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The Hidden Problem with “No Poo” (And What to Do Instead)

Katie Wells Avatar
Katie Wells

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The hidden problem with no poo- and what to do instead
Wellness Mama » Blog » Beauty » The Hidden Problem with “No Poo” (And What to Do Instead)

As women, we tend to be finicky about our hair: all the curly-haired girls want straight hair and all the straight-haired girls want curls. But we all have one thing in common: the desire to have beautiful, healthy hair, preferably in a natural way.

Lots of naturally-minded folks recommend no poo, but is it really best for your hair?

What Is No Poo?

In case you’ve been living under a rock or you’re new to the crunchy mama crowd, “no poo” refers to your hair, not the other thing it sounds like.

Those who practice “no poo” are simply forgoing shampoo in favor of using baking soda to wash their hair. Typically, proponents of the no poo method suggest using diluted baking soda to give your hair a scrub, followed by a rinse of diluted apple cider vinegar.

It sounds like the perfect solution: natural and cheap. However, if you’ve gone that route, odds are, you’ll come to some bumps in the road sooner or later.

The Problem with No Poo

Baking soda sounds like a perfect choice for keeping your coif clean because it’s such a great cleanser. After all, I use it in my homemade cleaning supplies all the time. Try to use it for long though, and you’ll see why it isn’t right for hair maintenance.

Lots of us start out loving the no poo method: it seems to create manageable, clean, even bouncy, voluminous hair. But before long, many will start to notice something: dry, unmanageable hair. Breakage. Buildup. You might even be tempted to go back to conventional hair care products just to restore our locks to health.

There are a few reasons for things going south:

Baking Soda= Wrong pH for Hair

Because the natural pH of hair and skin is between 4.5-5.5, it is slightly acidic. With a pH of 9, baking soda differs vastly on the pH scale from hair. It is much more alkaline.

When you repeatedly wash your slightly acidic hair with a highly alkalized solution, you force your hair to drastically change its natural makeup. Eventually, your hair will become dry, frizzy, and begin to suffer from breakage.

The purpose for the apple cider vinegar rinse following a baking soda wash is to restore acidity to your hair. However, most people are unable to perfectly dilute and balance each step in order to restore proper pH. Not to mention, it’s difficult to evenly wash every strand of hair with each solution, making sure none are missed.

Baking Soda is Abrasive

Baking soda is one of the best natural solutions for scrubbing everything from tile grout to bathtubs. It is not great, however, for scrubbing hair. It’s simply too abrasive.

Just rub a little bit of the fine, white powder between your fingers and you can see why it does such a great job of getting things clean. The microscopic crystalline structure of baking soda creates jagged edges which scrub away at dirty surfaces.

You can imagine why setting those jagged edges to cleaning delicate hair might cause problems. Baking soda will eventually tear away at delicate tresses and cause damage, resulting in dry, breaking hair and split ends. Some no poo users have even reported losing clumps of hair.

It May Strip Hair of Natural Oils

Because baking soda is abrasive and too alkaline, it will eventually strip away the natural oils coating your scalp and hair.

That natural oil is present to protect your scalp and hair, keeping it healthy and manageable. Because we all have differing body chemistry and use different products, the amount of oil can vary greatly from one person to the next. That’s why some of us can get away with only washing our hair once in a while, and others can’t seem to go longer than a day between washes.

I found that when I switched over to natural hair care, my hair became more balanced: not too oily, not too dry, and I’m able to go longer between washes because my scalp and hair are healthy and happy. It can be normal for your hair to go through a period of detox as it adjusts to natural hair care, as conventional shampoos can also strip away those natural oils.

As your hair adjusts, it may become more oily or drier than usual, but as you settle on a natural hair care routine that’s right for your particular hair, it should even out.

However, don’t mistake your hair rejecting the no poo method for detox.

Your Hair Isn’t “Detoxing”; it’s Being Damaged!

