Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Style and beauty

Looking for style advice? Chat all about it here. For the latest discounts on fashion and beauty, sign up for Mumsnet Moneysaver emails.

Original poster

Why is my hair still greasy? After all that I do to avoid grease?

30 replies

TwinklyGiraffe · 07/01/2018 14:21

I only feel good if my hair is clean and styled and after one day my hair feel greasy but why??

I don’t use conditioner anymore, except on the very odd occasion.

I throughly wash it, not just the top and sides as I mistakenly did in the past.

I use a really good clarifying shampoo once a week.

I bought a Dyson hairdryer to avoid over brushing and styling.

Yet still after a day my hair feels greasy, especially the underneath section. I don’t wash it everyday, I don’t have time but my second day hair feels a bit shiny and if I were to leave it a third day, it’d be an oilslick.

Does anyone have the answer to clean hair? Apart from washing it everyday!!

OP posts:
bigtissue · 07/01/2018 14:44

It could be

not rinsing totally thoroughly
grease build up in brushes and styling tools
fabric conditioner residue in towels or pillowcases
you may need to wash your hair more often anyway because of the amount of sebum produced by your scalp

CointreauVersial · 07/01/2018 14:46

Dry shampoo on day two.

evilharpy · 07/01/2018 14:48

I have the same problem and nothing I have tried has made a blind bit of difference. It's quite fine and dry shampoo turns it into a haystack (with Aussie being the worst I've tried after reading lots of rave reviews).

I wash it every other day and just have to wear it up on day 2.

LadyScatterbrain · 07/01/2018 14:55

This might sound mad but wash it less. Your hair actually cleans itself if left alone, but shampoos wash away our hairs natural oils that are supposed to clean it. I read an article where they challenged 10 women to only wash their hair with water for about 3 months. I think 9 women said their hair just seemed to get nicer and stayed clean after the initial greasiness.

KanielOutis · 07/01/2018 14:57

I do curly girl which cuts out shampoo completely and just wash with conditioner. Been doing it for about six months now and my hair has never felt better.

mintmagnummm · 07/01/2018 14:59

Mines exactly the same! Which is very weird as my hair is actually coloured and damaged but is always greasy on day 2!

Mrsjones17 · 07/01/2018 17:25

I have had the same problem for years and finally found a solution for me...these shampoo and conditioner attached in pictures. It's the professional loreal ones. Bit steep but u can buy them on eBay. I think I paid 18 quid for shampoo and it lasted 6 months! Tip from hairdresser was to fine shampoo that was silicone free and one that had salicylic acid in it to prevent build up. Wash hair twice each time and only half a pump of shampoo needed each time. Only half a pump of conditioner and only put conditioner on ends. Don't over wash hair every other day should be ok. I have very light blonde fine hair so feel the grease shows up easily and this has definitely worked for me. Can sometimes go three days without Washing hair and still looks fresh and clean. Hope this helps!

Why is my hair still greasy? After all that I do to avoid grease?
Mrsjones17 · 07/01/2018 17:30

Oh it seems picture didn't attach! L'Oréal volumetry shampoo and L'Oréal nutrifier conditioner x

passtheharibo · 07/01/2018 17:34

Some people just need to wash their hair every day. I'm one of them. I was once bedbound for around 5 months and was only given a hair wash once a week. My hair did not get used to being washed less. It looked greasy on day 2 and wet from day 3-7. The minute I could wash it again myself i did. The only time I've ever been able to leave it 3-4 days was while pregnant. That suggests to me that hormones are controlling the amount of grease pumped out.

trinity0097 · 07/01/2018 18:47

How often do you change your pillow? I find my hair gets greasier quicker in the later end of the week than when I have fresh bedding,

LordBuckethead · 07/01/2018 18:56

Mine is the same, I can only assume it's my skin type as my face is also shiny/oily if I don't use the right products, and I still get spots despite being in my 40s.
Like passtheharibo things improved a bit when I was pregnant so probably hormone related.

Misty9 · 07/01/2018 19:38

My hair seems to have become greasier as I get older and I had a problem with it being almost wet to touch underneath one side. Eww.

