Monday, March 15, 2010

Day 4

I have not washed my hair with shampoo in 4 days now. I know some of you may be thinking, "being frugal is all well and good, but you're taking this too far". Don't get me wrong, I love shampoo. I like how it feels and how it smells and I get the cheap stuff so it's not that much of an impact on our budget. So, here is why I am giving this a try.

1. Shampoo is full of chemicals.

Our family tries to avoid as many chemicals as we can. We don't eat anything we can't pronounce so why are we putting it on our bodies? Our skin absorbs about 60% of what we put on it. Sodium lauryl sulfate is used to degrease engines, do I want that soaking into my skin? How about Phthalates  or maybe Triclosan? It's far too overwhelming for me to stand in the shampoo aisle and try to read all the labels and find one that is "safer" so I am going to try just going without.

2. Shampoo is a detergent.

People used to just use soap, but as water became more alkaline it was discovered that detergent worked better. It does clean your hair, but it also strips it of it's natural oils and the natural oils protect the hair. All of the detergents are effecting the environment in negative ways as well. Phosphates, for example, cause the algae and weeds to grow very well and this uses up oxygen and kills fish. Shampoo, as we know it, has only been around since the '30s and people had "clean" hair before that.

3. Shampoo is an unnecessary expense.

The shampoo itself isn't so bad, but after it strips your hair of oils you need conditioner to protect the hair and make it shine. Now that it is coated in silicone you need products like gels and sprays to get it to hold a style. Then to get that all off you need to shampoo it again the next day. It's such a waste of time and expense and when you live in New Mexico you can't even recycle all the plastic bottles.

My husband and children are trying this with me. Eric willingly and the kids unknowingly. So far you can't see any difference with the girls or Eric. I don't think you can see a difference in mine, but I can feel it. It's a little greasy at the roots and feels thicker. It's a lot less frizzy though. The last 3 days I have just washed with water. Today I will use a little baking soda and do a vinegar rinse.

If this works out our next step is finding an all natural moisturizer. The generic stuff I got at Walmart makes my hands sting. Not what I was looking for in a lotion. I've heard good things about coconut or almond oil or just plain aloe vera. It's taking us all some time to adjust to the new climate.

3 comments:

Kristenamber said...

I loved this post! I am also very conscious of what we are putting on our bodies. I use various all natural soaps and washes for the kids and myself, but I can never find something that will really make my hair nice enough to stick with it. I am interested to hear how the vinegar rinse works out:)

Nina said...

Can you guys move to MN next? Together we can figure out making homemade soap, shampoo, all sorts of stuff! LOL Have you looking into castile soap? I've heard that it doesn't dry skin/hair out like regular soap since it's olive oil based and has a high glycerin content.

Kari B. said...

i did no-poo for several months, but my hair was just too straight to keep it up, but my friend with really curly hair has kept it up for years! i have to use something- baking soda and water clean roots really well though (and helps with itchy scalp), and rinsing with vinegar is my very, very favorite conditioner. :) good luck!