Don’t keep scrubbing away with baking soda, hoping your hair will adjust! In many cases, the baking soda is actually causing damage to the hair. I’m certainly not a fan of most conventional shampoos, but they are designed to be the correct pH for hair.

What to Do Instead of No Poo

If you don’t want to thwart your healthy, natural hair care efforts with no poo, there are still lots of great natural hair care options.

No Poo Alternatives

  1. Clay-based Shampoos. Who knew that putting clay in your hair could make it cleaner and healthier? I was a skeptic at first, but now often turn to clay based shampoos for my hair. I make my own detox shampoo but I also use this pre-made all-natural one from Morrocco Method and I really like it. As a bonus, these products have a lot of added beneficial ingredients that nourish hair.
  2. Make a shampoo bar. If you’re feeling adventurous, try your hand at making old-fashioned soap with lye. Find a specially formulated bar soap recipe for hair here.
  3. Make a shampoo from soap nuts. Soap nuts aren’t just for laundry! Soap nuts shampoo is incredibly inexpensive to make and completely natural. Find the simple recipe here. (Note that this will not work on all hair types and seems to be the toughest to get right.
  4. Make a dry shampoo. No matter the kind of shampoo, the science says fewer washes means healthier hair. Want to freshen your hair between washes while you’re figuring out the perfect no poo alternative for your hair? Try a homemade dry shampoo, with versions for both dark and light hair. Try this recipe.
  5. Wellnesse! After years of experimenting with all of the above, I finally got to fulfill a dream and create my own shampoo and conditioner line that’s natural and actually works! Our Cleansing Shampoo and Conditioner (as well as our Smoothing Hair Care Kit for wavy/curly hair) meet every one of my (many) criteria for hair and scalp health.

Find What Works for Your Hair

Whether your hair is curly or straight, thick or thin, oily or dry, most of us will find that the no poo method isn’t ideal. However, we all have different hair care needs based on our own individual chemistry.

Experiment with the suggestions above until you find what works for your hair, then come back and let me know your results!

Have you ever tried “no poo?” Did you have any of the problems described above? Share below!

Find out why the "no poo" way of washing hair isn't best in the long run, and get the scoop on my favorite natural shampoo alternatives.

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Katie Wells Avatar

About Katie Wells

Katie Wells, CTNC, MCHC, Founder of Wellness Mama and Co-founder of Wellnesse, has a background in research, journalism, and nutrition. As a mom of six, she turned to research and took health into her own hands to find answers to her health problems. WellnessMama.com is the culmination of her thousands of hours of research and all posts are medically reviewed and verified by the Wellness Mama research team. Katie is also the author of the bestselling books The Wellness Mama Cookbook and The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox.

Comments

166 responses to “The Hidden Problem with “No Poo” (And What to Do Instead)”

  1. Kathleen Gaffey Avatar
    Kathleen Gaffey

    By rotating between shampoos, do you mean switch between shampoos every other day or every other week? Month?

    Reply
  2. Susan Avatar
    Susan

    I’ve been “no-poo” for nearly 10 years. Early on I found the baking soda wash was damaging my hair, so I adopted a different system:
    1) I rinse my hair in the shower, combing my hair with a wide-tooth comb while my head is under the water.
    2) After wrapping my head, turban style, to soak up the water, I use a clean, dry, terrycloth towel to stroke my hair from scalp to ends for 200 strokes. I flip the towel over at 100 strokes to use the dry side of the towel.
    3) Comb out and set, or finish with a quick blow dry. The towel moves the sebum throughout the hair rather than stripping it. That sebum is valuable stuff; antimicrobial, antiviral, antibacterial; it protects the hair and keeps it from drying out and having split ends.
    On the rare occasion that I get something greasy or gunky in my hair, I’ll give it a mud bath with Red Clay and a splash of raw ACV, rinse then proceed as above. I love the simplicity, safety, and frugality of this method; zero product means zero exposure to toxic chemicals (even “organic” shampoos and conditioners have ’em). By the way, we have hard well water, and I still have success with my Towel Method.

