Recommended Product Ingredients
Recommended Product Ingredients
January 31st, 2023
Review your hair care routine with a stylist during appointments to get the best product recommendations for your needs. One common issue people experience is a loss of effectiveness in their products over time. This results from a need to balance cleaning your hair with moisturizing it. Below we've provided a guide to help balance your hair care routine, complete with a list of the most effective ingredients for each category. Non-detergents (soaps) were purposely left off the list because they use oils to remove contaminants, which we've found does not clean hair as well.
Category: Surfactant Cleanser
Definition: Surfactant cleansers are detergents or cleaning agents. They work by surrounding and lifting residue off of the hair strand so water can rinse it away. On a product's ingredient list you generally see them listed towards the top.
Found In: Shampoos, Clarifying Shampoos, Detoxes, Pre Arts
Recommended Routine: Can be used by all hair types. Helpful for oily hair. See How Often Should I Shampoo? for frequency.
Ingredients:
Definition: Surfactant cleansers are detergents or cleaning agents. They work by surrounding and lifting residue off of the hair strand so water can rinse it away. On a product's ingredient list you generally see them listed towards the top.
Found In: Shampoos, Clarifying Shampoos, Detoxes, Pre Arts
Recommended Routine: Can be used by all hair types. Helpful for oily hair. See How Often Should I Shampoo? for frequency.
Ingredients:
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- Sodium methyl cocoyl taurate
- Sodium cocoyl isethionate
- Sodium lauryl sulfoacetate
- Disodium laureth sulfosuccinate
- Sodium methyl cocoyl taurate
- Sodium lauroyl glutamate
- Sodium cocoyl glutamate
- Sodium lauroyl sarcosinate
- Ammonium lauryl sulfate
- Ammonium laureth sulfate
- Sodium polystyrene sulfonate
- Cocamidopropyl betaine
- Coco betaine
- Cocamidopropyl hydroxysultaine
- Lauryl hydroxysultaine
- Sodium cocoamphoacetate
- Sodium lauroamphoacetate
- Sodium sulfosuccinate
- Sodium cocoyl isethionate
- Sodium lauryl sulfate *
* Sodium lauryl sulfate is not recommended for daily use.
Category: Non Surfactant Cleanser
Definition: This cleaning agent does not completely lift oil and grease off of the hair strand, meaning it does not fully remove them. Doing so lightly cleanses your hair while also retaining moisture (i.e. conditioning it). It is not recommended for use with silicones, mineral oil or petroleum products because these ingredients deposit a residue under the hair's cuticle that require a surfactant cleanser to remove. I usually suggest using a clarifying shampoo once a month with this type of cleanser.
Found In: Shampoos, Clarifying Shampoos, Detoxes, Pre Arts
Recommended Routine: Can be used by all hair types. Helpful for dry hair. See How Often Should I Shampoo? for frequency.
Ingredients:
Definition: This cleaning agent does not completely lift oil and grease off of the hair strand, meaning it does not fully remove them. Doing so lightly cleanses your hair while also retaining moisture (i.e. conditioning it). It is not recommended for use with silicones, mineral oil or petroleum products because these ingredients deposit a residue under the hair's cuticle that require a surfactant cleanser to remove. I usually suggest using a clarifying shampoo once a month with this type of cleanser.
Found In: Shampoos, Clarifying Shampoos, Detoxes, Pre Arts
Recommended Routine: Can be used by all hair types. Helpful for dry hair. See How Often Should I Shampoo? for frequency.
Ingredients:
- Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Oil
- Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil
- Oenothera Biennis (Evening Primrose) Oil
- Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil
- Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice
Category: Detox
Definition: While similar to the Cleanser category, the Detox category is stronger. These cleansing agents remove product build up and help with demineralization of the hair.
Found In: Shampoos, Clarifying Shampoos, Pre Arts
Recommended Routine: Can be used once a month by all hair types. Helpful for oily hair.
Ingredients:
Definition: While similar to the Cleanser category, the Detox category is stronger. These cleansing agents remove product build up and help with demineralization of the hair.
Found In: Shampoos, Clarifying Shampoos, Pre Arts
Recommended Routine: Can be used once a month by all hair types. Helpful for oily hair.
Ingredients:
- Disodium EDTA (Ethylamine Diamine Tetraacetic Acid)
- Pentasoidum Pentetate
- Sodium phytate
- Phytic acid
- Citric acid (needs large enough quantity to be effective)
Category: Humectants
Definition: This ingredient helps retain moisture from water by attracting it to the hair strand in humid climate conditions. However, in dry weather humectants have the opposite effect and will transfer moisture from your hair into the atmosphere. This can leave your hair dehydrated, which may not be what you want depending on its current state.
Tip: Humectants are complementary to silicones and plant oils.
Found In: Shampoos, Conditioners, Styling Aids
Recommended Routine: Can be used daily by all hair types. Helpful for dry hair. Using a detox once a month is recommended with this category.
Ingredients:
Definition: This ingredient helps retain moisture from water by attracting it to the hair strand in humid climate conditions. However, in dry weather humectants have the opposite effect and will transfer moisture from your hair into the atmosphere. This can leave your hair dehydrated, which may not be what you want depending on its current state.
Tip: Humectants are complementary to silicones and plant oils.
