Saturday 9 August 2008

Shampoo

Everyone uses shampoo, but how many of us realise what we are putting on our hair and bodies? Sodium lauryl sulphate (SLS) is found in 90% of conventional shampoos as well as in a number of personal care products, including toothpastes, shower gels and bubble baths. SLS is a harsh detergent that works by removing oils from the hair and skin. Its cleaning power is utilised industrially and it is commonly used as an engine degreasers, floor cleaners and in car washes. I haven't used shampoo since realising it's harsh nature on delicate curly hair.
As well as not being curl friendly there are a number of health concerns associated with the use of SLS in commercial personal care products. It is a suspected carcinogen with links to kidney and liver damage. It is also known to cause eye irritation, which can lead to cataracts and SLS is often used in clinical and laboratory testing to deliberately provoke skin irritation.
My advice is always read the label and when you consider that the skin (including the scalp) can absorbs up to 60% of the products we use, natural products seems a good idea.

2 comments:

Carol said...

Nice article about hair loss. I really found your articles informative and beneficial.

Maria said...

Very nice informative and beneficial post Problems with hair can cause one severe loss of confidence. Thanks to the internet today one can have so many treatment options available.