Tuesday, January 13, 2009

My hair secret for baby fresh hair.

I kissed my daughter's sweet head. There's nothing like the smell of a baby. But wait--she's 7! And she does truly have that sweet baby smell. Let me explain.

I'm about to reveal a big secret. I don't shampoo my hair. I found out that shampoo does more damage than good. Not only are most the chemicals toxic, but my hair is so much better when I skip the shampoo. It has more body and shine and doesn't need anything sprayed on it.

I know, you are remembering the last time you skipped washing your hair and it was not pretty. Do you know why? B/c your scalp is used to replacing the oils you strip off of it. Don't strip them off and your scalp will adjust. If you jump into this, you may have to go through a yucky transition time. I started it gradually and almost accidentally. I had a season of sickness that I wasn't showering as much b/c of low energy. So, my hair washing was spaced out. Then I tried just rinsing with water sometimes instead of shampoo. Eventually I just ditched the shampoo. Now I use a cup of water with a "swig" of raw apple cider vinegar (maybe a Tbs.?) as a rinse. I use plain water on my hair before and after. Not everyone uses the ACV but I have scalp issues if I don't. (If I could get my general health under control that would probably disappear too.) I can tell if I go too long without washing it, even if I'm "only" using water. It's not greasy, but it doesn't lay right.

So, I decided if it's good enough for me, why not try it on my kids. I don't give them daily baths anyway. And after a couple weeks, I noticed the baby fresh smell! WOW! Could I sue Johnson and Johnson for all the lost years?? Guess not, but I'm sold on the free shampoo--water! Think of all the money you can save on shampoo for a whole family for a year. Cool, huh?

By the way, if you want to search out more details on how people use vinegar and baking soda as they back off shampoo, you'll want to search for "no poo". Lovely phrase, huh. I also noticed my hair dries a lot faster after a shower. Less need for hair drying is healthy for your hair too! The only thing I need to figure out now, is how to find time to wash my hair when I don't get up before my kids.

Let me know if you try it. In fact, if your brave, you can share before and after pictures!