SLS vs. Clarifying...

[Kaya]

Is there really a difference between using a SLS-shampoo and a clarifying one? I have both, and as I CO daily, I only shampoo once a week, on my heavy-oiling day.
Call me a little too lazy to analyze the ingredients list on the two bottles, but fundamentally, don't they do the same thing?
I'm just curious, as to whether one is better than the other. So I can figure out which one to get when my bottle is empty! :D

[danacc]

A clarifying shampoo is made to remove everything from your hair shaft and leave it "naked".

An SLS shampoo is simply one that contains the detergent SLS. The detergent will clean your hair, but there may be other ingredients in the shampoo that are meant to condition. If so, they will leave something on your hair. Not all SLS shampoos do this, though. (Clarifying shampoos often use SLS.) The only way to know if a shampoo is going to clarify is to read and understand all of the ingredients.

So, if you need to clarify, I recommend using the one marked "clarifying". If you need to clean, and don't mind if it conditions a little, too, use whatever you like.

[Jenn of Pence]

This is a good question; I've often wondered about the distinction between these as well. I think danacc makes a good point about the inclusion of moisturizing or coating ingredients in SLS shampoos. I would think that any shampoo with silicones and maybe something like proteins wouldn't be clarifying, since those are things that tend to build up and we want to get rid of! But yeah....what about a shampoo with sulfates and none of those things? Could any one of those be considered "clarifying?"