• About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Latest
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
The Frisky
  • Home
  • News
  • Health
  • Celebs
  • Movies
  • Love
  • Relationships
  • Style
  • Entertainment
  • Parenting
  • Royals
  • Travel
Style

True Story: I Stopped Washing My Hair (And So Should You!)

by Billy Antonio August 31, 2018
by Billy Antonio August 31, 2018
2.3K

The first time I met my friend Jeff, I told him his hair was amazing. It was a thick, effortlessly tousled blond mane that anyone would envy. “That’s because I stopped washing it two years ago,” he told me.

That got me thinking, and researching. So in January, I did an experiment and stopped washing my hair. My experience has been like everyone else’s who’s stopped using shampoo and conditioner: My hair felt greasy for about two weeks, and then it stopped feeling greasy. In those two weeks it became thicker and more natural looking, and easier to style on its own, and after six weeks it started looking spectacular. I do rinse my hair with water every other day, and on Fridays I scrub my roots with baking soda. So yes, I get the sweat and grime out. My hair stopped falling out, and my skin stopped breaking out. It’s actually been pretty fabulous.

I’ve become fervent about the matter because the more I look into the history of shampoo, the happier I am that I stopped. So to wit, other than the reward of having amazing-looking hair, here are the reasons I stopped washing it:

1. Humans have been around for 200,000 years. Shampoo was invented in 1877, hair dye was introduced in 1907, and hairspray was was introduced in the 1950s. We got along well enough for 199,923 years without needing shampoo — or, in other words, shampoo is totally unnecessary.

2. Detergent shampoos (everything you’d buy at a normal store) work by stripping everything out of your hair with chemicals, then using more chemicals to artificially moisturize your hair. Those chemicals are often hazardous both to your health and the environment — check out what’s in your hair products here.

3. The oil your body naturally produces is sufficient to keep your hair moist and healthy. That oily feeling you get for two or three days after you stop washing it is your scalp overcompensating for what it’s lost – that’s why it doesn’t last long! Once you normalize your hair, the oily feeling goes away.

4. So, then: hair products are a money grab. You shampoo your hair, then if you stop, it feels oily, and you have to shampoo it again. Your hair gets sort of flat and blah, so you have to put products in it. Once you put products in it, you have to shampoo it again. It’s a vicious cycle!

5. And, it’s a vicious cycle that makes a lot of money for Proctor and Gamble, Unilever, Johnson & Johnson, and Nestle. Which, by the way, control the majority of the hair products you can find at the grocery or drug store, not to mention everything else you put on or in your body, and everything you clean your laundry and house with. It’s worth noting that some of the ingredients in these products overlap.

6. Those are the same companies that set an unrealistic standard of beauty. Women should be thin, soft, conventionally pretty, flawless, always smiling; men should be muscular, tall, tan, athletic. That standard of beauty also includes having hair that’s “silky,” “shiny,” and “smooth.” Firstly, that’s a made-up standard — is that necessarily what’s most beautiful? And secondly, it’s a standard that automatically excludes women with naturally curly hair, especially black women. That’s why that standard makes me uncomfortable — it’s a doubly sexist, and racist to boot.

If you still feel that you have to shampoo your hair, there are options. The first, as I’m sure you’ve heard a million times before, is not to wash it every day. That way, you’re at least giving your scalp a break. The second — and more important, to me — is to use an oil-based shampoo rather than a detergent-based shampoo (my favorite is Dr. Bronner’s). You can find them at health food stores, and they won’t strip your hair.

In the last 138 years, we’ve been told over and over that we need to use shampoo — but why? Take 14 days out of your life to give it a shot — you might be pleasantly surprised.

Original posted by Rebecca Vipond Brink

[Photo via Shutterstock]
beautycosmeticsfeaturedhairshampootrue story
Billy Antonio

previous post
Sorry, But Tom Cruise Is Not Leaving Scientology — And He Probably Never Will
next post
Princeton Mom Warns Women Have A “Shelf Life”

Related Posts

How to Increase Your Hair Strength

March 27, 2024

6 Best Natural Breast Enhancement Creams – 2024...

January 22, 2024

The Rhythmic Artistry of Tribal Braids: A Harmony...

November 6, 2023

Categories

  • Accessories
  • Animals
  • Anime
  • Art
  • Astrology
  • Beard Care
  • Beauty
  • Betting
  • Biography
  • Blog
  • Business
  • Buying Guides
  • Cannabis
  • Cars
  • Casino
  • CBD
  • Celebs
  • Children
  • Citizenship
  • Clippers
  • Clothes
  • Computer
  • Couple Time
  • COVID-19
  • Crime
  • Crypto
  • Culture
  • Design
  • DIY
  • Economics
  • Education
  • Entertainment
  • Environment
  • Family
  • Fashion
  • Featured
  • Food
  • Food & Drink
  • Furniture
  • Galleries
  • Gambling
  • Games
  • Gardening
  • Gifts
  • Girl
  • Gossip
  • Guide
  • Guys
  • Hair
  • Hair Care Tips
  • Hair Dryers
  • Hair loss
  • Hairstyles
  • Health
  • Highlights
  • History
  • Hobby
  • Home
  • Horoscopes
  • Hot Rollers
  • How to …
  • Industry
  • Internet
  • Interview
  • Law
  • Legal Advice
  • Life
  • Lifestyle
  • Love & Sex
  • Love Your Self
  • Makeup
  • Marketing
  • Medicine
  • Mind & Body
  • Money
  • Motorcycle
  • Movies
  • Moving
  • Music
  • Nails
  • Net Worth
  • News
  • Parenting
  • People
  • Pets
  • Photography
  • Products for Hair
  • Real Estate
  • Recipes
  • Relationships
  • Religion
  • Royals
  • SEO
  • Shopping
  • Skincare
  • Sports
  • Studying
  • Style
  • Super Stars
  • Tech
  • Technology
  • The Body
  • Tips
  • Tips & Tricks
  • Tools
  • Toys
  • Travel
  • Type
  • Uncategorized
  • Vape
  • Vehicle
  • Video
  • VR
  • Wedding
Footer Logo
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Latest
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy

© 2024 - All Right Reserved.

TheFrisky.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon, the Amazon logo, AmazonSupply, and the AmazonSupply logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.

We at TheFrisky participate in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may earn commissions on products or services that we recommend or promote through our website. When you click on a link to purchase a product or service that we have recommended or promoted, we may earn a commission from the sale. This commission helps us maintain and improve our website and provide you with valuable information and resources.

The Frisky
  • Home
  • News
  • Health
  • Celebs
  • Movies
  • Love
  • Relationships
  • Style
  • Entertainment
  • Parenting
  • Royals
  • Travel
The Frisky
  • Home
  • News
  • Health
  • Celebs
  • Movies
  • Love
  • Relationships
  • Style
  • Entertainment
  • Parenting
  • Royals
  • Travel
© 2024 - All Right Reserved.

TheFrisky.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Amazon, the Amazon logo, AmazonSupply, and the AmazonSupply logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.

We at TheFrisky participate in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may earn commissions on products or services that we recommend or promote through our website. When you click on a link to purchase a product or service that we have recommended or promoted, we may earn a commission from the sale. This commission helps us maintain and improve our website and provide you with valuable information and resources.
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.OkNoPrivacy policy

Terms and Conditions - Privacy Policy