    Reply
    1. Ju Avatar
      Ju

      Hi Susan,

      that’s great , if i could get to that stage would be fantastic because basically i’m trying to cut back on the consumerism as much as possible, for me is not only about health. I suffer from seborrheic dermatitis on the occasions that i’m more stressed , so maybe i should just stop using stuff on my hair, even natural the scalp doesn’t like most of the things. The clay that you mention will probably be the best when i need something else. I use henna once a year too and after the treatment the hair is a bit saturated on the top , but apart from that it’s ok and the scalp his happy. Maybe i’m taking the natural sebum out and the scalp does not like it. Any thoughts ? Thank you a lot, have a great day.

      Reply
  3. Beth Avatar
    Beth

    I’ve been no-poo for 7 years, using baking soda the whole time. About a year in, instead of ACV I started using Dr. Bonner’s citrus rinse. I only need to wash my hair every two weeks or so. Sorry to hear it’s problematic for others, but I suppose since I do it so infrequently its ok?

    Reply
  4. Emily Avatar
    Emily

    Tried lots of variations of eliminating shampoo with varying results. I have been working to resolve Hashimoto’s, so my hair is on the dry, damaged and sad side. I have ended up with a very happy routine of washing with EO brand conditioner alone a few times per week and just rinsing with water the days in-between. It is not drying and saves me from the unnecessary step of harsh shampoo. (I even found sulfate free ones to cause some damage for my hair.) As far as hair growth, only after years of removing heavy metals and other natural health interventions, was I able to tolerate high doses of Lugol’s iodine and the thickness of my new hair is much better. Hopefully the texture will improve in the near future.

    Reply
    1. Susan Avatar
      Susan

      I could not help but reply to this comment. Please know you can rub that iodine on your wrist with the other wrist and it will be absorbed with our staining anything. So much better and easier to do than ingesting. I use 2-3 drops daily that way and my thyroid panels are perfect. However, when I’m particularly fatigued I just repeat later in the day. Also if you get white (colorless) iodine, it must be Ammonium free, or it stings, you can apply to your scalp. white iodine promotes hair growth ( I only know of Dr Clarks white iodine in California). You kill two birds with one stone . Also add silica to your vitamin regime, I added it as bamboo. I got new visible hair growth and the hairline and top of scalp after 7-1/2 weeks of taking 600 mgs every morning. I did these protocols; bamboo and iodine separately. I know the bamboo worked!! Two other things to be ACUTELY aware of is to get checked for the MTHFR gene mutation. It’s a simple blood draw or you can get a do it yourself saliva kit for $99.00 at 23andme site if you desire more insight to your genetics. I mention the MTHFR mutation because once I supplemented with methylfolate (that’s the natural form of folic acid which is just vitamin B9) my hair shedding slowed and the inexplicable excess weight started to leave – hooray! Do some research on the MTHFR gene- it’s fascinating reading. (I’m a 57 year old in menopause). I learn so much from reading real people’s comments on articles, I hope this helps someone. Cheers!

      Reply
      2. Heidi Avatar
        Heidi

        That is really fascinating! I have debated if I can afford the MTHFR gene test, too. I’d like to know, because I am getting NOWHERE with my local medical team. I am 50, perimenopausal, and all I get when I complain about symptoms (that nobody else seems to deal with) is “It’s your time of life”. Or the one she says EVERY TIME I go in: “I think you are depressed. I can prescribe something for that.”. No, I am not depressed–I am angry you don’t listen.

        I had recently started my own drops of iodine, after reading all sorts of things and comparing to my issues. Of course, that made my thyroid test appear okay. Ha ha.

        I am interested in using the white iodine for hair growth–I used to cover my hair full time, and only recently started to have it open to the world on occasion. I think covering possibly made me lose hair around the hairline.

        Reply
      3. Elizabeth Avatar
        Elizabeth

        This helped me!!! I have been trying to figure out MTHFR for years I believe I have this issue and can’t seem to find a balance to hold onto minerals and vitamins . Which methylfolate do you take ??

