Chemicals

[snakewitch]

Does anybody else who is a stickler about chemicals in hair products have a list or something of the chemicals and ingredients you should avoid when deciding on hair products?

Yes, I actually stand in the store reading the labels on everything for my hair before I buy it. D: Don't judge me.

[krissykins]

I think that would be a hard list to compile, considering how one person's hair varies from another so much. Some people love sodium lauryl sulfate and others swear it's pure evil. Some people adore panthenol and some avoid it like the plague.

If you're worried about chemicals, there are some good, organic brands that some people swear by :flower:

[Panth]

Just to be pedantic, what you are concerned about is synthetic ingredients, not chemicals. Chemicals are in everything - you are made of chemicals, your organic plants are made of chemicals...

</pedantic mini-rant>

[Tuntenut]

I think I've seen a thread or an article with a list of common ingredients and an explanation of what it is and what it does, but I can't find it. Does anyone know what I'm talking about or is my brain playing tricks on me?

[jaine]

My list of what to avoid is so long that I gave up and started a list of what is OK for me. It's much shorter:
- Familiar emulsifiers (cetyl alcohol, cetearyl alcohol, behentrimonium methosulfate).
- Gentle detergents (decyl polyglucose, decyl glucoside...or similar ones with glucoside or polyglucose in the name).
- Edible things (aloe, honey, vitamins, herbal extracts, oil, citric acid, etc).
- Essential oils.

If I stick to that list then my skin doesn't itch or look red after a shower.

[snakewitch]

I really just needed the ones that are really harsh and have been known to cause hairloss and other things.

But thanks for the advice. :D I'll try to look for products based on that.