Question about sulfates and silicones

**SallySue** · June 14th, 2018, 01:12 PM

Hi, I'm new to reading the ingredients on the back of my shampoo bottles.
I recently quit using a sulfate shampoo for my normal washes as it was stripping my strands of their much-needed moisture. Along with it, I quit using silicones as I learned they create a barrier that prevents moisture from penetrating.

My question is this: I read somewhere that the ONLY way to rid your hair of the layer of silicone build-up is with a sulfate shampoo. Is this true?
I noticed that some of my styling products list dimethicone way at the bottom of the list. If I were to use these, is there any other substance that would clarify out the silicone other than a harsh shampoo? ACV, for example?

**nycelle** · June 14th, 2018, 01:35 PM

I was sulfate free before going silicone free. My clarifying shampoo does not contain sulfates, it's clarifies with activated charcoal and it got rid of everything.
Any mild surfactant like cocamidopropyl betaine or coco betaine will get rid of silicone build-up.

You'll know right away as you'll have less slip, but your hair should be better moisturized, and softer after a few washes as well.

**SallySue** · June 14th, 2018, 01:42 PM

Thank you, very informative.

**akurah** · June 14th, 2018, 01:55 PM

Sulfates might be the most effective way to remove silicones, but they’re definitely not the only way. Most surfactants in most shampoos can handle it, and even some surfactants in conditioner can do it too. Additionally some silicones are water soluble.

**lapushka** · June 14th, 2018, 02:48 PM

If you want to get all the silicones off of your hair then yes a sulfate (preferably clarifying) shampoo is what you need. Dimethicone is especially problematic because it's not water soluble.

If you're not going to use a sulfate, try sulfate-free shampoos by Hask, Maui Moisture, or Shea Moisture as they are strong enough to get rid of the silicones as well, but maybe not as effective.

Yes, a sulfate is quick & easy, and a bottle of it is always great to have on hand!

I also went sulfate-free and silicone free for a while, only to return to the sulfates and the silicones, discovering my hair and scalp actually needed them (I have a scalp condition).

Sometimes it's not as easy as that.

**MusicalSpoons** · June 14th, 2018, 04:27 PM

If cocamidopropyl betaine is the primary surfactant, it should be fine, especially if dimethicone is way down the list of ingredients. Most sulphate-free shampoos use a combination of surfactants (as indeed do most sulphate shampoos!) to be as effective as possible.

**Katia_k** · June 14th, 2018, 06:55 PM

I've found Shea Moisture's African Black soap shampoo gets out a heck of a lot of stuff, so that might be worth a shot. Smells like banana poo but works well.

**Reservechic** · June 16th, 2018, 02:26 PM

I currently use Mixed Chicks Kids Leave In Conditioner to style my hair with. It has Amodimethicone in it high on the ingredient listing. It is a non water soluble cone. I know that Amodimethicone can be effectively removed with Jessicurl's Cleansing Cream (it contains cocamidopropyl betaine in it among other cleansing agents). It is considered to be a co-wash cleanser. However, it's cleansing ability does go deeper than most typical co-washes on the market do.

Many people think that they must use a sulfate shampoo to remove cones from their hair, but there are sulfate free cleansers on the market that do contain surfactants that are totally effective enough to remove cones.

**lapushka** · June 16th, 2018, 03:16 PM

Originally Posted by Reservechic

I currently use Mixed Chicks Kids Leave In Conditioner to style my hair with. It has Amodimethicone in it high on the ingredient listing. It is a non water soluble cone. I know that Amodimethicone can be effectively removed with Jessicurl's Cleansing Cream (it contains cocamidopropyl betaine in it among other cleansing agents). It is considered to be a co-wash cleanser. However, it's cleansing ability does go deeper than most typical co-washes on the market do.

Many people think that they must use a sulfate shampoo to remove cones from their hair, but there are sulfate free cleansers on the market that do contain surfactants that are totally effective enough to remove cones.

Nevertheless, I always had a sulfate shampoo on hand in case something didn't quite get removed; this was back in the day when I experimented heavily with sulfate-free. I used Jessicurl back then too (both their cleansers). I quite like what the stylers did for my hair, but I have since switched to Shea Moisture (for my stylers only) and am *loving* it!