Found In: Shampoos, Conditioners, Styling Aids
Recommended Routine: Can be used daily by all hair types. Helpful for dry hair. Using a detox once a month is recommended with this category.
Ingredients:
Hydrolyzed Proteins
For Use In Humid Weather
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Plant Gels
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Hydrolyzed Proteins
For Use In Humid Weather
Plant Gels
- Hydrolyzed Elastin, silk, keratin, collagen
- Peptides (wheat, oat, soy...)
- Amino acids (wheat, oat, soy) or glycine, alanine, proline, etc.
- Cocodimonium hydroxypropyl hydrolyzed _________ (source of protein, i.e. keratin, silk, rice, soy)
- Cocoyl hydrolyzed ________ (source of protein)
- Potassium cocoyl hydrolyzed ________ (source of protein)
- Hydrolyzed oat flour
For Use In Humid Weather
- Vegetable glycerin
- Sorbitol
Plant Gels
- Panthenol
- Flax Seed Gel
- Okra Gel
- Aloe Vera
- Hydroxyethylcellulose
- Pectin
- Xanthan Gum
- Guar Gum
- Marshmallow Root
- Slippery Elm
Category: Soluble Silicones
Definition: This ingredient coats the hair shaft to lock in moisture, reduce frizz, add slip, and give hair the coveted soft and silky feel. Soluble silicones can be washed out with non surfactant cleansers.
Found In: Shampoos, Conditioners, Styling Aids
Recommended Routine: Can be used daily by all hair types. Using a detox once a month is recommended with this category.
Ingredients:
Definition: This ingredient coats the hair shaft to lock in moisture, reduce frizz, add slip, and give hair the coveted soft and silky feel. Soluble silicones can be washed out with non surfactant cleansers.
Found In: Shampoos, Conditioners, Styling Aids
Recommended Routine: Can be used daily by all hair types. Using a detox once a month is recommended with this category.
Ingredients:
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- Any silicone with PEG as a prefix
- Bis-peg/ppg-16/16 peg/ppg-16/16 (This is an emulsifier - not for shine or lubrication)
- Cyclomethicone
- Dimethicone copolyol
- DEA PG-Propyl PEG/PPG-18/21 Dimethicone
- Dimethicone PEG-8 Phosphate
- Dimethicone-PG Diethylmonium Chloride
- Hydrolyzed Silk PG-Propyl Methylsilanediol Crosspolymer
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein Hydroxypropyl Polysiloxane
- Hydrolyzed Wheat protein/hydroxypropyl polysiloxane and cystine/silicone co-polymers
- Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein PG-Silanetriol
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein PG-Propyl Silanetriol
- Lauryl methicone copolyol
- PEG-40/PPG-8 Methylaminopropyl/Hydropropyl Dimethicone Copolymer
- PEG/PPG-14/4 Dimethicone
- PEG/PPG-20/15 Dimethicone
- PEG-12 Dimethicone
- PEG/PPG-20/15 Dimethicone
- PPG-8 Methylaminopropyl, Hydroxypropyl Dimethicone Copolymer
- PEG-7 Amodimethicone
- PEG-8 Disteramonium Chloride PG-Dimethicone
- PEG-33 (and) PEG-8 Dimethicone (and) PEG-14
- Silanetriol
- Silicone Quaternium-8
Category: Plant Oils
Definition: This ingredient is used to retain moisture, condition hair, protect from damage and minimize dryness.
Found In: Shampoos, Conditioners, Styling Aids
Recommended Routine: Can be used daily by all hair types. Helpful for dry hair.
Ingredients:
Definition: This ingredient is used to retain moisture, condition hair, protect from damage and minimize dryness.
Found In: Shampoos, Conditioners, Styling Aids
Recommended Routine: Can be used daily by all hair types. Helpful for dry hair.
Ingredients:
- Coconut (Cocos Nucifera) Oil
- Sunflower (Helianthus Annuus) Seed Oil
- Olive (Olea Europaea) Oil
- Argan (Argania Spinosa) Oil
Category: Preservatives
Definition: Additives that prevent spoilage. Most consumer products contain preservatives because without them any water-based solution will eventually grow mold or bacteria.
Found In: Shampoos, Conditioners, Styling Aids
Recommended Routine: A routine is not applicable for this category since it's included in most products, but pay attention to whether your products cause scalp irritation. That could be a sign to switch to, or alternate with, preservative free options.
Ingredients:
Definition: Additives that prevent spoilage. Most consumer products contain preservatives because without them any water-based solution will eventually grow mold or bacteria.
Found In: Shampoos, Conditioners, Styling Aids
Recommended Routine: A routine is not applicable for this category since it's included in most products, but pay attention to whether your products cause scalp irritation. That could be a sign to switch to, or alternate with, preservative free options.
Ingredients:
- Sodium Benzoate
- Potassium Sorbate
- Benzoic acid
- Dehydroacetic acid
Sources: Cationic Compounds in Cosmetics, Science-y Hair Blog
Detergents Which Remove: Silicone, Science-y Hair Blog
Essentials of Hair Care Often Neglected: Hair Cleansing, National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI)
Glycerin and Humidity, Science-y Hair Blog
Film Forming Humectants - What They Are And Why You Need Them, Science-y Hair Blog