Perry Romanowski and the Creators of

THEBEAUTYBRAINS.COM

CAN YOU GET HOOKED ON LIP BALM?

Top Cosmetic Scientists Answer Your

Questions about the Lotions, Potions and

Other Beauty Products You Use Every Day

www.mirabooks.co.uk

About the Author

THE BEAUTY BRAINS is a group of chemists who have more than forty combined years of experience developing and testing beauty products at major cosmetic companies, including Proctor & Gamble, Unilever and Alberto Culver. PERRY ROMANOWSKI, the public face of the brains, has spent the past eighteen years researching and developing products to solve consumer problems in hair and skin care. He is the coauthor of Beginning Cosmetic Chemistry, an introductory textbook of beauty science. Visit Perry and the other lobes of the Beauty Brains at www.TheBeautyBrains.com.

To Beauty Brainiacs everywhere—

you can be beautiful and brainy

INTRODUCTION
WHO ARE THE BEAUTY BRAINS?

The Beauty Brains are a group of cosmetic scientists who understand what the chemicals used in cosmetics really do, how products are tested, and what all the advertising means. They have no cosmetics to sell so you can be sure that the information provided is the most unbiased beauty advice available.

LEFT BRAIN

The most hard-core skeptical scientist of all the Beauty Brains, the Left Brain peruses the world of science to bring you the latest developments and explain how they might apply to the cosmetic world.

RIGHT BRAIN

Still scientific, but a bit less militant, the Right Brain has a good eye for the humorous—and human interest—side of science. The Right Brain is particularly skilled in interpreting advertising claims.

SARAH BELLUM

Sarah works behind the scenes researching questions, reviewing the latest beauty technology and acting as the Beauty Brains’ guinea pig.

WHAT’S THE PURPOSE OF THE BEAUTY BRAINS?

There are literally thousands of cosmetic products and companies constantly bombarding you with confusing, and sometimes false, claims. The Beauty Brains was started in 2006 to help women understand the real science behind the beauty products they use every day. We have taken questions from people around the world about all beauty topics, including hair care, skin care, makeup and even cosmetic surgery.

We’re here to help you cut through the confusing, misleading and sometimes false information with which the beauty companies bombard you. Our goal is to explain cosmetic science to you in a way that’s entertaining and easy to understand. We believe the more information you have, the better you’ll be able to find products that you like at a price you can afford. So you can listen to the advertising, or advice from a friend, or what your stylist tells you. But if you really want to understand cosmetic products in an unbiased, scientific way, you need the Beauty Brains.

In this book we’ve collected our best questions and answers to make learning about cosmetic science easy and entertaining. By giving you honest, unbiased information, the Beauty Brains can help you become a smarter shopper so you’ll be able to get the products you like at prices you can afford.

PART I

1 HAIR PRODUCTS FROM SALONS TO STORES

Stylists love to push products but is it really the best idea to buy them? In this chapter, you’ll learn the truth about whether salon brands are really exclusive to salons, the different types of shampoos that are available and get some straight talk about the most popular hair care brand.

THE SHAMPOO SECRET BEAUTY COMPANIES DON’T WANT YOU TO KNOW

Corinne asks: I have a very sensitive scalp with fine hair and suffer from hair loss and dandruff. Dermatologists have advised me to use a clear gel shampoo that is clarifying or deep cleansing. So I’ve tried Suave Daily Clarifying Shampoo, Suave for Men Deep Cleaning Shampoo, Neutrogena Anti-residue Shampoo and Prell Classic Shampoo (original formula). I’m not happy with those choices and would like you to set me straight. What shampoo is going to work for me?

While we hate to disagree with dermatologists, we don’t understand why they recommended a deep-cleansing shampoo when you have dandruff. Deep-cleansing-type shampoos will remove the surface flakes, but only a dandruff shampoo can address the cause of flaking and itching. So we’d recommend finding a good dandruff shampoo instead of chasing deep-cleansing, clarifying and antiresidue products. This may seem confusing to you because the beauty companies tell you there are so many different kinds of shampoo. But in reality, every shampoo on the market falls into one of a few basic categories.

THERE ARE ONLY FOUR MAIN SHAMPOO TYPES IN THE WORLD

All shampoo can be categorized by their basic function. So why are there what seem like thousands of products on the market, you ask? Because companies that sell shampoo need new ways to talk about their products to keep them sounding new and exciting. There’s nothing wrong with companies being creative about their names and claims as long as they are honestly depicting what their products can do. But you can be a smarter consumer if you can see beyond the marketing hype and understand the functionality of these four basic shampoo types.

