"Invisible damage" and protein

[HintOfMint]

Hi everyone,

I was browsing through the forum and found that many of you attribute velcro ends to too much protein. Right now, I think I am experiencing something like that. The ends of my hair feel really rough, although there is no visible damage. A few weeks ago, I started to use mane 'n tail shampoo and conditioner which has protein in it. I have clarified and conditioned using that shampoo (it has no silicone in it) and oiled the ends and they still feel rough. I haven't had a trim since the end of December, so it could be that I'm due for a trim. I would like to delay that trim until my August appointment if at all possible.

My questions are:
To get rid of the roughness, should I trim or change shampoo/conditioner? How do I test my hair to see what I should do?
If I need to switch S&C then does anybody have any suggestions? I prefer something inexpensive, without silicone but WITH SLS (my scalp needs SLS), and obviously without protein.

Thanks in advance!

[Jenn of Pence]

This is a good question....I feel that protein does this to my ends, too. I 'pooed my ends and switched to some products without proteins, and it seemed to work (actually, my ends seemed really nice ). I'd suggest clarifying the ends once and moisturizing well. If it's still velcro-y, try again. If it doesn't work after that it could be something else. Hopefully that can stave off a trim!
I've been using Tresemme Naturals shampoo and conditioner; no cones, low sulfates in the shampoo, and not horribly expensive. I'm sure others can suggest some others, too.

[Kaijah]

If you think it's just from too much protein, I wouldn't trim the ends until you've clarified and spent a bit of time using protein free conditioners AND protein free shampoos. It can take a while for hair to soften up again if you've had a lot of protein - before I figured out ingredients labels I had a hard time with accidentally protein bombing my hair and ending up miserable for ages.

I really like the Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition line (it's in dark emerald green bottles, can find it anywhere practically for $4-5 for 32 oz), they're protein and 'cone free, and the shampoo does have SLS. The Tresemme Naturals stuff Jenn recommended is pretty good, too, but it felt a bit lighter on my hair in comparison to the Garnier.

Suave Naturals or V05 might work for you as well - they're SUPER cheap (.75 cents to $1.25 usually), the shampoos all have sulfates, the conditioners are cone free but some do have protein, you'd have to check the labels. Those conditioners are all extremely light IMO though, so they might not work well for balancing a protein shock.

[Anje]

Clarifying and moisturizing the ends is definitely a good route to go if you think you've got roughness due to too much protein. I'm a fan of the cheap Suave conditioners myself, but like Kaijah said, they're quite light (good for CO, perhaps not as good if you need more moisture unless you amend them with something like honey). Do check out the SMT, over in the Recipes section. It's not ideal for everyone, but a lot of us swear by it.

Mind, you don't necessarily need to switch both your shampoo and conditioner. If you like a given shampoo, feel free to stick with it. The only real reason to switch both is if you're using a more buildup-causing conditioner (such as one with lots of silicones) and a very gentle shampoo with few or no sulfates that isn't capable of getting the conditioner buildup out. An occasional clarifying wash is often sufficient to counterbalance that, though.

[FrannyG]

I agree with the others. If I were you I would definitely change shampoo and conditioner to ones that are protein-free, no question. Protein is great once in a while if you need it, but if you don't, it can make you think that you need a trim.

I suggest clarifying once again, and following with a deep moisture treatment like an SMT for at least an hour. VO5 and Suave are very good and inexpensive for SMTs. Just make sure that you look at the ingredients list to make sure that you aren't choosing one with protein.

The shampoos and conditioners recommended above are all good suggestions.

I would make sure to do another SMT within the week. If, after a month without protein, you still find that you have velcro ends, you just may be in need of a trim. I suspect that another clarifying and lots of deep moisturizing will do the trick though.

[Speckla]

My ends tend to feel like velcro right around the times they need to be trimmed. I hold up a length of hair and look at the ends. Are they broken, split, or just feel rough? even a microdusting can help....that is after you make sure it's not the products.

[seethruugirl]

How do you tell what is a protein in conditioners? How are they listed in the ingredient list? Thanks!

[Speckla]

How do you tell what is a protein in conditioners? How are they listed in the ingredient list? Thanks!

Some will say protein, keratin, silk protein, wheat protein, amino acids, soy protein, or something like that.

[Kaijah]

Some will say protein, keratin, silk protein, wheat protein, amino acids, soy protein, or something like that.

All these, and look out for anything that has "hydrolized" in front of it (ie hydrolized soy, hydrolized wheat).

[Fairlight63]

This is interesting! I was looking all through my shamp. & Cond. for protein in them & found out that a LOT of them that I have has protein in them. May explain why my hair is so velcoury. You can NOT run your hands through my hair, the strands just stick together like glue or something. I never noticed it when I had short hair it acting like this but as it gets longer it is getting worse. It is really hard to braid my hair as the strands sticks together & pull when I try to separate them. I think that it would be easier to rope braid it.
I also have hard water, that may have something to do with it also, don't know. But my hair is so tempermental that I wouldn't doubt that it affects it.
I was wondering what are some of your shamp. & cond. that you are using that are protein free? also where did you buy them at? seems like they all have SLS, cones or protein in them, it is so HARD to find some that are free of those items!
I think that I will try clarifying it with VO5 tea-tree shamp. clarifying shamp. (is that a good one to use ?) then try moisturizing it real good.

Thank you everyone!