        Reply
  5. Jamie Avatar
    Jamie

    I tried ‘no poo’ for about six or nine months a few years ago. It got SO BAD that I couldn’t even run a comb or brush through my hair. Awful. I’ve found a shampoo and conditioner that’s low in all the bad stuff 🙂 and only wash twice a week or so.

    Reply
  6. Lindsay Avatar
    Lindsay

    Actually, no poo is usually using conditioner to cleanse your hair not baking soda. Lots of good information on the no poo facebook group. They say baking soda should be used once and a while only to clarify.

    Reply
    1. Sheila Avatar
      Sheila

      That’s what I use. I wash my hair with conditioners that don’t have silicones (Suave Naturals for example). I have to massage my scalp more than I did with shampoo but my hair is so much healthier now. It’s been a few years now and my color actually holds better.

      Reply
  7. Coleen Avatar
    Coleen

    This is an interesting blog post, and not my experience, so I thought I’d chime in. I’ve been no ‘poo for…5 years?…and haven’t noticed the negatives that you mention. I do tend to use a commercial conditioner most of the time, so perhaps that helps balance it out. I’ll also mention that I only wash my hair 1-2 times/week. When I saw someone mention hair color change, I started paying more attention to my hair, but haven’t noticed any significant change.

    Clearly, I may be in the minority, but I really like my whopping ~1 Tb of baking soda dissolved in water ‘poo.

    Reply
    1. Amanda Avatar
      Amanda

      Same here. I’ve been doing it for 3 years with great results! I had an initial adjustment period of a few weeks but it’s been great since then. My hair is way less frizzy and I can let it air dry and it looks good.

      Reply
    2. Lori Avatar
      Lori

      Same here, Colleen and Amanda. I’ve been using diluted baking soda and diluted ACV method for the past 2 years and my hair has never been healthier than it is right now. I often receive comments about how healthy and shiny my hair looks, and people are shocked whenever I tell them that I only wash it once a week with baking soda and ACV. I did discover along the way, however, that leaving the ACV solution in my hair (as opposed to rinsing it out) makes a huge difference and yields much better results than if I rinse it out. Perhaps leaving the ACV in your hair ensures an adequate level of acidity so that the hair stays “happy”. Also, when I wash my hair with the baking soda solution, I don’t actually “scrub” my hair with it — I mostly focus on my scalp by gently massaging it into the scalp, and then I let the solution gently “flow” through the rest of my hair as I’m rinsing it out.

      I sure hope that people don’t give up on the baking soda / ACV protocol. If some individuals are seeing less-than-desirable results, I’m guessing that it’s due to one or all of the following:

      1) washing their hair too frequently
      2) scrubbing their hair shafts too roughly with the baking soda solution.
      3) rinsing out the ACV solution instead of leaving it in

      Reply
      1. Cheryl Avatar
        Cheryl

        I have been using baking soda ( 2 Tbsp in 2 cups water) with and ACV (3 Tbsp in cups water with peppermint and rosemary EOs) for 1 3/4 years and really like it. There was an adjusment period to begin with. Yeah, I leave the ACV in my hair for awhile (as I shave my legs). After I brush my hair out, I put in a small amount of coconut oil (1/8 tsp) to help decrease frizziness and give my waves some bounce.

        Reply
  8. pauline Avatar
    pauline

    i used the no poo method for almost 3 months, my hair went through a nasty heavy greasy stage and then became very dry, felt like straw on the bottoms and I had a ton of breakage. I stopped the no poo and started using a Lush shampoo bar and am very happy with the results

    Reply
    1. Mollie Avatar
      Mollie

      The only problem with this is the Lush bars are filled with SLS and artificial fragrance.. I’m not a huge fan of them because they seem to be misleading people as being a ‘safe’ company when they are anything but.