1 Deep cleansing shampoos (aka volumizing, clarifying, balancing, oil control and thickening). These shampoos are designed to get gunk off your hair and scalp. They typically contain slightly higher levels of detergents so they foam and clean better. They include the examples above as well as salon products like Paul Mitchell Shampoo and Frederic Fekkai’s Full Volume Shampoo.

2 Conditioning shampoos (aka moisturizing, 2-in-l, smoothing, antifrizz, strengthening, color care, straightening and hydrating). These kinds of formulas are all about leaving a moisturizing agent, like silicone or polyquaternium-10, on the hair to smooth it. They are very good for dry hair, especially if you color-treat or heat-style, but they can weigh down fine hair. Good examples of this type include most of the Pantene formulas and some products from the L’Oreal Vive collection and Dove Advanced Care.

3 Baby shampoos (aka kids shampoo and tear-free). These are milder, lower-foaming surfactant formulas that are designed not to sting or burn your eyes. They’re better for babies but they don’t clean hair as well. Johnson’s Baby Shampoo is the classic example, but this category also includes Touch of an Angel and The Little Bath.

4 Antidandruff shampoos (aka anti-itch, flake control and dry scalp). These are medicated shampoos that contain a drug ingredient that controls itching and flaking. In the United States these are considered to be over-the-counter (OTC) drugs. Head & Shoulders is the leading dandruff product; other examples include Nizoral Dandruff Shampoo and Redken Dandruff Control Shampoo.

THE BOTTOM LINE

We hope this helps you better understand the marketing hype surrounding shampoo names. We’re not saying that all shampoos are the same, or even that all shampoos in a given category type are the same. There are real performance differences so it’s important for you to shop around and find a product that performs the way you like at a price that you can afford. Just don’t get too hung up on the names the companies use to describe their products. That’s the marketing part of the industry, not the science part.

ARE SALON PRODUCTS IN REGULAR STORES THE SAME AS THOSE IN SALONS?

Winnie wonders: Are the salon products that you buy at the local grocery store the same as the ones you can buy at a salon? I saw a news story that said products in stores are fakes.

Salon products are no different than those sold in stores. Selling salon brands in places that aren’t salons is called diversion. The truth is that these salon brands depend on “diverted” product to boost their sales. They want to have it both ways. They want to tell you that Paul Mitchell is a salon-only brand, which makes it seem more exclusive, but they also want the high-volume sales that they can get only through mass market outlets like your local Target or Walmart. Additionally, they don’t want to anger their salon distributors because people are able to get the same stuff—but cheaper—in nonsalon outlets.

They make up this story of products being inferior. In nearly all cases, they are not. Here’s how diversion works. Paul Mitchell hires a company to manufacture its products. Then Paul Mitchell salespeople get and fill orders from distributors. Distributors are legitimate businesses that sell directly to independent salons. The distributors can order as much as they want. They then sell it to the salons, which can then sell it to you.

FOLLOW THE MONEY

Some of these distributors work directly with stores like CVS and Walgreens. So when these stores put in an order (a really big order, compared to a salon), the distributors just order more product from Paul Mitchell to fill the CVS order.

It’s not likely that Paul Mitchell even questions the big orders because company salespeople like the extra sales. They turn a blind eye to what’s going on just so they can express public “outrage” that their product is being sold at the local drugstore. This is a bunch of bunk.

The stuff you get at your local drugstore is every bit as good as the stuff you get at the salon. Don’t be fooled. If the folks at Paul Mitchell really wanted to stop these sales, they would simply question their distributors and find out who is selling to these outlets.

The problem of counterfeiting is a real one, but it’s not something that you’ll find at large stores like Target. Target is not going to sell something contaminated because the company would be sued in a heartbeat. The places that are sketchy are the small shops (some salons) with the dust on top of the bottles. Those are the places you have to worry about.

THE BOTTOM LINE

If you’re buying a salon brand from a regular store, you can trust that there is no difference between that and the stuff you can get at a salon.

ARE PAUL MITCHELL PRODUCTS MAKING YOUR HAIR BREAK?

