We have been collectively brainwashed. Hold onto your hats. Commercial shampoos are not only unnecessary, they are also almost certainly damaging your hair. By buying into the commercial hair-care industry, we are trapping ourselves in a vicious cycle. By stripping out all the natural, protective oils from our hair we are forced to keep doing so in order to prevent our hair from becoming quickly very oily, or we are forced to load conditioners onto our damaged hair to restore the natural gloss, shine and strength that shampoos have destroyed. This system is ludicrous – a scary by-product of our consumerist and ad-driven society.
It is understandable that, collectively, we fear change and live in horror of being viewed as new-age or weird, but the simple fact of the matter is that the current trend in hair-care towards more and more products is not sustainable and will have to change. The good news is that our hair will also be healthier for it and we as consumers will have our shackles removed. Removing our reliance on shampoos and other hair care products helps us and our planet in a number of different ways.
Firstly, it should be pointed out that the “No-Poo” system is not new. Many people have been using this system for years and their hair looks fantastic. After a very short adjustment period no one would know that you do not use commercial shampoo – unless you tell them. There are a number of different no-poo alternatives that are discussed in depth elsewhere on the web. Common options include using bicarbonate of soda and apple cider vinegar, while lemon juice and various plant oils are also common alternatives. I myself have very, very long hair past my waist and I have not used any shampoo or conditioner in over a year. I wash my hair in a dilute solution of bicarbonate of soda and use apple cider vinegar as a conditioning rinse. Since I stopped using shampoo I have had to wash my hair far less frequently, it always smells neutral and pleasant, and it is stronger, with fewer split ends than ever before. Personally, I will never go back to commercial options.
How No-Poo systems help us:
- Cost savings can be extreme, especially if you are able to make your own apple cider vinegar. It can be made from whole apples, or from cores and peelings and is amazingly easy to do.
- No more bad hair days. Find a system perfectly tailored to your hair.
- No more using chemicals that we can’t even pronounce, whose effects on our health have not been fully scientifically explored.
How No-Poo systems help the planet:
- Less plastic packaging: We are, as a species, producing appalling quantities of plastic waste. Not buying shampoo, conditioner and other hair care products is one step we can take to reduce our impact on natural devastation caused by plastic production and disposal.
- Smaller carbon footprint: Fewer transport miles required to get products to shops and to your door, fewer energy costs associated with manufacture.
- Fewer chemicals, plastic micro-beads and the like flow down your drain – good news for our planets flora and fauna.
These are just a few of the many reasons why no-poo systems are a good idea. So what are you waiting for? Why don’t you start your transition to a more sustainable future today?
