Natural Shampoo Alternatives

[ktani]

Cocoa sounds yummy smellwise and I think I read somewhere that cocoa powder has low anti-fungal properties. (Not sure here, so please double check that.) The fat in there will make the egg less cleansing, too. Which may be great for dry length. Your hair looks dark enough to not be in danger to get stained from it. Seems like it could work. Don´t forget to report if you decide to try it
You could also use sifted cassia to make it less runny or any food quality kitchen thickener which works with cold liquids (gelatin powder for example). I tried this without ill effects as long as I rinsed extra well.

The problems sensitive people have with conditioners may come from perfume, that´s true, but it can also be caused from the kind of surfactants used in them. Most surfactants used in conditioners are on the more skin-unfriendly side, that´s why conditioner-bottles in the 80s and early 90s recommended something like "use on length only" and "do not put on scalp", you may remember that. Most conditioners are simply not developed to be put on the skin, especially not for a longer time frame like CO requires. The surfactants in there are not for cleaning properties, they are supposed to act as emulsifiers to keep the oily and watery parts of it from already separating in the bottle and help rinsing out the excess oils and other "care"-ingredients. Sure you can use that effect to clean hair, like discovered for CO and dry hair indeed reacts well to that, but that does not make it good or gentle for skin. Most scalps tolerate CO, but some more sensitive people also react with excessive shedding, itching and flaking. Even when not using conditioner on the scalp directly, some people suddenly develop more pimples than usual on their shoulders and back when using conditioner. Strange, huh? I myself would rather use some diluted sodium laureth sulfate on my skalp for a minute, than having on conditioner for thirty minutes. Just saying, because with all the people raving about CO, this downside of the routine gets not mentioned that often.

Excellent points all, IMO. Actually from what I have read, some of the otherwise sensitizing ingredients in conditioners, are used in the concentrations they are, because it is a product that is rinsed off the hair in a short period of time, like shampoo, not left on the scalp for extended periods of time or left on the hair. Many conditioners are better used without contact with the scalp as they can be "too rich" and may clog pores. With thinner conditioners, that is less of a problem.

There are recommended concentration restrictions for ingredients used in rinsed-off and leave-in products. There can be possible irritation consequenes, using a product differently from how it is intended to be used.

New recommendations and restrictions, Europe. See pages18 onward.
E.G.
"Benzoic acid .... and its sodium salt .....
Rinse-off products, except oral care products: 2.5% ....
Leave-on products: 0.5% ...."
http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file39431.pdf

[Nizhoni]

Thank you all so much for your answers!

If I decide to try the cocoa I will post results.

To be sure that no lightening can take place, microwave the honey first, for 30 seconds to under 1 minute, to destroy the enzyme in it that generates peroxide.

Is anything else but the lightening properties effected by heating the honey? Oh, and I don't own a microwave so how many degrees celsius is needed for the enzyme to be destoyed? Or is there any other way to tell, like when the honey starts bubbling?

[ktani]

Thank you all so much for your answers!

Is anything else but the lightening properties effected by heating the honey? Oh, and I don't own a microwave so how many degrees celsius is needed for the enzyme to be destoyed? Or is there any other way to tell, like when the honey starts bubbling?

Without a microwave, you need to heat the honey to a high degree for 40 minutes. Glucose-oxidase is the peroxide generating enzyme in honey.

"Of all the enzymes in honey .... glucose-oxidase .... the most volatile (most sensitive for heating) Heating for 40 minutes at 70°C (160°F) .... eliminate glucose-oxidase."
http://www.xs4all.nl/~jtemp/H2O2.html

Some people feel that microwaved honey is not as conditioning. Others do not feel that way.

[Finoriel]

Wait, I guess you missed this over the whole lot of information:
As long as you use ascorbic acid = vitamin C in the mixture, the peroxide reacts with the ascorbic acid first, not with your hair.
The pH-level of the egg-honey-acid-mixture is too acidic for the enzymes to become fully active.
Many honeys are produced with heating the honey-combs to maximise the production, which depending on the temperature, at least damages the peroxide releasing enzymes, if not kills them completely. Just buy one which does not explicit state "cold centrifuged".
Even if you would use a peroxide producing honey and use another acid source or leave out the acid completely, the time the mixture spends on your head (5-10 minutes) will not be long enough to lighten an earthworm ahem.

Quote Douglas Adams and imagine some big friendly letters "Don´t panic!"
No complicated honey-self-heating or micro-waving needed here.