Joan asks: About a year ago my stylist started using Paul Mitchell products on me and I haven’t loved my hair since! Now it’s damaged and it breaks easily. My stylist blames me for using a flat iron. I know that doesn’t help but I’ve used a flat iron for years and have never had this happen. She tells me that’s because I had my hair colored so much. I have never had these problems until she switched to Paul Mitchell. Is it possible that his products made my hair start to break off and thin out?

We see how you could think that Paul Mitchell made your hair go bad, but we doubt that’s really what happened. Paul Mitchell products are not different enough from other products you’ve been using (except for probably costing more), so there is likely a different reason you’re experiencing hair breakage. It is natural to leap to conclusions like this, but they are often incorrect.

Instead of worrying about Paul Mitchell, we’d blame three other factors for your hair problem:

1 Flat iron usage is very bad for your hair. That’s probably the most immediate cause of daily breakage. If you want less damage, consider ironing less frequently.

2 In the long run, the worst thing you can do is chemically color your hair. Coloring breaks down the hair’s protein, making it weaker. Frequent chemical processing literally pushes your hair to its “breaking point.”

3 The first two factors are worsened because you’re getting older and your hair is weaker. As we age, our hair gets less dense and more prone to breakage. That’s probably why you’re seeing so much hair breakage recently—Father Time is catching up with you!

WHAT TO DO

So, what can you do? Well, the shampoo doesn’t matter much as long as you’re using a conditioner. The Paul Mitchell conditioner is good, but so are many other cheaper, mass market brands like Fructis, Pantene and TRESemmé. You might consider using one of these every time you wash your hair. The conditioner should provide enough lubrication to the hair so that pulling on it with a comb does not break it. It may even provide some protection against the heat of the flat iron. If you’re not using a conditioner, be sure to use a conditioning shampoo like Pantene 2-in-1. This should help slow your hair-breaking problem.

THE BOTTOM LINE

In truth, heat, coloring and age are all conspiring against you to break your hair. You can’t do anything about the aging process but if you stopped coloring and reduced the heat exposure, your hair would break less. Of course, then you might not like how it looks. Such is the price we pay for beauty!

DOES OJON RESTORATIVE TREATMENT LIVE UP TO ITS HYPE?

Alison asks: I am wondering what you think of the Ojon products, specifically their restorative hair treatment that claims a 52 percent improvement in the condition of very dry hair after just one use. Is this really any better than other products, and how does it work?

Ojon’s oil treatment consists of palm oil, fragrance and a few extracts. It’s particularly interesting because recent research has shown that only some oils will actually penetrate the hair. Mineral oil and sunflower oil, for example, will not penetrate. But coconut oil (which is essentially the same as palm oil) will filter deep into the cortex because it is so similar to hair’s natural lipids.

OIL CONDITIONS HAIR

Why is that a big deal? Because the natural oils in your hair help make it flexible and waterproof. Washing your hair removes some of these natural oils. So it is possible that applying coconut oil to your hair can fight some of the effects of this oil loss. Once inside the hair, the oil serves as a re-fatting agent. However, this type of conditioning won’t have much effect on the cuticle—the outer layer of hair—so you’ll still need to use a good conditioner to smooth the hair and make it easier to comb.

Is that a good value? Well, that’s another question. Any other coconut oil-based product should do about the same job and should be much cheaper. We don’t recommend any specific brands, but look for products that feature coconut oil as the first ingredient.

Is there anything to Ojon’s rain-forest hype? Well, its rain-forest story seems well-intentioned, but this ingredient isn’t proven to work any better or any differently than non-rain-forest ingredients. Coconut trees only grow in tropical climates, but there’s nothing special about trees from the rain forest. So if you like Ojon’s products and you want to support their cause and you can afford the $55 for this product, then by all means buy it. But don’t buy the product just because the company tells you its rain-forest extract is better.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Based on recent scientific research, the palm oil used by Ojon should penetrate the hair. Therefore, it could protect your hair from overwashing. However, at $55, it’s a bit pricey, so shop around for other coconut oil products because you may be able to get the same effect for less money.

TWO NATURAL OILS THAT MAKE YOUR HAIR SHINY AND STRONG

Shannon says: I have been using coconut oil for a while and I feel my hair is stronger than it used to be. I’d like to keep using it and I want to add olive oil to make my hair shiny, but I’m worried that mixing the two oils will stop the coconut oil from penetrating. Is it OK to mix two oils on my hair?