      Reply
  9. Kelly A Crout Avatar
    Kelly A Crout

    My husband and I have been using No Poo for 4 years now. I have thin poker straight hair and I had a terrible time for the 1st 6 months and almost gave up.
    Then I notice there were no split ends and I wasnt losing as much hair as before in the brush so I knew something was happening. I still cannot use vinegar for rinse instead use aloe.
    I add a drop or two of argan to my BS mix along with a drop or two of castile soap, a couple slivers of JR Liggits and some essential oils (tea tree or Lemon , Rosemary or Ylang and my batch last for 3-4 shampoos (shampoo twice a week.
    My husband has very liittle dandruff since he switched ..before it looked like it snowed on his shoulders.
    Thank you for informing us of the clay based shampoo, I will check it out.

    Reply
    1. Pamela Avatar
      Pamela

      Your first three sentences are exactly my experience. The first six months were a struggle, but since then, it’s been great, and my hair has never been healthier! I very seldom have split ends, and my hair is soft and manageable (I went whole-hog and abandoned all product as well, so it’s just me and a brush). I do use ACV as a rinse, but that’s a little more difficult to get right, so a lot of times I just use a commercial conditioner without -fates or -cones after the BS. And, I only wash every six to ten days!

      My point is, I think everyone’s different, and not just with hair type. For me, this method works great, and the BS has not ruined my hair, but I also tweak it a few times a year to compensate for my cycle, my level of activity, what I eat, what the weather’s like, etc. After four years, I know what my hair needs, and am prepared to adjust my routine accordingly.

      BTW, for other readers, to me, the point to going poo-free is saving: save money, save time, save my hair, save the planet. BS/ACV is, by far, the least expensive poo-free method, besides water-only. It’s the easiest to try, at least in my experience, and saves me tons of time, since I’m washing my hair so infrequently. My hair looks great most days, and I lose a lot less, plus I’m not using harmful chemicals (Lye? Really?) on my biggest organ–I could eat a big spoonful of BS/ACV, and it wouldn’t hurt me in the least. And I’m keeping those same harmful chemicals out of the water supply and not damaging my bathtub or plumbing. For me, it’s a win-win-win-win.

      Reply
      1. Rachel Winker Avatar
        Rachel Winker

        It’s been said before, and I’ll say it here – once the oils and lye have saponified fully, there is no lye left: only soap. Many people think that there is lye left in the final product – unless the soap is very badly made and far too much lye was used or the soap hasn’t finished saponifying, there is no lye left. Trying to make soap without using lye is like trying to make a baking soda/vinegar volcano without vinegar – it’s impossible; if you tried to make soap without lye, you’d be left with a pot of oil that will never turn into soap. All real soap has had lye in it.

        Reply
        1. Tamara Avatar
          Tamara

          I’m confused… As I understand it, no poo is not necessarily using baking soda and ACV, but any method at all that doesn’t involve a conventional shampoo?? I’m still right at the beginning of my journey but I’m trying water only (with the odd ACV rinse due to hard water) which I thought was the purest form of no poo?

          Reply
  10. Courtney Avatar
    Courtney

    I see the downsides to the baking soda on hair, but what about the apple cider vinegar as a “conditioning” rinse? How do you feel about that part?

    Reply
  11. Brooke Avatar
    Brooke

    I put bentonite clay powder in my dry shampoo mixture with cocoa powder and arrowroot and it has been a great success! I’d like to think my hair is receiving the same benefits from the clay in dry shampoo as well. It does a fantastic job of absorbing excess oil and giving my hair some texture. Great post!

    Reply
  12. Anna Avatar
    Anna

    I use a vinegar solution or just water. The vinegar solution helps with de-tangling.

    Reply
  13. Kathy Webster Avatar
    Kathy Webster

    Once in a while I do a final rinse with a can of beer (that’s too old for drinking). I can’t remember where I heard that a beer rinse is supposed to be good, or why. My hair seems to like it. What is your opinion on a beer rinse?

    Reply
      1. Sharon Avatar
        Sharon

        Yes! I agree. Beer is great for a last rinse. When I do use it, it give my hair a lot of body.

