Garnier Fructis - That stuff in the bright green bottle.

Typically, no. Drying ingredients such as TEA-lauryl sulfate and sodium lauryl sulfate usually pop up in shampoos. However, sulfur, ammonium xylenosulfonate and denatured alcohols (SD alcohol 40, benzyl/ethyl/isopropyl) occasionally appear in conditioners, so you need to always check the ingredient list.

I like using this stuff, Ive been using the conditoner and the deep conditoner for awhile and i havent seen or felt any damage to my hair.

I am currently reading Paula Begoun's book about Hair Care products, 2nd Edition! I have read it before, but need to go over some of the ingredient & product lists from time to time. Her books are so empowering!

I use Pantene Smooth N' Sleek conditioner on a regular basis and have no problem with it. (there is not a review of it in her book...)

Lyris - i would also love to see your list! I just finished reading Paula Begouns book "Don't Go to the Cosmetics Counter Without Me" and I feel like I need MORE!!!! I learned a lot from her book, but I would love to see some of the studys she refers to in her writing and feel that she could have elaborated more on some of the chemicals and the potency of some of their combinations. I will bmail you my address too....Thanks for the info on Fructis too...I read the label at the store and was not impressed with the ingredients...So much like all of the others. I like to compare labels of new stuff with labels of something I have tried and it left a bad result...if the labels are too close in identity, I don't buy.

Jacqui

Ronda is right: the pH of this product shouldn't cause a problem. Seven is slightly more alkaline than hair, which has a natural pH between 5-6, making it slightly acidic. It's the really high pH products you need to watch out for: namely hair dyes that hover in the 10-11 range. Unfortunately, for permanent dyes to penetrate the cuticle it must open first, which explains the high pH requirement.

While 7 is slightly higher than hair's normal pH, you aren't going to leave Fructis on your hair day and night since it's a rinse-out product. Hair has a tendency to return to its natural pH, so it would do this after using a neutral pH product.

I use the shampoo (fortifying line) when I need to clarify and the rest of the time i LOVE pantene...
Or Avalon shampoo!!
Their conditioner (fructis) is Ok but in my opinion it is a lil' bit TOO light for my colored hair!!

Lili Beach, I think 7 is neutral. I have some Phyto that says it is 7, right on the package. Thanks for testing it though. I need to get my hands on some pH strips.

WARNING!!
WARNING!!
WARNING!!

I tested the ph on the sample I received in the mail.

It was a 7!!!!!

In other words, it will rip color right out of your hair, and eventually fray your cuticle, leaving you with split ends.

This stuff is bad!!!

i used a free sample i had gotten- the shampoo and conidtioner had a nice smell and left my hair feeling fresh. Im thinking of buying it when i finish my other shampoo.

Well, first and foremost I have an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. Meaning I am a huge dork. About two years ago I decided I was tired of wading through the hair product world with nothing to go on but the slick marketing language emblazoned on each bottle. I began reading a LOT: Paula Begoun's books, cosmetic dictionaries, reputable web sites (The Rose Sheet, the FDA). I asked my father, a chemist, lots of questions. In the end, I found my hair improving as I learned to go by the ingredient list and not the front of the label.

I have a rather extensive ingredient glossary on my hardrive with hundreds of compouds to which I refer, culled from a variety of resources. (If you want it I can email it to you...it's rather long!) At first I brought the whole printout with me to the store, but after awhile I got to know the most prolific ingredients so that wasn't necessary. Behentrimonium chloride is one of those chemicals that shows up in many, many conditioners as a detangling agent, so I now recognize it on sight.

An emulsifier thickens the product and gives it a specific consistency. Many people think that the thicker the conditioner, the richer and more moisturizing it must be. It's simply not true: It's thick because it contains emulsifiers. However some thickeners such as cetyl/stearyl/cetearyl alcohol and ceteath-20 are also emollients, which help moisturize hair.

I strongly believe the best defense consumers like you and I have against marketing lingo is knowledge. Once your awareness is raised, it cannot be lowered. I will never again judge a product by its manufacturer's flowery claims--I look at the ingredients and see for myself.

Another long-winded response today! Well in any event I hope that helps Grover. Have a lovely Tuesday!