CYW says…If you could design the perfect shampoo and conditioner, what ingredients would you include or exclude?
The Right Brain responds:
Great question, CYW! Let’s break it down and talk about conditioners first. But before that, we have to talk about what “perfect” means.
Perfection is in the eye of the beholder
“Perfect” is such a relative term that this is an almost impossible question to answer. Perfect for long hair or for short hair? Perfect for thick hair or fine hair? Perfect for dry hair… well, you get the idea. Since no single product is perfect for everyone we have to generalize. So, for the the sake of this discussion, we can tell you this: In all the hundreds of conditioner formulas we’ve tested over the years the ones that always tested the best included four key ingredients:
Best conditioner ingredients to look for
- Dimethicone to smooth the cuticle.
- Cyclomethicone to disperse the dimethicone and to provide some nice slip without weighing hair down. (Note: an Amodimethicone can sometimes can replace this mixture.)
- A fatty amine like stearamidopropyldimethylamine or behenamidopropyldimethylamine to condition by sticking to the damaged, negatively charged areas on the hair.
- An acid such as aspartic acid or glutamic acid to “activate”and neutralize the amine.
Of course there are more ingredients that must be in the formula to thicken, emulsify, preserve, etc. But these are the key conditioning ingredients we would include.
Image credit: http://www.elfwood.com/art/e/l/elfishcat//in-perfect-harmony.jpg
What do YOU think? Do you see any of these ingredients in YOUR conditioners? Or, do you have other ingredients that you’d like to talk about? Leave a comment and share your thoughts with the rest of Beauty Brains community.
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
What about behentrimonium methosulfate?
@Steph: We’re big fans of the behenyl derived conditioners because the give such a cushiony feel. Plus, the methosulfate quat is somewhat milder than the chloride version, which is nice. I’d consider this one a “keeper.”
I was always a fan of organic components so I guess I’d go for the organic ingredients like sunflower oil and hazelnuts maybe. I also heard that egg whites give a lot of benefits for the hair.
What do u think about this list? Is it a good conditioner?
Ingredients: Aqua, Behentrimonium Methosulfate (and) Cetearyl Alcohol, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut)Oil, Centrimonium Chloride, Centrimonium Bromide, Cetyl Alcohol (and) Steary Alcohol (and) Stearalkonium Chloride (and) Dimethyl Steramine, Hydroxyproplyltrinomium Honey, Hydrolized Soy Protein, Panthenol, Cyclomethicone, Amodimethicone, Polyquaternium -44, Eugenia Caryophyllus (Clove) Oil, Mentha Piperit (Peppermint) Oil, Benzylalcohol, DehydroaceticAcid, Cyamopsis Tetragonoloba (Guar) Gum.
@Olaf: Behentrimonium Methosulfate is a great conditioning ingredient. The cyclomethicone/amodimethicone is a good combination to add as well. I’d expect this formula might be a bit heavy but it’s certainly worth a try.
to Olof, what is the name of the conditioner that you have just listed the ingredients from.
Thanks,
Tarra
the beauty brains I just wanted to add a comment here to mention thanks for you very nice ideas.
I would love a conditioner that would improve the health of my hair, making it soft, flexible, and fluffy with a lot of body, and give it some surface roughness or ‘tooth’ so that it will tease up and stay up when I put it in a french twist or updo pony.
Conditioners I use now to protect against swimmers damage seem to coat the cuticle with a lovely, thickening, slick surface that makes my hair straight and drapey, (I know some people would kill for straight silky hair) that falls out of rubber bands, pins, and hair clips in minutes.
Any suggestions for a product that would make the hair surface a little more ‘gritty?’
Thanks,
This is such a great article. Conditioning the hair is so important and a lot of people don’t consider the ingredients in the products they use.
I already have a favorite conditioner with organic ingredients and no sulphates, silicones or parabens!
Don’t know if you’ve heard of it, Pro Naturals Moroccan Argan Oil Conditioner, it’s good for all hair types, even colored and damaged hair. It’s really healthy and smells so good.
Hi!
Whats your oppinion about the moroccan oil products? Ive heard so many good thing of it but does the vitamins etc. realy get in to the hair and repair it? or just stay on the outside and only “makes it” look good? Do you think its better to apply pure argan oil to the hair? Please im so worried about my dry hair!
Appreciate your help!
I also heard from a friend that the moroccan oil contains a lot of silicones and that it is not good for the hair? But why do they include this if it is not good for the hair? Why dont they just put pure ingredients in the products?
@Adam: Yea, most moroccan oil products have a lot of silicone in them. But that doesn’t mean they’re bad for your hair. Silicones are good conditioners for most people.
do you think its better to apply pure argan oil on the hair? It is written on most products that it nourishes the hair from within. But how? I mean hair is a very stable proteinstructure, how can the vitamins etc. get in to the hair? Is this true?
Thanks!
I guess you dont know the answer….
@Adam: From the data we’ve seen, coconut oil is the best penetrating oil. We’ve never seen published test data on pure argan oil. The oil penetrates by passing through micro-gaps between the cuticles. The protein structure is very stable but it can still be porous. Vitamins (if they penetrate) would enter the same way but they have little benefit on hair.
Oki! Thank you so much!
/Adam
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