs come to mind.

[Sunshine69]

Of course a company that makes and sells shampoos is going to tell you that using their products every day is beneficial. They have an agenda... selling you as much of their product as possible.

[Gingevere]

Hair can be washed every day, even several times a day if necessary. Today's shampoos do not damage hair.

This could not be further from the truth! Washing my hair every day and even every other day led to dehydrated hair and scalp problems like dandruff. That's been my experience, anyway. Everyone's body is different, but that website's statement is such a generalized one. Very few people can get away with washing their hair several times a day without facing dryness issues.

And as far as modern shampoos go... many of them DO damage hair. Most conventional hair products today contain harsh chemicals and detergents (i.e. sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate) that can strip your hair of its healthy, natural oils. This is why I've switched to natural products.

[Darkhorse1]

Sicker now? Well, with increased population, we get more ailments/sickness due to transmission of illness. And, we've created a few new problems to make people sicker due to technology. More technology means increased accident rate.

it's all relative though. I mean, back in the hay day, people died younger due to a very strenuous life and less medical advancement. It's one of those catch 22s. You'd have to see medical stats over the years to really know what century was the 'healthiest'.

[Alaskanheart]

I could care less how frequent or how infrequent anyone washes their hair. Ill wash my hair with and when I damn well please! Sorry, thats just the type of mood I'm in today. :p

[Alun]

I am not sure whether drying your hair out really damages it as such, but I know it doesn't do much for the appearance! Maybe that's how they get by with their comments?

It's a pretty basic thing to point out amongst all the experts on LHC, but oilyness is directly related to time between washing and inversely related to hair length, provided you comb or brush regularly to distribute the sebum. Obviously, it is directly related to how much sebum your scalp produces as well, and that varies between people. Pretty much everyone here has hair length well beyond the normal range.

Greasy hair is hard to brush/comb, and at a certain point tends to look like it was set in place with a strong hairspray (!), but the longer the hair, the less often you need to remove sebum to maintain hair that you can get through and that doesn't have that 'set' look, if atall in some cases, and even washing with water must remove a certain amount.

I think the average person with average length hair may actually get better results with less effort using modern shampoo, but we don't have average length hair. I don't mean I don't use shampoo, just less often than these guys suggest if I don't want to go for that dried out crunchy Sahara desert look.

As for pollution, if you pick the 19th century then outdoor pollution was probably worse than it is now, as the industrial revolution was in it's heyday and controlling pollution was something that hadn't got very far.

[Feline]

Actually, apart from anything else, I think my hair has done better since I started ignoring the "lather-rinse-repeat" instructions on virtually every shampoo bottle label. It gets a second dose only if it got really cruddy, such as when a bird, uh, "got me" :disgust: . That was yucky.... barring such incidents, my hair gets one lathering, plus lots of conditioner, whenever it needs it.

[vindo]

HAIR FACTS
How often should I shampoo?

Hair cannot be washed too often!
Our ancestors washed their hair only rarely. We know that hair left unwashed for several weeks
turns into a matted, smelly mess. We can only imagine the state of the scalps beneath those elaborate powdered wigs we see in portraits on the walls of stately homes!
This doesn't fit with our modern image of cleanliness and health. Hair can be washed every day, even several times a day if necessary. Today's shampoos do not damage hair. Their conditioning agents positively protect the cuticle against harm from brushing and combing.
So how often you wash your hair is a purely personal decision, one for you alone.

http://www.pg.com/science/haircare/hair_twh_118.htm


PG's science studies are very old.

Hair Care, especially for long hair and long hair to becan be viewed as Anti-Aging for hair.
We treat is so carefully to keep it from weathering, being damaged.
Everyone knows the saying "treat your hair like delicate silk/cloth". This is also true when it comes to washing..imagine washing a piece of silk 100 times! It would look ragged.

So If you wash your hair daily that means 365 washes a year, every other day ist still a whopping 183 washes...
This shows as your hair gains length, even shoulderlength hair has went through about 1000 washes.
True that there is hairtypes that don't show this quickly (mine neither), but it can always be better!!
I used to wash daily, use strong detergents...my hair was fine and hip length. Now I wash weekly with mild detergents and it's unbelievable but it is even better!
So anyone can benefit from this.

The scalp will also thank you, especially harsh detergents will make your scalp produce much gue and oil than usual. It would be a flaky, greasy mess if you would not wash often.
But- you can get your scalp back to its old natural self, mild detergents and stretching washes are often very successful.
On top of that people find they shed less (this could be the more balanced scalp)...and who wouldnt want that?

Yes, we don't live in the middleages..and if someone is not comfortable with washing very little that at least try to go for a couple of days - a week..maybe even ten days.
It would make a big difference.

Btw. with conditioning agents they mean silicones..PG says they are a good thing...very old articles ^^..

[MAO]

Well my hair and scalp improved A LOT after I QUIT using shampoo! Using CO only has taken away my dandruff and frizz and I only do that maybe 2x a week, at the most. All the years and money spent looking for the perfect shampoo, only to find that not using any at all works best, so I know they are full of baloney!

[Elbereth]

Sheesh...

I wash my hair fairly frequently on LHC standards- twice a week. That is perfect. In between, if I get sweaty or dirty, I simply rinse my hair with plain water. That is enough to remove sweat after exercise, some dust etc.

Modern shampoos contain harsh chemicals that strip hair from its natural conditioning oils. I would never ever wash my hair with a shampoo, or even soap, several times a day :scared: . I can't imagine that such a harsh haircare regimen would be necessary for anyone. I can see that someone who kept their hair short with monthly cuts (and used lots of chemicals for coloring, styling and such anyway) might not notice the extra damage caused by too much washing. But on LHC, most have or are aiming at hair length well beyond what is considered average, and that requires keeping hair so healthy that removing damage by cutting hair often is not necessary.

I agree with others: haircare advice that comes from "professionals" who have a goal of selling their products or services is very often biased. I find my hair is much better off with advice from places like LHC where people share their knowledge out of good will, not commercial interest.