A Guide to Choosing the Right Shampoo for Every Hair Type (Part 2)

Following our previous article on how a good shampoo benefits the look and health of your hair, and on the ingredients commonly found in shampoos, this article looks at the remaining ingredients found in shampoos.

Non-ionic Detergents

These detergents carry no ionic group. They are among the mildest cleansers and help improve a shampoo’s anti-static properties. They can be combined with ionic detergents as a secondary cleanser. Examples include polyoxyethylene fatty alcohols, polyoxyethylene sorbitol esters and alkanolamides.

Amphoteric Detergents

These detergents have both positively and negatively charged groups: at low pH they behave like cationic detergents, and at high pH like anionic detergents. Subgroups include betaines, sultaines and imidazolinium compounds. They are used in baby shampoos and for people with fine or damaged hair. Examples include cocamidopropyl betaine and sodium lauraminopropionate.

Conditioning Agents

Softening or moisturising ingredients are used in shampoo to add shine and anti-static properties to the hair. Following the success of its Drene shampoos, Procter & Gamble was the first company to bring 2-in-1 shampoos containing conditioning agents to market.

Protein-derived ingredients (such as hydrolysed collagen) in conditioners temporarily bind the cuticle scales of the hair together, preventing breakage and holding them in place until the next wash. Glycerin, propylene glycol and stearalkonium chloride are among the ingredients used as conditioning agents in shampoos.

Foaming Agents

Foaming agents create bubbles in water. A common misconception is that the more lather a product produces, the better it cleans. In fact, foaming agents in shampoo simply help the detergents spread over the hair and scalp.

Scalp oil suppresses lather formation, which is why a second wash produces more foam — but that does not mean your hair is any cleaner. So don’t worry if the shampoo you have chosen doesn’t lather much, as is the case with shampoos for colour-treated hair or baby shampoos.

Coco diethanolamide is one of the most common foaming agents; by producing enough lather, it gives users a satisfying experience.

Thickeners

Thickening agents form a coating on the surface of the hair and give it a feeling of volume. Ingredients such as sodium chloride, polyethylene glycol and calcium stearyl lauryl sulfate increase the viscosity of the product and add volume to the hair, but have no effect on cleansing.

pH Adjusters

The pH of hair-care products is an important factor in keeping hair and scalp healthy. pH-balanced shampoos can benefit natural hair by reducing split ends and dryness, preventing breakage and tangling, and keeping the cuticle closed. Shampoos with a balanced pH are ideal because they do not strip the natural oils from the hair and scalp, they restore balance to the scalp, and they create the right conditions for healthy hair growth.

Adding acidic ingredients such as glycolic acid or citric acid helps adjust a shampoo’s pH. Your hair has a natural pH of between 4.5 and 5.5, and the oil on your scalp (sebum) is also acidic. This natural acidity prevents fungi and bacteria from growing on the hair and scalp, keeps the cuticle closed and healthy, and leaves you with healthy hair and scalp.

Hair type is one of the key factors in choosing hair-care products. Because curly hair has partly open cuticles, it calls for products with an acidity in the range of 3 to 5, whereas people with straight hair are advised to use products in the neutral pH range of 6 to 7.

Special Additives

These are active ingredients such as plant extracts, vitamins, or anti-dandruff and anti-hair-loss compounds. They play no part in cleansing, but for their benefits to take effect, the shampoo needs to stay on the scalp for 5 to 10 minutes.

Plant extracts such as violet, sidr (Ziziphus), rosemary, aloe vera, millet seed and rice bran have a long history of use in maintaining healthy hair.

Conclusion

Shampoo is the first line of any routine for keeping hair healthy and beautiful, so choosing a shampoo that suits your scalp and hair type is particularly important. A shampoo for oily hair needs stronger cleansing power, while dry, bleached and colour-treated hair should be washed with shampoos containing milder detergents to keep it clean and shiny.

Reading the ingredient list of a shampoo can help you make the best choice — and enjoy healthy, beautiful, shiny hair.