Why do I want silicone free shampoo & conditioner?

[justtryingtodomybest]

I've seen these mentioned on here before and a couple of the big brands seem to be bringing them out.

There's obviously a reason but I don't know why silicone is bad for my hair. Can anyone explain the science bit?

Because it builds up on you hair, leaving it lank and dull. Pantenne is the worst for that.

Silicone is not water soluble, so you need harsh detergents to get rid of it or it will gradually build up in your hair.

Silicone free conditioner allows you to use no shampoo/shampoo much less often as it will not leave a residue on your hair.

That said, my hair looks like shit without it, so I'm sticking to the nasty chemicals.

I've had this conversation with a pharmacy sales person when trying to buy a hair serum. She kept saying the one I always use has silicon in it so I shouldn't buy it, because it damages hair (she says).

I have a long & shiny mane of thick hair with not a single split end in sight. I wash it twice a week and lay it on in copious amounts after every shower.

Ime, it doesn't stick to your hair and stay there forever, but washes away.

I think it's more of a problem if you use heat stylers like straighteners a lot. They cook the silicone into the hair surface, making it hard or impossible to remove and eventually leaving a flat, dull appearance. If you colour too it can further exacerbate this.

Could you tell us the name of products that don't contain silicone - I'd like to experiment!!

Bump

Tresemme have a new Naturals range out which doesn't contain any silicone and I think L'Oreal have just brought a range out too (although I can't remember the name of it)

I have just looked, we have
Herbal Essences
John Frieda brunette
Wella lifetex
None of which have silicon in them

Bruffin they might do but it won't actually be called silicone on the ingredients list - but it will end in 'cone'.

(Disclaimer - I don't really know what I'm talking about, I've just done some research on Google!)

It will either end in cone (dimethicone) or siloxane.

Aussie Frizz Miracle and Body Shop RainForest Shine are also silicone free.

Thanks for the info. I'll investigate when my current stocks run low!

Also, Holland and Barrett sell a range called Dr Organic, which seem good. There are several different varieties (Rose, Aloe Vera etc) also each variety has face and body products too, our branch seems to be devoting more and more space to the range every time I go in and the sales assistant said they sell loads of it.

I have been using the tresseme range for a while now and can honestly say I haven't noticed one jot of difference to my air. I think it's marketing hype!

No nothing like that in them, I wouldn't expect it in herbal essences anyway as it is a clarifying shampoo.

I have recently switched to the tresseme naturals after about 13 years using Pantenne. I have been stunned by the change. My hair feels so much softer now. And having put up with loads of split ends for years (which seemed to reappear within days of a hair cut and end up really bad), believing that pantenne was making them better, I now have hardly any. Changing shampoo and conditioner was definitly the best thing for my hair.

Good for mine too, I still have a fluffy halo of new hair which can make it look frizzy, but that is tameable; on the whole it's in the best condition ever and lots of shine and bounce (on the first couple of days). I would just like to be able to stretch out washes to a few more days, I get lanky by day 3.

I switched a couple of years ago, it wasn't an overnight transformation, just gradually got better and better condition and I have to switch brands every few months to keep things fresh but I can't see me going back, it was straw like and greasy all at the same time with silicone products. I tried the no shampoo method though and that was awful.

Silicone isn't bad for hair, it's why conditioners work, it coats the hair and makes it shiny, it washes away with shampoo, try using a silicone free shampoo and a conditioner which does contain it for the best no build up results. 'silicone free' is just the latest buzz word to sell you more shampoo.

Also, I think the L'Oreal range is being mainly marketed as free of SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulphates?) which are not the same as silicones. SLS is a detergent. I don't know if the range is free of silicones as well though.

You don't, they might make your scalp lovely and clear but they make your hair turn like straw!

They tend to go together, SLS is a strong detergent, a lot of people won't use products with it in. The theory is that if you use products/conditioners with silicones in regularly you will need the strong SLS based shampoos to wash them out. If you go silicone free you can go SLS free.

I am not hardline about it, but I don't use SLS based products regularly any more because they give me eczema on my hands, so as well as better condition hair my hands are much happier.

I have been using the Holland and Barrat ones in Honey and manuka for a few months now at first my hair was awful and lank using this. I continued though also having my hair trimmed four weekly for a while as it was VERY dry/splitends now its all shiney again with no dryness ect. So if you can put up with the in between manky lanky hair stage its worth the switch over well it was for me :)