Yes, studies have shown that coconut oil actually penetrates the hair to help make it stronger. And as it turns out, olive oil also has penetrating properties. Scientists at the Textile Research Institute tested olive oil, avocado oil, meadowfoam seed oil, sunflower oil and jojoba oil. Their results showed that straight-chain glycerides like olive oil easily penetrate into the hair. Polyunsaturated oils, like jojoba oil, are more open in their structure so they don’t pass through the layers of cuticles very well.

What does that mean in plain English? Olive and avocado oils penetrate all the way into the hair shaft. Meadowfoam seed oil partially penetrates, and jojoba and sunflower oils don’t penetrate at all. They’re very superficial and don’t really provide any practical benefit.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Mixing coconut and olive oils shouldn’t be a problem. In fact, it’s possible that the olive/coconut oil combination might even penetrate hair better. We won’t bore you with the details, but it has to do with mixed micelles. We’d start with a 50/50 mixture and see how that works for your hair.

IS PANTENE GOOD OR BAD FOR YOUR HAIR?

Kara says: I’ve heard a lot of things about Pantene Pro-V’s shampoo and conditioner. Many hairstylists swear on their hair dryers that it is awful for your hair. Supposedly, it coats your hair with plastic or wax to make it seem smooth, soft and shiny, instead of really moisturizing your hair. It also reportedly makes your scalp itchy and your hair fall out.

However, I’ve been using the Pantene Restoratives shampoo and conditioner for a few months now, and I find my hair less frizzy, more manageable, smoother and softer. I also use John Frieda Frizz-Ease and Pantene Pro-V Restoratives Frizz Control Ultra Smoothing Balm. So set me straight: Is Pantene good or bad for my hair?

Don’t fall into the trap of believing everything your stylist tells you. While most stylists are very talented at cutting and styling hair, they’re not very talented at interpreting cosmetic formulations.

The truth is that Pantene’s shampoo and conditioner formulas are considered among the best in the industry by those of us in the cosmetic science side of the business. It makes sense if you think about it. Proctor & Gamble, makers of Pantene, have a huge research budget; certainly larger than any salon company. That means they can afford to dedicate resources to developing and testing the best formulas possible. We’ve seen Pantene formulas beat the pants off salon products in blind consumer testing. (The products are hidden, or blinded—not the consumers.)

WHY IS PANTENE VILIFIED?

So why do stylists say that Pantene coats the hair with plastic, or makes it fall out? Because that’s what they’re told by the sales representatives for the salon companies. But it’s just not true! Compare the ingredients lists for Pantene conditioner and any salon brand you can find. Even though the names vary, you’ll see three basic types of ingredients:

Fatty alcohols (like cetyl and stearyl alcohol)

Conditioning ingredients (like stearamidopropylamine and quaternium-18)

Silicones (like dimethicone and cyclomethicone)

There’s nary a plastic to be found in Pantene. And no, it doesn’t make your hair fall out, either.

THE BOTTOM LINE

You can choose whatever product you like—a retail brand like Pantene or a salon brand like Matrix. But shop around and make your own decisions based on your own experience. Don’t pass on Pantene because of what a stylist tells you.

DO CURLING SHAMPOOS REALLY WORK?

Carol comments: I’d love to believe that those curling shampoos will really shape my thick hair. Will they?

This is an easy one. Curling shampoos do not make your hair curly. In fact, if you read the labels carefully, some of them don’t even say they’ll make your hair curly!

CHECK OUT THE BOTTLE

Let’s take a look, shall we? Even the most blatant offender of the truth, Wash ‘n Curl Shampoo, only implies that it will make your hair curly just by shampooing. Read the label carefully: It says it provides “the most beautiful curls with body, bounce and resilience after styling.” Well, duh! If the shampoo only makes your hair curly after you style it, it’s not really doing much for you, is it?

What else does Wash ‘n Curl say? “Your hair will be extremely curl responsive … Even dry, damaged, color-treated hair will have the staying power of thick curly hair … Its special Curl Enhancers infuse hair with the Holding Power of naturally curly hair.”

The only worthwhile part of this claim is that the shampoo does contain something that could be called a “curl enhancer.” Looking at the ingredients list, we see that it does contain a polymer (acrylates/C10-30 alkyl acrylate crosspolymer), that could provide some styling benefits. But that would only work if it wasn’t rinsed out!

Remember, just because a product contains an ingredient that does something doesn’t mean that it does something in that product!

