The "no-poo" movement allows three key ingredients to keep your hair clean and they are probably already in your cupboards. Photo / Getty Images
The "no-poo" movement allows three key ingredients to keep your hair clean and they are probably already in your cupboards. Photo / Getty Images
Can you ditch shampoo and conditioner altogether and still have healthy, clean hair? Megan Wood tries "no-poo", a shampoo-free hair regime, with surprising results.
Megan's "no poo" journey. Photos / Supplied
The promise:
You can live without shampoo. In fact, not only can you live without it, a no-poo regime promises your hair will be healthier, shinierand more manageable. Before you cling to your shampoo bottle and barricade yourself in the bathroom, there are products the no-poo movement allows you to use, and they're probably in your kitchen cupboard right now: baking soda and apple cider vinegar.
The first-known mention of shampoo is from the 4th century BC, when Greek historian Strabo wrote about India's practice of shampooing. The first commercial liquid shampoos were introduced in 1927 by German inventor Hans Schwarzkopf (does that name ring a bell?), and around the same time American fireman-turned-chemist, John Breck, created the first PH-balanced shampoo.
If you Google "no-poo" you'll find results dating back more than a decade. Growing concern over harmful chemicals in our environment has seen the desire to avoid shampoo gain a cult following. No-poo-ers believe we don't need shampoo and using just water or natural household products is better for our hair, our health and the planet.
Three key ingredients for a no poo regime. Photo / Supplied
The science:
We all know if you leave your hair for long enough, it gets oily and dirty. This is due to an oil called sebum secreted by the scalp. This oil protects the proteins in our hair, helping to prevent it from splitting (which is good) but sebum also attracts dirt and flaky skin from our scalp (that's bad). So it is only natural to want a convenient way to clean it.
Most shampoos wash our hair using a combination of a surfactant, such as sodium lauryl sulfate or sodium laureth sulfate, which cleans, and a co-surfactant, which foams, such as cocamidopropyl betaine mixed with water, fragrances and, in some cases, other chemical nasties like butylene glycol, potassium sorbate and phenoxyethanol.
Unlike shampoo, baking soda only contains one chemical compound: NaHCO3. This compound is a salt comprised of sodium and bicarbonate ions. Baking soda has a high pH of 9, making it an effective acid-neutraliser and cleanser. The hair's natural PH level is normally between 4 and 5, however, so you are going to need something to help restore the balance, which is where apple cider vinegar comes in. With a PH of around 3, apple cider vinegar (or ACV as you will see it commonly referred to on no-poo forums) will help to lower the pH of your scalp, which helps to flatten and close the hair cuticle, making your hair less prone to breakage and less frizzy.
The reality:
It's been three weeks and I am still no-pooing. I have settled into a routine now, but I have to admit the first week was rough. I tried using just water, as some no-poo-ers swear by, but by day four I was a desperate greasy mess. It was time to try baking soda. I mixed one tablespoon of baking soda in a cup with water and massaged it into my scalp, then rinsed thoroughly in the shower. Then I poured some diluted apple cider vinegar through my hair, rinsed and stepped out to survey the results. I dried my hair and, with a feeling of great anticipation, ran my hands through it. It felt great! I was missing that pretty, clean hair smell a lot though, so I got a little creative and for my next wash added a few drops of essential oils to my baking-soda mixture. The other trick I stumbled upon was using a little cornflour brushed through my hair as a natural alternative to dry shampoo. And it worked.
No-poo really worked for me. Over the past three weeks no one commented that my hair looked different, but it feels different. It feels fuller and easier to manage. If you are very environmentally conscious, on a very tight budget or have dry hair or scalp (no-poo is meant to be good for dandruff sufferers) then no-poo could be calling you, just don't freak out when your hair feels like an oil slick, no-poo takes time, but it works.
