Hair Health - Shampoos and Conditioners

Shampoos and Conditioners
The main purpose of a shampoo is to cleanse hair. Most shampoos perform this task satisfactorily.

What does a shampoo do?
We use a shampoo is to cleanse hair. In the process it removes environmental dust deposited on the hair shaft, sebum (oil secreted by the oil glands of the scalp), dead skin, sweat and other hair care products e.g. oil / gel / lotions etc. We all know that the hair that has been shampooed is dull, coarse, has static electricity and is difficult to style. Clearly we want a shampoo to perform more functions out of a shampoo than just that of cleansing the scalp.

What does a shampoo constitute?
Shampoos like all other body cleansers, have their skeleton made by detergents. These are also known as surfactants. Surfactants can be lipophilic which adhere to sebum or hydrophilic component which allows the water to wash off sebum which is being acted upon by lipophilic component of surfactants.

Shampoos are made up of the following:
Detergents: These can be anionic, cationic, nonionic and natural surfactants.

Foaming agents: these have no particular scientific function to perform. However, these are vital components as they introduce air bubbles into formulation and improves user acceptance.

Thickening agents: These also add to consumer acceptability by making it more viscous.

Conditioners: These are added to make the hair more manageable, make it glossy and act as an anti static agent.

Sequestering agents: These are used to chelate magnesium and calcium ions and thus prevent soap scum which forms when the water is hard making the hair unmanageable.

pH adjusters: Acids are added to change the basic pH to neutral and thereby prevent swelling up of the hair shaft.

Opacifiers: These make the formulations opaque. As we know most shampoos are opaque.

Fragrance: Not only does this component of a shampoo make a product distinct from others but also masks the unpleasant odors which are common in some of the chemicals used in manufacturing the formulations.

Specialty additives: There is no dearth of these products and these give marketing edge to the product. They may or may not have a scientific basis and are used extensively as advertising tools. They may include vitamins, botanicals, proteins etc.

Most shampoos now perform a 2 in 1 task of both shampooing and conditioning. There are critics of this function as they claim that a formulation can not perform two diametrically opposite functions of cleansing and conditioning. However silicones are used for this purpose as they have a high substantively and do not get removed by cleansing. A silicone performs a variety of task namely coating the hair shaft and reducing static electricity, minimizing combing friction and makes it more manageable.

What are conditioners?
Hair conditioners would not have been born had the shampoo not invented. Most shampoos are effective in removing the dust and cleanse the hair but make them dull and are coarse to feel. A conditioner in many ways reverses what the shampoo has done, i.e. it makes them more manageable, adds gloss and makes it soft.

Additionally a conditioner is also helpful to hair which has been subjected to modern maneuvers like blow drying, permanent waving, Bleaching, dying, styling, combing, shampooing, high lightening etc.

Healthy and undamaged hair has an intact cuticle and that is why hair is shiny, soft and does not get entangled easily. All above mentioned procedures damage hairs by damaging cuticle. This makes hairs dull, brittle, and coarse and difficult to disentangle. Hair conditioner reverses all these. Split hairs occur due to missing cortex. Conditioners ‘seal’ those split albeit temporarily.

There are three different types of conditioners available in the market.

Cationic detergent formulations: a prime example is Quaternary ammonium compounds which smoothens the cuticle and decrease the static electricity. They are good for hairs that are treated with chemicals.

Film formers include polymers which fill hair shaft defects, reduce static electricity and add shine. They are used for dry hairs.

Protein containing conditioners are available as hydrolyzed proteins which penetrates the shaft. They temporarily mend split ends.

Some interesting facts about hairs:
Cleaner hairs are less shiny than dirty hairs. However, consumers
Prefer the shiny hairs. There are many factors that affect the luster of hair.

Hair porosity: This is the ability of hair to absorb moisture. Very porous hairs exhibits split hairs. Various modern maneuvers damage cuticle & allows chemicals and moisture to penetrate the hair shaft. This kind of hairs is more vulnerable to hair colors, permanent procedures and straightening processes.

Cuticle texture: Smooth hairs are better reflector of light than rough hair. Therefore, smoother hairs have more adherent scales
to the hair shaft & more shiny.

Dirt in the hair: this is especially relevant in India with its atmosphere replete with dirt & dust. Large numbers of people drive two wheelers and expose their hairs to dust. When cuticle scales are damaged dirt can easily get between the cuticles. Thus the hair’s ability to reflect light reduces & impairs the shine. The dame phenomenon of dirt being trapped between the cuticles can happen to hard water scum. Cleansing shampoo or household remedies such vinegar or lemon juice impart shine to the hair by getting rid of such deposits.