The rest of the claims are pretty much made up, as far as we can tell. There is not yet a shampoo technology that will measurably improve the holding power of your hair.

OTHER CURLING SHAMPOOS

What about other products, you ask? Well, here are two more:

Neither KMS Curl Up Shampoo nor Marc Anthony Strictly Curls makes strong curling claims. KMS only promises to be your “curl’s best friend,” “start your style in the shower” and “boost boisterous curls while adding moisture and shine.”

Marc, on the other hand, offers to protect color; repair dry, frizzy areas; and repel humidity to define shiny, soft curls. (Define curls is not really a very emphatic claim.) Aside from a little polyquaternium (a conditioning ingredient), neither of these products has any curling technology, either.

We could go on and on, but you get the picture. These shampoos don’t have anything in them to make your hair curly. They don’t even really do anything to prepare your hair for styling, other than getting it clean.

THE BOTTOM LINE

If you really want curly hair, go buy some mousse or, God forbid, get a perm! Curling shampoos don’t work.

2 TIPS ON CARING FOR YOUR HAIR

We all care about hair care products, but have you ever wondered what really works? In this chapter we’ll give you tips on preventing split ends, drying hair properly, keeping it shiny, and we’ll even explore how to keep your hair from smelling bad. If you want great-looking hair without spending a fortune, this chapter gives you the answers.

DRYING DILEMMA: WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO DRY YOUR HAIR?

Angela asks: I usually don’t have the patience to blow-dry my hair completely, but my hairdresser said it’s not good for my hair if I only half blow it dry and then let it finish drying by itself. Is it true?

We think this idea is kind of silly but we’ll avoid the temptation to just tell you to get a new hairdresser and instead we’ll try to present both sides of the story.

TECHNICALLY SPEAKING

It’s more damaging to blow-dry or towel-dry your hair than it is to let it air-dry. It’s as simple as that. That’s because heat from blow-dryers can mess with the natural lipid distribution in your hair and degrade the intercellular cement that holds the hair’s protective cuticle in place. And the physical abrasion from towel-drying not only loosens healthy cuticles but can actually wear them away! So if you dry your hair a lot, you’ll end up with less shine and more split ends.

STYLISTICALLY SPEAKING

We assume a hairdresser would argue that blow-drying keeps your hair sleek and smooth and that air-drying makes it frizzy. At least this is what the hairdressers we have worked with think.

THE BOTTOM LINE

It looks like the answer to your drying dilemma could come down to this: What’s more important to you—avoiding damage or fighting frizz? Less damage is better for your long-term hair health, but nobody wants frizz. Only you can decide which to choose. But, hey, if you’re that worried about frizz, you can always use a good smoothing product after you dry your hair. You can buy a few bottles of an effective frizz fighter, like John Frieda Frizz-Ease, for only twenty bucks!

DOES ANTIDANDRUFF SHAMPOO REALLY WORK?

Fran is feeling flaky: What’s your opinion of Burt’s Bees Feelin’ Flaky Shampoo? Checking out the ingredients list, it looks as if the formulation does a good job of avoiding skin irritants (except for the tea tree oil), but since it all gets washed off after a few seconds, I don’t know how much good it could do. The ingredients are vegetable glycerin, lemon fruit water, sucrose cocoate, decyl polyglucose, willowbark extract, peppermint leaf extract (organic), willow leaf extract, burdock root extract, nettles leaf extract, yucca schidigera extract, cedar leaf oil, tea tree oil, lemon oil, rosemary oil, juniper oil, peppermint oil, xanthan gum (natural thickener), glucose, glucose oxidase and lactoperoxidase.

This is one of the shampoo issues that really make the Beauty Brains mad—false and misleading antidandruff claims. Some companies make it appear as though their products will control dandruff, but they really won’t. The way companies do this may not be strictly illegal, but it certainly is unethical in our opinion. Let’s look at this Burt’s Bees product as an example. While we believe Burt’s Bees generally produces high-quality products, the way they market their anti-dandruff shampoo is questionable.

BURT’S BEES FEELIN’ FLAKY SHAMPOO

According to drugstore.com, the full name of the product is Burt’s Bees Doctor Burt’s Herbal Treatment Shampoo with Cedar Leaf & Juniper Oil. Doctor Burt, huh? We know that the reference is tongue-in-cheek, but that sure sounds medicinal to us! Strike 1.