        Reply
  14. Edith D. Thurman Avatar
    Edith D. Thurman

    Yes no poo has NOTHING to do with shampoo, but EVERYTHING to do with conditioner! Like cleansing conditioner! Every conditioner is actually a cleansing conditioner. That’s why I only use conditioner without the bad ingredients for over five years! Plus you don’t actually have to make anything! Funny how when you stop using shampoo you start to notice just how much conditioner actually foams up. I do love your blog, and emails, but shampoo is horrible for your hair,

    Reply
  15. Jennifer Hemker Avatar
    Jennifer Hemker

    I tried the no-poo method and it was an utter disaster.

    After have used a bunch of SLS-free, non-gmo, no-dyes or fragrances, organic – pretty much the purest shampoos one could buy from a store, I was finding that I was getting greasier and greasier in that I was starting to have to wash my hair every other day – which was far from my goal. Ultimately, I wanted to be able to wash my hair every three days.

    Hence, I tried no-poo and found that it stripped hair of color (we are talking even your natural color 🙁 and made my hair super dry and brittle. I stopped no-poo after reading a blog in which the person who had been doing no-poo for years had bleach-blonde hair because of all the damage (they were not naturally that blonde). That to me proves it is not normal/good for hair.

    I tried not to go back to the darkside of using terrible shampoos, so I started with a Davines from Italy – which wasn’t the best, but I’m happy to report that I now bounce back and forth between two really wonderful natural shampoos and can typically make it every three days. I use EO brand shampoo and an organic shampoo from Neal’s Yard Remedies – Wellness Mama you would love NYR!

    Reply
  16. Rebecca C Avatar
    Rebecca C

    Those aren’t alternatives to no poo, they all fall under no poo. No poo is simply not using conventional shampoo. Baking soda is just currently the most well known version, even though it’s, in many people’s opinion, one of the weakest options. 🙂

    Check out the big no poo group on Facebook, it has a pretty comprehensive list of some other options. I personally use shikaki powder and/or sifted rye flour for myself, and aloe vera gel or honey for my toddler. Sometimes a shampoo bar. We generally wash once a week. You just have to experiment to find out what works best for your hair.

    Reply
    1. Klara Avatar
      Klara

      I agree with the experimenting! Rye flower works for me too! Sometimes I add clay, sometimes I do herbal rince.
      Katie thank you for all the healthy hacks you teach us!

      Reply
    2. Julia Avatar
      Julia

      Another vote for rye flour! I’ve washed my hair with it once a week for the last six months, and it has never been happier and healthier. I even have some natural curls. Who knew?

      Reply
      1. Alva Avatar
        Alva

        How do you wash your hair with rye flour? Just regular rye, like bread, flour?

        Reply
    3. Anita Avatar
      Anita

      Yeah, I agree with this and just wanted to add to the discussion that although I’m pretty new to no-poo and still in the transition phase, I have seen warnings about baking soda over and over again in the information I’ve read, so I’ve only used it one time so far and had no issues, but plan to use different types of flour instead.

      Also, this part of the article seems inaccurate to me: “Those who practice “no poo” are simply forgoing shampoo in favor of using baking soda to wash their hair.”
      I’m not trying to pick on the article but this particular sentence seems to be false from what I’ve read about no poo, and I think it could make people shy away from trying it.

      Reply
  17. Megan Avatar
    Megan

    I started using shampoo bars from Chagrin Valley over a year ago and have found they work pretty well. For those almost year, though, there was a lot of buildup, so I used diluted apple cider vinegar (1 part vinegar, 3 parts water) and a few drops of lavender essential oil to cover the vinegar smell, to reduce the buildup. I still get some buildup but it takes longer. I’m not sure, though, if this is good for my hair or not so I might try the Morocco Method and see if that helps thicken my hair or grow in places it’s traditionally struggled to grow/where I still have wispys, fly-aways or baby hair.

