Products In-Depth: Salon Shampoo vs. Store Shampoo

I'm going to warn you, this is my longest blog post so far! So, bare with me.. we're going to get down to ingredients and 'science-y' talk. It took a long time for me to get this all together, so I hope you find it educational and helpful! 

Let me explain what I mean by 'salon products' and 'store products'. Salon products are hair products that you can only purchase from a licensed cosmetologist. Store products are hair products that you can buy at any drug store, grocery store, or big box store. What you put on your hair is very important. If you spend money on a haircut, color, perms, or highlights, you need to protect your investment! Hair and skin has a pH of 4.5-5.5, so any hair product that is used often or daily should be around that range. If the pH of a product is way above that, you can get a dry, damaged result. If the pH of a product is way below that, the hair gets stiff and can break more easily.  

Let's talk about shampoo. Shampoo needs three basic ingredients: a surfactant (clings to the hair to dirt and oils) a humectant (water grabs it, and it runs down the drain taking dirt and oils with it) and an emulsifier (blends the surfactant and humectant together, also keeps shampoo from separating in the bottle).

Now that we understand the basic make up of shampoo, let's get down to comparing ingredients. I've chosen to compare ColorProof Super Plump Volumizing Shampoo for my 'salon product' and Pantene Pro-V Nature Fusion Moisture Balance Shampoo for my 'store product'. I picked these two products because they both advertise to be natural.

ColorProof Super Plump Volumizing Shampoo claims on the back of the bottle..."never before possible volume. Incredibly rich billowy lather. This 100% vegan revolutionary volumizing shampoo gently cleanses hair while infusing weightless body, fullness and unstoppable color protection with the use of harsh sulfates, salts, or gluten. The ultimate overachiever." Sounds great, right!? Let's look into ingredients...

• Water: good ole' H2O
• Sodium Lauroyl Methyl Isethinate: according to Innospec, this is an extremely mild surfactant providing a luxurious foam; provides gentle yet thorough cleansing, has a pH of 5.5-6.5
• Ammonium Cocoyl Isethionate: based on purified fatty acids from coconut oil
• Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine: foam booster; anti-static agent
• Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate: conditioning agent and emulsifier.
• Decyl Glucoside: mild surfactant often used in baby shampoo and for sensitive skin; plant derived
• Methyl Gluceth-20: moisture retentive qualities; extremely gentle
• Glycereth-26: used as an emollient (softens) and thickening agent  
• Cocamidoprpylamine Oxide: conditioning cleansing agent
• Divinyldimethicone/ Dimethicone Copolymer: foam booster and stabilizers; excellent conditioning and anti-static properties
• Silicone Quaternium-16: conditioning agent
• Butyloctanol: humectant
• Undeceth-5: emulsifying agent
• Amodimethicone: silicone based conditioning agent
• Sunflower Seed Extract: antioxidant, *did you know* sunflowers are used to extract toxins from the environment?
• Hydrolyzed Soy Protein: Hydrolyzed proteins are proteins that have been broken down into smaller chains of amino acids, this way the protein goes deeper into your hair as opposed to sitting on top of your hair and weighing it down
• Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil: rose geranium oil has a balancing effect on the nervous system and relieves depression and anxiety
• Salvia Officinalis Leaf Extract: conditioning agent
• Lentinus Edodes Extract: antimicrobial and antibacterial properties
• Pogotemon Cablin Leaf Extract: functions as a perfume
• Panthenol: form of vitamin B5; conditioning and anti-static
• Citric Acid: preservative
• Methylisothiazolinone: preservative

My thoughts: As I think of all these ingredients working together, it sounds like it cleanses gently and provides light condition. All the surfactants have a foam agent with them, so that provides the 'rich billowy lather'. The Hydrolyzed Soy Protein really peaks my interest. As someone with fine hair, and have used volumizing shampoos most my life, I find they can be drying to the hair. But, having a moisturizing protein that's molecule is small enough to go inside my hair and repair it, instead of sitting on top, is amazing to me! I also like the use of flower oils and extracts. I like the idea that shampooing my hair in the shower can detox and relieve stress.

Pantene Pro-V Nature Fusion Moisture Balance Shampoo claims on the back of the bottle... "Pantene science combines Pro-V technology with naturally derived ingredients, such as Cassia. Moisture Balance shampoo and conditioner system- containing Cassia and a blend of aloe vera, calendula and ginger- moisturizes your hair for touchable softeness." Sounds nice enough, let's look deeper!

• Water: yep, H2O
• Sodium Laureth Sulfate: used as a surfactant; may be contaminated with potentially toxic manufacturing impurities
• Sodium Chloride: folks, that's table salt...
• Cocamidopropyl Betaine: synthetic surfactant; it has been associated with irritation and allergic contact dermatitis; anti-static agent; foam booster
• Sodium Xylenesulfonate: surfactant
• Cocamide Mea: surfactant; foam booster; some contamination concerns
• Cassia Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride: anti-frizz agent
• Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice Powder: powder obtained from the dried leaves of an aloe plant
• Calendula Officinali Flower Extract: fragrance
• Zingiber Officinale Root Extract: fragrance
• Panthenol: form of vitamin B5; conditioning and anti-static
• Panthenyl Ethyl Ether: conditioning agent, anti-static
• Citric Acid: preservative
• Dimethiconol: silicone based, anti-foaming agent
• Sodium Benzoate: preservative; linked to organ system toxicity
• Disodium Edta: chelating agent, used to sequester and decrease the reactivity of metal ions that may be present in a product
• Methylisothiazolinone: preservative.
• Sodium Citrate: pH adjuster
• Yellow 5 and Orange 4: adds color to the shampoo

My thoughts: Yikes... there are a handful of ingredients in this product that make me nervous.. Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, and Sodium Benzoate, are linked to ill effects on the body. Another ingredient I'm wary of is Diodium Edta. Why do they need something to decrease the reactivity of metal ions that may be in the product. It's also interesting how they claim 'natural infusion' but the only thing their plant extracts are good for is fragrance. Feel free to look these ingredients up yourself. It's kind of scary!

References:

• ronaschemical.com
• cosmeticinfo.org
• goodguide.com
• ewg.org
• specialchem4cosmetics.com