My hairdresser recommended I use the most natural shampoo possible and I'm trialling the body shop ginger shampoo on their advice. Seems to help and no more icky grease. But I can't leave it longer than 2 days without washing as it's chin length and can't be worn up to hide the worst! Currently I use tresemme conditioner for coloured hair, but have got a body shop conditioner for greasy hair when that runs out. I'd like to try shampoo bars too for environmental reasons.

MoreProseccoNow · 07/01/2018 21:46

I've got exactly the same hair & have tried various products over the years. No matter what, I have to wash it every day.

I'm hoping that things will change after the menopause.

AnnaMagnani · 07/01/2018 22:02

Suspect you are overwashing it. Your clarifying shampoo will be stripping it and so encouraging it to produce more oils and both the clarifying shampoo and ordinary shampoo are probably full of sulfates to make it foam.

Each time I've gone sulfate free my hair has been in much better condition and needed washing far less often, even though I now do curly girl and use loads of conditioner and product (admittedly all silicone free). I have fine hair and it can now go 2 or even 3 days between washes and still look good.

I'd try swapping to sulfate free shampoo.

sarahjconnor · 07/01/2018 22:13

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

thethoughtfox · 07/01/2018 22:50

The only people who have greasy hair at the end of the day / next morning that I know are those who wash it every day!. You have to start going a few days without washing at a time and your hair will stop being greasy so quickly. Kim Kardashian etc only wash once week.

mintmagnummm · 08/01/2018 06:27

Those of you saying it's because you wash every day, it's really not! It's actually a myth that you shouldn't wash ur hair daily! Philip Kingsley who is a specialist in hair recommendations washing daily. We wash our bodies, faces etc daily why shouldn't we wash our hair daily?! As long as we are conditioning it well and not just stripping it it's fine. Plus as some have stated on here, even when not washing daily there's still no improvement. Those of us (me!) with a scalp issue also SHOULD wash daily! If I don't wash mine every day (some days I'll try and leave it) my scalp becomes extremely itchy and my psoriasis flares up.....rant over Grin

RageAgainstThePoutine · 08/01/2018 06:36

The only time I've ever been able to leave it 3-4 days was while pregnant. That suggests to me that hormones are controlling the amount of grease pumped out.

Like Haribo and Bucket, the only time my hair has stretched to 4 days without a wash was while pregnant. And I'm also a shiny, spotty 40yo. Definitely hormones.

KatharinaRosalie · 08/01/2018 11:01

The only people who have greasy hair at the end of the day / next morning that I know are those who wash it every day!.

No it's the other way around - I wash my hair every day because it's greasy. I've also tried not to wash it and all the other tricks and no difference whatsoever. My mum on the other hand has hair that simply does not go greasy - of course she also does not wash it as often.

Bimbler · 08/01/2018 11:06

Some people just have greasy hair. If you think about it, grease can travel down very fine, very straight hair (like mine!) quicker than grease can travel down a strand of curly hair.

OutToGetYou · 08/01/2018 11:22

I think it's hormones and amount and type of washing will have little effect.

As I've got older (am 49) mine has got less greasy and now I could leave it that 2nd day, but I don't if I have to be at work as it goes flat in the nape of my neck and looks horrible at the back (it's a bob that sits there).

I do use sulphate/SLS and silicone free shampoo. But I'm not sure it makes any difference really.

When I condition I use conditioner before shampoo, that does help I think.

Scabbersley · 08/01/2018 11:27

Are you SURE you are using a proper clarifying shampoo? I had this and it was a build up of silicone.

I used washing up liquid Shock once and it went away!

Scabbersley · 08/01/2018 11:28

Fwiw I find the new herbal essences 0% sulfates and silicone (i use the rosemary one) really good for clean hair feeling

thenightsky · 08/01/2018 11:33

I used to wash mine every day due to massive greasiness on day two.

Since I hit the menopause I only need to do it twice a week and even then it doesn't look flat or greasy, but my scalp does get itchy by day 4.

Definitely hormone related in my case.

BluebellGal · 08/01/2018 16:15

In answer to your question OP, I think it’s more likely to be related to hormones than over-washing your hair. I’m convinced mine has been affected by going on the POP pill after pregnancy. I’m stopping that now to see if it makes a difference.