    Reply
    1. Trisha Avatar
      Trisha

      do you have hard water? it seems if you have hard water, you need a diluted acv or lemon juice rinse to get rid of hard water buildup. Just be careful, lemon can lighten your hair! I have hard water and I’ve been using Shea moisture brand shampoo followed by a dilute acv final rinse.

      Reply
      1. Alice Avatar
        Alice

        We live in a hard water area and using soap creates soap scum on your hair which builds up over time and is incredibly hard to get off. It’s also disgusting!

        I mainly just use water and a good rub with a clean towel while the hair’s natural oils are soft from the shower (in Elizabethan times they used linen “rubbing” cloths to clean the hair). Sometimes I use Rhassoul clay powder mixed with water which gives me soft clean hair and has not created any blockages in my drain so far (I have been using it for a year).

        I’m interested to try using Aloe Vera gel too.

        Reply
  18. Angela Avatar
    Angela

    Katie,
    I would like to Thank you for your Blog. and for all the E-mails I received from you. You’ve been bless to me and my whole family and Friends. I love what you do for us Busy Moms. I love all the Recipes you have. and have been making them for my family. works great than store bought and chemical free. I came from a big family. My Mom always make natural Remedies for us kids when we were young. it reminds me of what you do for your family and you share with Us. I can thank you Enough for what you do. May God Bless you and your Family. Like my Mom Said. All the Good Things we do here on Earth, Blessings will come back to you and your Children.
    Thank you Again!

    Reply
  19. Sharon Avatar
    Sharon

    Actually when I first learned the no poo years ago it had nothing to do with baking soda…this is the first I’ve heard that. I was introduced it by my hair stylist. She showed me the book Curly Girl. She then picked up her book of ingredients and pulled a bottle of conditioner off the shelf and showed me there are cleansers in conditioners. The idea is to use a high quality conditioner. Shampoo adds to many cleansers and roughs up the cuticle on us curlies. My hair is healthy, my scalp less itchy …I’ve been able to grow my hair long due to less haircuts and my curls look great. Everyday I get compliments on my hair.

    Reply
    1. Holly Avatar
      Holly

      I was thinking the same. Never heard of using baking soda. I just use a homemade bar off etsy, every few days, and I’m good.

      Reply
    2. Jazz Testolini Avatar
      Jazz Testolini

      I’ve also used the “no poo” brand for curly hair as well. There are a lot of extra ingredients in there though that makes me skeptical whether it’s that safe or not. It’s at least better then ones with parabens and sulphites though.

      Reply
    3. Debi Baldwin Avatar
      Debi Baldwin

      I’ve been following the curly girl method for well over 3 years now. No shampoo, sulfates, silicones, drying alcohols, etc., have touched my hair in this time and I love my hair and my curls! I’d never even heard of using baking soda.

      Reply
    4. Mia Avatar
      Mia

      Same here Holly. I use the curly girl method as well and have never heard of washing hair with baking soda. And even if I did, I am pretty positive I never would give it a try. But, as an fyi…the information presented is good non-the-less. Thank you Wellness Mama.

      Reply
    5. Janet Avatar
      Janet

      I’ve been no poo for 6 years. I use Dr bronner soap and apple cider vinegar. I’ve not had split ends since and my hair feels great! But now I’m getting a different kind of damage with breakage! A friend has gifted me with a shampoo to fix it! What do I do? I’m afraid to use it, that I will suffer through the transitional stage again when I go back to soap. Or maybe I should try this conditioner only method. I’ve always had dry hair. Has anyone gone from no poo to conditioner only? Is there an adjustment transition?

      Reply
  20. Emily Griffin - Waldron Avatar
    Emily Griffin – Waldron

    What about those that don’t use anything to wash their hair? Most people who do the “no poo” method just rinse their hair with water.

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    2. Judith Brighton Avatar
      Judith Brighton

      I use a really dilute (3 parts water/1 part Bronner’s Castile Soap) “shampoo” about every two weeks, with a water wash in between if I need it. ALWAYS an ACV rinse – it’s what makes a water wash meaningful, really. Works really well for me.

      Reply
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