A few years ago, I wrote a blog; Attack of the Xenoestrogens! it was about why we need to avoid parabens in cosmetics and beauty products because the parabens mimic estrogen in our bodies and cause all types of problems. I started to think about all the products that I use and what exactly is contained in them and recently I started experimenting with cutting certain products out of my life, it is a bit like going on a diet, trying to cut out harmful chemicals. Progestelle for balancing hormones.
I have been cutting some chemicals out of my life for about 7 weeks now and the results so far have been interesting. Firstly, I decided to cut out shampoo and conditioner, it sounds gross but I have only used a little shampoo once in the last 7 weeks. You might expect my hair to be nasty at this stage but in fact it is healthy looking and shiny! It took all 7 weeks to reach this stage, so if you try this at home, be patient results are slow!
Rationale: Have you ever noticed that the more you wash your hair, the more you need to wash it. If you wash it once every 5 days it is greasy on day 5, if you wash it every 3 days it is greasy on day 3. The reason for this is that shampoos use harsh chemicals and remove the natural oils from the hair, so the body works extra hard to create more oil to compensate and then you end up with more grease in your hair!
When I was a child a neighbor of mine was in her 80's and she had the most beautiful long thick hair, one day, my mother asked her how she managed to keep her hair so long. The lady told us that she only washed her hair once a year! I have never forgotten her, she was proof that this "no poo" stuff works! I think I always wanted to give this a try, I just wasn't brave enough before.
Method: I get my hairwet in the shower most days and blow dry it when I need to look presentable. I replaced shampoo with a mixture of baking soda and water, I use this about every 4 days at the moment. It was recommended that you mix water and baking soda and put it in a spray bottle, spritz hair in the shower and leave on for about 5 minutes. This method did not work for me, firstly the baking soda was too thick for the spray bottle and so would not come out. Secondly the baking soda and water separate so I was not sure how much soda was getting on my hair and thirdly the water was cold!
I resolved these difficulties by sprinkling baking soda all over my hair before getting into the shower, adding some water and then letting it sit for a while. This method works much better for me.
Conditioning my hair, I resorted to apple cider vinegar mixed with 50% water and sprayed on hair before a final rinse. It has a bit of a pong but leaves the hair shiny and manageable. Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar
Results, after 7 weeks my hair looks great but it did take all that time. It is a good idea to tie hair up meanwhile if you are worried about your appearance! I also noticed that after I dyed my hair with Cassia Obovata my hair was not longer tangled. In the days of using shampoo it would take many minutes of patient combing and lots of hair pulled out to detangle my hair.
Recommendation: I would recommend trying this. I have no idea how things will work out in the long run but it is definitely a money saver and feels good to be doing something that feels somewhat healthy. Think too of all the plastic bottles you are saving from the landfill!
