We are faced with a variety of choices when we walk down the shampoo aisle. Whether you are loyal to a salon brand or prefer the drug store varieties, Zumer has rinsed clean this industry to uncover the good, bad and the downright unclean issues affecting this sector.
How clean is your shampoo? Don't see the brand of shampoo you normally use on our list? Why not do a little digging and enter your shampoo into Zumer to see how it compares.
"Herbal" additives, "Pro-V" Vitamins, "revitalizing agents" and "essential amino acids" are common place terms used in shampoo advertising, but how much good do they really do? These additives are heavily marketed to the consumer, making us believe that they will positively affect the health of our hair. The validity surrounding the health benefits of vitamins in shampoo has yet to be proven and raises an important point surrounding the accuracy of the claims made by corporations in the personal care industry. In North America shampoo is only required to list all of the found ingredients in the product. There is no regulation surrounding substantiating claims about hair health or effectiveness of shampoo additives, which means you could be spending more than you need to. Read more...
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Many top-selling brands such as Redken (L'Oreal) and Dove (Unilever) have nearly identical formulas across their shampoo product lines, except for some difference in fragrance and plant extracts (which do nothing for hair, but may irritate the scalp). (From Paula Begoun's comprehensive book, "Don't Go Shopping For Hair-Care Products Without Me") Cancer-causing agent 1, 4-dioxane is known to be present in many conventional personal care products, but was also recently found in leading brands of claimed natural and uncertified organic shampoos, body washes, lotions and other personal care products. For full list of products that 1, 4-dioxane was detectible see this list. |
Organic? Really?
Not only do corporations try to play up the benefits of their shampoo additives, but more recently many have been jumping on the green bandwagon. Terms like "organics", "all-natural", and "botanicals", are popping up on shampoo bottles. We would hope that companies claiming to be organic would go the extra mile and gain a trust-worthy third party organic certification such as USDA Certified Organic. In a consumer alert put out by The Organic Consumers Association, they warn that:
"A visit to any health food store unfortunately reveals the majority of products in the personal care section with "organic" brand claims are not USDA certified, and contain only cheap water extracts of organic herbs and maybe a few other token organic ingredients for organic veneer. The core of such products are composed of conventional synthetic cleansers and conditioning ingredients usually made in part with petrochemicals." Read more...
Product Safety
Chemicals found regularly in shampoo and other personal care products, such as Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS), Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES) and Phthalates, are commonly linked to birth defects. Should we look to eliminate these chemicals from our everyday lives?
The EU seems to think so. They are leading the way in placing restrictions on which chemicals are to be prohibited from being used in personal care products. With over a thousand chemicals identified as potentially harmful to human health, the EU's Cosmetics Directive requires companies to eliminate 450 of these chemicals. The FDA only requires that 9 of these be eliminated from products. Read more...
Cutting through the Marketing Spin
The majority of shampoo brands found in the drug store come from a handful of companies. For example, Pantene, Aussie, and Head and Shoulders are all made by Procter and Gamble, while Unilever makes Suave, Thermasilk, and Dove. The big players in the industry have a captivating hold over shelf space which raises questions about how much choice consumers really have. What company makes your favorite shampoo? Does this knowledge change your opinion on the product? Make a comment on the Zumer Shampoo forum.
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