The “no-poo” method is meant to help you stop being dependent on commercial hair products. But there are some things about it that you should treat with caution.
Let’s start with what is the no poo method.
The no poo method is a simple hair care routine, and a lot of people are doing it because it relieves their dependency on modern day hair products. Ingredients you need are cheap, it’s easy to do. It is a natural, vegan, and holistic approach to hair care.
No foam means no sulfates
Regular commercial shampoos have harsh sulfates clean the hair a little too well and end up stripping it of its natural oils, which causes your scalp to produce more oil than is actually needed. And a lot of people swear that the no poo method makes the hair gazillion times better.
To do this method you need four things:
- baking soda,
- apple cider vinegar (ACV),
- 2 spray bottles.
Basically, the baking soda is your shampoo and the apple cider vinegar is your conditioner.
Directions
- To make your shampoo take 1 tbsp of baking soda and mix it with warm water in a bottle.
- To make your conditioner fill the bottle half with ACV and fill the rest with water.
- Wet your hair as usual.
- When your hair is wet spray hair roots with your baking soda shampoo. Try to saturate your entire scalp.
- After you cover your entire scalp with baking soda massage it for several minutes.
- Rinse your hair with water (not hot).
- Apply ACV conditioner on rinsed hair. Just spray it on your hair starting from the ends.
- Spray the end and the middle of your hair, stay away from the roots.
- Leave the ACV in for at least 5 min and then rinse it out.
- Continue with your regular styling routine.
- Just let your hair dry.
Feel free to change any of the measurements to accommodate your needs for your hair. Add more baking soda if your hair is thick and long or oily, and less if it’s short and thin or dry.
Warnings and tips
Control pH levels
Baking soda has a pH of 8. This is outside of the range where hair products normally are, they’re supposed to be between 4-7. Always washing your hair with an alkaline will tear it up. Applying apple cider vinegar is essential. Apple cider vinegar works in complement to baking soda. As a more acidic product, it balances out the alkalizing effect of the baking soda to restore your hair’s normal pH levels.
If your hair start becoming dry, stop using this method! I wouldn’t suggest this method to anyone that has sensitive hair at least.
Make sure that you are using baking soda, NOT baking powder
Baking soda has only one ingredient: sodium bicarbonate (IUPAC name: sodium hydrogen carbonate), is a chemical compound with the formula NaHCO3. Because it has long been known and is widely used, the salt has many related names such as baking soda, bread soda, cooking soda, and bicarbonate of soda.
All baking powders contain sodium bicarbonate (just like baking soda). But baking powder also contains two acids. One of these acids is called monocalcium phosphate. The second acid is either sodium acid pyrophosphate or sodium aluminum sulfate. These acids will no doubt damage your skin and hair.
ACV smell
Apple cider vinegar smells very strong. Once your hair dries, the vinegar smell almost disappears. If you’re worried about the vinegar smell in your bathroom you can add some essential oils like lavender, rosemary, or citrus to freshen it up. Also if you want your hair to smell good, rinse with green tea, mint tea, or jasmine tea. Or you can add a couple of drops of essential oil while brushing your hair after washing it.
Transition period and oily scalp
At first, you may notice that your scalp feels more gross and oily than usual. This is because you’re not used to soft sulfate free cleansers. You will need from 3 to 14 days to adjust and balance.
For everyone who’s going to try this I want them to be aware of these things. Anyway, I think it’s worth a try along with modifications to meet one’s wants/needs. It just might be the thing you’re looking for.