3 INGREDIENTS TO AVOID IN HAIR CARE PRODUCTS
You already watch what you eat every day, trying to avoid things like sugars, fats, and bad cholesterol. Similarly, you use hair care and styling products every day, but do you know what’s actually in them?
While Europe and Canada have banned hundreds of ingredients because they aren’t safe for use by people, the United States lags woefully behind, and permits ingredients that you may want to avoid. This makes it incredibly important for American consumers to be vigilant and actually understand not only what they put inside their bodies, but also, what they put on their bodies.
After consulting with cosmetic chemists, dermatologists, and hair stylists, we came up with a list of ingredients that you may want to avoid:
SODIUM LAURYL SULFATE AND SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE
Known as “sulfates”, these two culprits are often found in mass produced consumer products like toothpaste, body wash, and shampoo. These ingredients are used to provide an artificial boost of foam, so it appears that the product is really working. After all, more foam means more efficacy, right?
While the FDA hasn’t officially deemed sulfates as harmful, they can dry the scalp and strip your hair of its natural moisture. In addition, higher concentrations of sulfates have been found to cause irritation, especially in those with sensitive skin or skin conditions.
Notably, Routine Shampoo and Conditioner are sulfate-free. As a result, you might find that our shampoo doesn’t foam as much as more traditional shampoos, but it is because we choose not to use sulfates in our products.
MINERAL OILS
Mineral oils are often used in hair care products because they can act as a detangler or provide extra hydration and moisture to your hair, particularly throughout the day. However, mineral oils and petroleum jelly can contain high levels of hydrocarbons, which are linked to skin irritation and even skin cancer.
While detangling and hydrating ingredients are needed in hair care products, there are so many better alternatives to mineral oil such that Routine Shampoo and Conditioner are mineral oil-free.
PARABENS AND PHTHALATES
These two ingredients have been used by large consumer product manufacturers for years. While both ingredients serve a different purpose – parabens are preservatives and phthalates reduce stiffness in products like hair sprays – both ingredients can interfere with our endocrine systems and therefore, the health of our hair.
Routine Shampoo and Conditioner are both paraben-free and phthalate-free.
ROUTINE INGREDIENTS
If you’re ever curious about the exact ingredients in Routine Shampoo and Conditioner, you can click the SPECIFICATIONS tab here and get a full list of every ingredient we use. Rather than use ingredients like sulfates or parabens, we tend to stick to ingredients that are much easier to understand, like Apple Fruit Extract, Jojoba Oil, and Aloe Vera.
