Kitten Devine’s question…Yesterday at a hair shop they asked me what shampoo I used. So I told them I use Zwitsal baby shampoo, because I like how it makes my hair feel and because sodium laureth sulphate is only the 5th ingredient on the list, so I figured it’s more gentle and doesn’t strip the color out of my hair. Now they told me that baby shampoo was bad for your hair because the pH of it is different then regular shampoos. Because of the different pH it would open your cuticles whereas ‘good’ (more acidic) shampoos would close them. Is this true or myth?

The Left Brain’s reply:

As Purple Rules pointed out in our Forum, the pH of baby shampoos has nothing to do with it’s performance. Shampoos are formulated over a pH range from about 5.0 to 7.0. Most people’s water has a pH around 6.5 to 7.0. No matter what shampoo you use, once it’s on your head mixed with water, the pH will be about the same as the water. The people at your hair shop are mistaken.

What do YOU think? Has your stylist ever told you to change shampoos because of the pH? Leave a comment and share your thoughts about this myth with the rest of the Beauty Brains community.

Berlina beckons…I had recently been using Infusium leave in treatment on my hair and it had been working fabulously. But, my little brother managed to spill the entire bottle on my floor. After thinking of buying another bottle, I bought a replacement conditioner for the time being for the rest of the week. I was wondering what it is in Infusium that works so well with my hair? I heard that it may cause your hair to weaken. Is this true?

The Right Brain Responds:
Infusium 23 has been around for many, many years (although now it’s owned by P&G) and it’s a very nice leave-in formula. What’s in it that makes it work so well? Let’s take a look at the ingredient list:

Water, Amodimethicone, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Panthenol, Cetrimonium Chloride, Dimethicone Copolyol, Polyquaternium-11, Citric Acid, Betaine, Glycerin, Sorbitol, Tricontanyl PVP, PPG-2 Methyl Ether, Serine, Glycine, Glutamic Acid, Arginine, Threonine, Lysine, Alanine, Proline, Hydroxyethylcellulose, PEG-8/SMDI Copolymer, Behenic Acid, Palmitoyl Myristyl Serinate, Oleic Acid, Palmitic Acid, Linoleic Acid, Stearic Acid, Arachidic Acid, PEG-8, Polysorbate 80, Amino Methylpropanol, Fragrance, Sodium PCA, Methylparaben, Methylisothiazolinone, Methylchloroisothiazolinone

If we strip this list down to the basic, functional ingredients it looks like this:

Amodimethicone, PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil, Cetrimonium Chloride, Dimethicone Copolyol, Polyquaternium-11

Infusium action

Of these ingredients, two are really doing most of the work: amodimethicone (which is a water soluble silicone dispersion) and cetrimonium chloride (a very simple but very effective quaternary ammonium compound which sticks to damaged areas of the hair.)

Does it weaken hair? No. All conditioners work by smoothing the cuticle and lubricating the hair shaft to protect hair from damage. Infusium does that very nicely without weakening the hair.

The Beauty Brains bottom line:

If you like leave-in conditioners, you’ll probably like Infusium 23. Make your brother buy you a new bottle and don’t worry about weakening your hair.

How do YOU like to conditioner your hair? Leave in? Rinse out? Leave a comment and share your conditioning tips with the rest of the Beauty Brains community.

Eva asks…Is there a difference between men’s and women’s shaving creams? And what are the merits of shaving oils and lotions?

The Right Brain replies:
The main ingredients in shaving creams are the soaps that soften hair and lubricate skin. Most formulas create this soap my mixing a fatty acid (like stearic acid or palmitic acid) with an alkaline ingredient (like triethanolamine). This is true of products for men or women.

Shaving science

Let’s look at some ingredient lists for examples:

Typical Men’s shave cream #1 (Edge):
Deionized Water, Palmitic Acid, Triethanolamine, Stearic Acid, Isopentane, Sunflower Oil Monoglycerides, Sorbitol, Aloe Barbadensis Gel (Aloe Vera Gel), Fragrance, PVP, Isobutane, PEG 90M, FD&C Blue 1

Typical Mens’ #2 (Gillette):
Water, Stearic Acid, Triethanolamine, Isobutane, Laureth 23, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Propane, Fragrance, Butane, BHT

Typical Women’s Shaving Cream (Skintimate):
Purified Water, Palmitic Acid, Triethanolamine, Stearic Acid, Isopentane, Sunflower Oil Monoglycerides, Sorbitol, Lanolin Alcohols, Tocopheryl Acetate (Vitamin E, USP), PEG-90M, PVP, Fragrance, Isobutane, FD&C Red 40

See the similarity? There products differ by a few ingredients but the basic soap components are the same. The sensory characteristics are different but both types perform the same basic function.

What about lotions and oils?

Most lotions are similar to creams in composition but they’re usually not in aerosol form. Shave oils are quite a bit different. They usually consist of a mixture of vegetable oils without any water. Therefore, they don’t wet the beard as well as creams although they do lubricate the skin. Some people prefer creams, others prefer oils. Go figure.

Rainbow is curious…I don’t understand, when you apply your shampoo, your hair gets really rough and when you put on conditioner your hair gets really soft. What happened? and also i want to know, is conditioner ACTUALLY being absorbed by your hair?

The Left Brain explains:

The difference is simple. Shampoos contain cleansing surfactants like SLS, SLES or other detergents. These materials surround oil, lift it off and get rinsed away with the water. Shampoos do not necessarily dry your hair. What they do is remove all the oil (unless you’re using a 2-in-1). This makes the hair feel more dry.

Conditioners also contain surfactants, but these are conditioning surfactants. These surfactants have a positive charge on them which makes them “stick” to the damaged, negatively charged proteins on hair. So, when they are rinsed away, things like cetyl alcohol and other ingredients in the conditioner are rinsed away. Conditioners also contain silicones that will stick on hair and are not rinsed away. Conditioners mostly remain on the surface of hair but they do penetrate (absorb) to a small degree.

Kim comments… What’s worse: chemically straightening hair, or blowing hair out and flat ironing it 2-3 times per week? I know they’re both bad, but is there a lesser of the two evils?

The Right Brain Replies:
Chemically straightening is about the worst thing you can do to your hair. That’s because the first step in the hair straightening process breaks apart the protein bonds in hair.

Breaking those bonds allows you to take the curl out of the hair but it’s very harmful because not all the bonds are repaired. So, your hair is left much weaker after straightening.

Blow drying and ironing are harmful too, but they’re much less damaging than chemical attacks. Plus, you can use heat protection products that will help cut down on the damage.

The Beauty Brains bottom line

You can iron your hair straight many times before you’ll equal the damage from chemically straightening it one time.