Charlotte Comments: I’d love to believe that those curling shampoos will really shape my thick hair. What do the Brain’s Believe?
The Right Brain Responds:
Well, Charlotte, this is an easy one. Curling shampoos do NOT make your hair curly. In fact, if you read the labels carefully, some of them don’t even SAY they’ll make your hair curly! Let’s take a look, shall we?
What do curling shampoos claim?
Even the most flagrant offender of the truth, Wash n’ Curl shampoo, only IMPLIES that it will make your hair curly just from shampooing. Read the label carefully – it says it provides “the most beautiful curls with body, bounce and resilience after styling.” Well, duh! If the shampoo only makes your hair curly AFTER you style it, it’s not really doing much for you is it?
What else does Wash n’ Curl say? “Your hair will be extremely curl responsive…Even dry, damaged, color treated hair will have the staying power of thick curly hair… Its special Curl Enhancers infuse hair with the Holding Power of naturally curly hair.”
The chemistry of curling shampoo
The only piece of truth in this claim is that the shampoo does contain something that could be called a “curl enhancer.” Looking at the ingredient list we see that it does contains a polymer (Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer), that COULD provide some styling benefits. But that would only work if it wasn’t rinsed out! Remember, just because a product contains an ingredient that does something, it doesn’t mean that it does something in that product!
The rest of the claims are pretty much made up, as far as we can tell. There is no shampoo technology that will measurably improve the holding power of your hair.
What about other products, you ask? Well here’s two more:
KMS Curl Up Shampoo and Marc Anthony Strictly Curls. Neither of these shampoos make strong curling claims. KMS only promises to be your “curl’s best friend, ” to ” start your style in the shower,” and to “boost boisterous curls while adding moisture and shine.”
Marc, on the other hand, offers to protect color; repair dry, frizzy areas, and repel humidity to define shiny, soft, curls. (“Define” curls is not really a very emphatic claim.) Aside from a little polyquaternium (a conditioning ingredient) neither of these products have any curling technology either.
We could go on and on, but you get the picture. These shampoos don’t have anything in them to make your hair curly. They don’t even really do anything to prepare your hair for styling, other than getting it clean. If you want to see more, click the carousel below.
The Beauty Brains Bottom Line:
If you really want curly hair, go buy some mousse. Or, God forbid, get a perm!
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
It amazes me how good the cosmetic industry is at making what appear to be pretty blatant implications that, when you squint and look closer, are actually not at all claims of any efficacy whatsoever.
I’ve been in marketing for years and it still astounds me.
Even more odd that this, are the new shampoos for layered hair. WTF?
I’ve actually found that curling shampoo is great for making my hair straight! The bumble & bumble stuff weighs my hair down so much that it looks better after it’s flat ironed!
All of a sudden about 10-12 years ago, i could no longer find wash n curl Shampoo.. I kept ;looking for the beautiful transparent pink shampoo with bubbles trapped in it, but no luck. Now it’s back, and i couldn’t be happier!! I have very thick hair somewhat long at the time, and it has always held curl very well. Wash n Curl however made my hair extremely “floofy”, which is not the same as curly, I know.. But it had an amazing aerating effect that just made my hair light and all I had to do was bunch it up as it dried, and it would curl. If you used any kind of conditioner afterward however,(we didn’t have the Wash n Curl conditioner available for some reason) it would not produce the same effect.
I think it is a wonderful product, and must apparently work better on some hair types than others..
i totally disagree – try Toni& Guy curl enhancing shampoo and conditioner, i normally have relatively straight hair and when i use those products i have major curls, which can be seen even when my hair is still wet. not only is my hair full of volume i have actual ringlets of curl without using any sort of styling tool
Thanks for the comment Christina. We can’t predict how any product will work on a specific person’s hair, however, we can report about the science of products. There is no plausible reason or data that supports the effectiveness of this product. There could be a number of explanations for your found curls which don’t involve this product.
I just want to say that I have rather fine straight hair and I have used wash and curl in the past and It has worked wonders for me. I would use a curling Iron after drying and I would have curls that would hold all day long and well into the night. The only problem is that I am having a hard time finding drug stores thar carry it.
I have slightly wavy hair and I LOVE Wash N Curl…for me it really works better than any other shampoo I have tried. I too have trouble finding it, Charley but you can get it onlne – Amazon or Drugstore.com
What store in nassau county n.y. can i go buy wash n curl shampoo?
June, I don’t know where in Nassau you are, but try King Kullen. I just found it at the Lindenhurst King Kullen on Wellwood and Sunrise.
Personally, I think the real point of Wash ‘N’ Curl and other shampoos like it is that it allows the hair to curl easily *when styled*. Recently I started using a particular shampoo and conditioner that did not allow my hair to curl, even though I was doing exactly what I did before. After one hour, it would fall completely flat. It’s reassuring to know there are shampoos out there that are intended to help curl hair – it’s just that people are getting the wrong idea about them.
my hair dresser says i can’t have a color and a perm. that it will be all dried out. is there any truth to this. i know you cant do them the same time but i need some curls
I’m glad to have read this but I am optimistic, here’s why. I have naturally curly hair and was trying to get my hair straight so I bought a straightening shampoo and it stripped my hair of its naturl curls. Now I want my curls back; I have some of the curl which is loose but I want my tight curls back. So if a straightening shampoo can make curly hair straight why can’t a curly shampoo bring back my natural curly hair?
I’m also curious: If I have naturally wavy hair, that is nice & curly when wet, will the curl enhancing shampoos help it hold that curl as it dries?
I beg to differ strongly. I use KMS original formula and have never seen so many curls on one head. If I use a regular shampoo, my hair goes limp. Everyone’s entitled to their opinion and I strongly disagree with the reviewers review!
so what would make ur hair curly? pardon me?
what? no products at all? that is sad:(
so u are saying that there is nothing you can do, if you have straight hair originally..
Yes, Franco. Those of us cursed with straight hair have no other options, nothing but perm AND curlers / curling iron if we want nice, natural-looking curls.
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