[ktani]

Wait, I guess you missed this over the whole lot of information:
As long as you use ascorbic acid = vitamin C in the mixture, the peroxide reacts with the ascorbic acid first, not with your hair.
The pH-level of the egg-honey-acid-mixture is too acidic for the enzymes to become fully active.
Many honeys are produced with heating the honey-combs to maximise the production, which depending on the temperature, at least damages the peroxide releasing enzymes, if not kills them completely. Just buy one which does not explicit state "cold centrifuged".
Even if you would use a peroxide producing honey and use another acid source or leave out the acid completely, the time the mixture spends on your head (5-10 minutes) will not be long enough to lighten an earthworm ahem.

Quote Douglas Adams and imagine some big friendly letters "Don´t panic!"
No complicated honey-self-heating or micro-waving needed here.

That says it neatly. Many honeys on the market though have been shown in the Honey thread to lighten hair colour to some degree and the pasteurization used most often these days does not damage glucose-oxidase.

I missed parts of your text. Honey lightening does not necessarily have to take a long time per treatment, as reported with the new recommendations in the Honey thread, and the results are much better than reported with previous dilutions.

Some unmicrowaved SMT's with aloe gel, which contains Vitamin C, 3 x more than raw lemon juice, have been reported to lighten hair colour somewhat. It depends on how much Vitamin C to how much peroxide released and of course, the time the solution is on the hair.

Also, there are minerals and Vitamin C naturally in some honeys, that react with and deplete any peroxide produced.

For the purposes of a shampoo or a honey rinse, I do not think even the Vitamon C is needed. The mixture is not on the hair long enough to make a difference, in terms of lightening hair colour, IMO.

[ktani]

Actually, the peroxide in honey only laster for an hour or two, usually, if I recall ktani's posts in the honey thread correctly.

I wouldn't worry about it lightening though. Certain kinds of enzymes and other things counteract adn destroy the peroxide, and I doubt that it would survive for long mixed with egg. Plus, you aren't leaving the shampoo on for an hour. XD'

The peroxide level of a honey lightening recipe can last for a long time once at maximum, but it varies with the honey. Stored in the fridge, I do not recommend keeping one longer than a day or so.

[Girltron]

Boy. Thanks for mentioning that about heating honey on the stove, ktani. I wasn't sure how to do it, so when my microwave bit the big one I stopped using my usual henna mix for fear a stovetop heating wasn't good enough.

I'm awfully glad I made that choice.

[ktani]

Boy. Thanks for mentioning that about heating honey on the stove, ktani. I wasn't sure how to do it, so when my microwave bit the big one I stopped using my usual henna mix for fear a stovetop heating wasn't good enough.

I'm awfully glad I made that choice.

You are most welcome.

[RetroKitten]

In the past days I tried some recipes from the *Indian Herbs for Hair Care* article.

The first one was

Icydove's Wash Mix

2 tbsp. shikakai powder
2 tbsp. amla powder

Made it completely with straining etc. No pre - oiling. Was kind of time consuming, I think I am too lazy to do that everytime I wash my hair... Hair felt a bit dry, but very strong.

The second attempt was

Shell's Wash Mix

2 tablespoons of shikakai
3 tablespoons of amla

The recipe didn't say if it had to be applied to dry or wet hair, so I put the paste on my pre - oiled hair. The result after washing out was very dry and greasy hair at the same time.

In both cases my hair was hard to manage.
I am sure I need to experiment a lot more, what would you recommend to me?

[eaglefeather71]

In the past days I tried some recipes from the *Indian Herbs for Hair Care* article.

The first one was

Icydove's Wash Mix

2 tbsp. shikakai powder
2 tbsp. amla powder

Made it completely with straining etc. No pre - oiling. Was kind of time consuming, I think I am too lazy to do that everytime I wash my hair... Hair felt a bit dry, but very strong.

The second attempt was

Shell's Wash Mix

2 tablespoons of shikakai
3 tablespoons of amla

The recipe didn't say if it had to be applied to dry or wet hair, so I put the paste on my pre - oiled hair. The result after washing out was very dry and greasy hair at the same time.

In both cases my hair was hard to manage.
I am sure I need to experiment a lot more, what would you recommend to me?

Before I give any advise, I have a couple questions. In the first attempt, did you have pre-oiled hair?

In the second attempt, how long did you let it sit before rinsing out?

For both attempts, did you make a thick paste or a thin paste?

Check out my siggy link for some additional information and experiences (good and bad) with using different Indian Herbs.