Sunday, November 18, 2012

Hair Care

Recently I posted this on Facebook:

"I switched over from regular shampoo to Dr. Bronner's soap in order to be more environmentally responsible. Suddenly I've been getting compliments about how fabulous my hair looks. Who knew that being good to the Earth and being pretty could coincide?"

One of my friends asked:

"Do you just use plain apple cider vinegar for the rinse or do you mix it with something? I hear that stuff can do a lot of great things!"


Response:

My sister said: "I use 1/2 oz to 1 oz apple cider vinegar to 7 oz of water in a 8 oz squirt bottle."

I said: "I use a bottle cap's worth, straight, then rinse it through my hair. I thought I would be able to smell it, but no! I only do it once a week, but thicker hair might want it more often. Absolutely the best de-tangler ever."
  
Several months into using Dr. Bronner's soap, I have a few more recommendations. First, there are four scents: regular, almond, lavender, and peppermint. The scents are actually the essential oils, and with peppermint and lavender you get some natural antiseptic properties. The peppermint smell is very strong and particularly invigorating for your morning shower. On the other hand, if you use Dr. Bronner's as a body wash too, you should be careful with using it around your private parts... it can be very, err, bracing. 

Second, I have found that even using the apple cider vinegar, I can get a lot of buildup, so I have started alternating between conventional shampoo and the Dr. Bronner/apple cider vinegar combo. This is definitely not the best solution, but I guess it is a starting point.
  
Third, you can buy Dr. Bronner's at Trader Joe's or you can go online (http://www.drbronner.com/) and check out their other products (e.g., bar soap, lotions, etc). 

Okay, but what's wrong with regular shampoo?

Good question. There is nothing obviously wrong with shampoo, until you look a little deeper. Conventional shampoos are designed to have a very long shelf life, in fact, they are chock-a-block full of synthetic preservatives. They are bad for the environment because they take a long time to break down. If you're a backpacker, you're probably already familiar with Dr. Bronner's or something similar because it is good form to use biodegradable soap (and only a very little bit at least 20 meters from the nearest water source).

There is also growing evidence that these synthetic preservatives, particularly parabens, are bad for us. There is preliminary evidence that these chemicals mimic estrogen and could lead to breast cancer or the surge in early puberty among young girls (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paraben). While there is nothing conclusive yet, my philosophy is 'Let's not take the chance when there is such a great alternative readily available.'

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