Photo by Lisa Solonynko
Lemon juice is often used as a natural, clarifying cleanser.
By Traci Hukill
Want to relieve your shampoo reliance? Plenty tested these natural cleansers and conditioners to find out which ones work and which ones are washouts.
BAKING SODA: This is the best natural cleanser I found, but don’t use it more than once every few weeks: Too-frequent use will strip away the lipids in the hair’s cuticle, says hair researcher Yash Kamath of Princeton-based TRI (formerly known as the Textiles Research Institute). Dissolve 1 teaspoon in a cup of warm water, massage through hair, and rinse. Leaves hair crazy silky and squeaky-clean.
BEER: In a favorite book of mine from childhood, the heroine escapes from a Nazi concentration camp and is taken in by nuns who wash her matted hair with beer, making it lovely again. I had such high hopes as I opened the can in the shower! Instead it left a dull residue on my hair. I’ll stick to drinking it.
HAIRBRUSH: Brushing every single night makes my wavy hair too straight, but 100 strokes twice a week helps to distribute the natural oils evenly.
LEMON JUICE: Some people swear by it as a clarifying cleanser, but after applying the juice of one lemon to my hair and rinsing, I found it lank and lifeless for a couple of days.
MAYONNAISE: The ingredients in this supposed miracle conditioner—eggs, lemon, and oil—are the holy trinity of home hair remedies, but I say leave the stuff on the sandwich.
OLIVE OIL: Good for long hair that gets dry on the ends. A drop or two—no more—rubbed between the palms and applied lightly to dry hair will moisturize and add shine.
Provided by Plenty - http://www.plentymag.com
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