Sodium Lauryl Sulfate

Hi,I heard that sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate is bad for ur hair.Is that true?every shampoo that I read the ingredients from had it listed.Thanks.

There has been an e-mail campaign against sodium lauryl sulfate for a few years. It is a common detergent and there is no scientific evidence that it will harm you. Test have shown that it does produce eye and/or skin irritation in some human test subjects similar to those produced by other detergents, and, not surprisingly, the severity of the irritation appears to increase directly with concentration and time of exposure. If your shampoo contains the ingredient and you are experiencing irritation, try switching to an organic shampoo like Ginesis (it doesn`t contain SLS). You can find them on the web at http://www.safe2use.com/ginesis/index.htm If you aren`t experiencing any problems with your present shampoo, don`t worry about it. There are dozens of anti-SLS web sites but a good debunking of the myth is at http://www.snopes2.com/toxins/shampoo.htm

Hi Rachel,

There was a huge scare that sodium lauryl sulfate causes cancer, and that rumor has been thoroughly debunked.

However, although it causes no "harm," many people find that it can be a bit drying to the hair. Therefore, I choose other ingredients, such as sodium laurETH sulfate (you have to be careful because they sound so much alike!).

A shampoo that I absolutely love is L`Oreal Color vive shampoo, the "regular" kind. It says for color-treated or highlighted hair. However, unless someone has badly damaged hair, it`s really good for nearly anyone. My children use it and I use it. I wear extensions in my hair, which means the bulk of my hair needs to be treated gently yet my natural roots can sometimes get a bit oily. This shampoo takes care of both! Also, I do occasionally highlight my natural hair, and this shampoo will not build up at all on the hair.

There are also many other kinds of shampoos, both drugstore and salon which are good, basic shampoos which neither add nor take away moisture from the hair and won`t build up.

Jennifer