Below the name it describes the shampoo as Feelin’ Flaky? with a question mark. In the context of cleaning hair and scalp, flaky is generally the term used to describe a symptom of dandruff. (Itchiness is another symptom.) Hmmm. Strike 2.

And finally the directions: “Wet hair, lather, rinse, then lather and rinse again. Shampoo at least three times a week for maximum effectiveness.”

Maximum effectiveness? Again, sounds like they’re promising some kind of sustained effect. If they’re not talking about dandruff, what effectiveness are they talking about? Just getting your hair clean. That’s lame—Strike 3!

While this product, and others like it, don’t overtly claim to control dandruff, they seem to be making that implication.

WHAT’S IN A REAL ANTIDANDRUFF SHAMPOO?

The truth is antidandruff shampoos contain active ingredients that treat the physiological causes of dandruff. How can you tell if a shampoo is really effective against dandruff? In the United States, look for active drug ingredients like zinc pyrithione (ZPT) or selenium sulfide. In Europe and a few other countries, look for octopyrox on the label. If you don’t see some kind of legitimate active ingredient listed, it’s not an effective antidandruff shampoo. Don’t believe everything the cosmetics companies tell you!

THE BOTTOM LINE

You ask “how much good” this product will do for you. Well, it will certainly get your hair clean. The primary surfactants (sucrose cocoate and decyl polyglucose) will see to that. And it won’t dry your scalp out, either—those are pretty mild cleansers. But that’s about it. It’s not a medicated shampoo so it won’t do anything to control dandruff.

CAN YOU CLEAN YOUR HAIR WITH CONDITIONER?

Nancy needs to know: WEN is a line of cleansing conditioners created by Hollywood hair stylist Chaz: Dean. Dean believes that sulfates in most shampoos can be very damaging and stripping to hair, so he created these cleansing conditioners to clean hair without stripping it. Nancy wants to know if hair can really be better off in the long run by cleansing with a conditioner. And if it does work, would a regular drugstore conditioner produce the same effect?

First of all, the idea of cleansing your hair with conditioner is not new and was not invented by Chaz. And no, he’s not using any kind of revolutionary technology. Let’s take a look at the ingredients:

water, glycerin, cetyl alcohol, rosemary leaf extract, wild cherry fruit extract, fig extract, chamomile extract, marigold flower extract, behentrimonium methosulfate, cetearyl alcohol, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine, amodimethicone, hydrolized wheat protein, polysorbate 60, panthenol, menthol, sweet almond oil, PEG-60 almond glycerides, methylisothiazolinone, methylchloroisothiazolinone, citric acid, essential oils.

Looking at just the functional ingredients (leaving out extracts, preservatives and pH adjusters) leaves the following:

glycerin, cetyl alcohol, behentrimonium methosulfate, cetearyl alcohol, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine (SADMA) and amodimethicone.

COMMON CONDITIONER

These are very common conditioning ingredients. Here’s what they do: Glycerin can provide moisturization in a leave-on product, but it doesn’t do anything for hair when it’s rinsed out. Cetyl and cetearyl alcohol are thickening and emulsifying agents used to make a conditioner rich and creamy. Because they’re oil-soluble they could, in theory, help lift some of the sebum off your hair and scalp. Behentrimonium methosulfate, SADMA and amodimethicone are very effective conditioning ingredients because they deposit on the hair.

DOES IT WORK?

Could you clean your hair with this product? Sure, if your hair isn’t very dirty, this could work pretty well. But so could any basic conditioner. In fact, we’d look for a conditioner that doesn’t have any silicone in it, just to make sure it leaves as little on your hair as possible.

But what if you have greasy hair, or if you use hairspray, mousse, gel or putty? Then cleansing conditioners are not a very good idea. They don’t have enough cleansing power to remove gunk from the hair. Chances are that cleansing with conditioner will leave your hair feeling dirty and weighed down.

THE BOTTOM LINE

If you’re really worried about drying your hair out by overshampooing, there’s nothing wrong with skipping your shampoo and just rinsing with conditioner once in a while. But you don’t need to spend $28 on a special product. A nice inexpensive drugstore brand like Suave or VO5 will do the same thing.

WANT SHINY HAIR? AVOID THE DULLING DOZEN!

Naturally shiny hair has a cuticle that’s smooth and flat; it’s plumped up with water (about 10 to 15% by weight) and it’s rich in natural oils that keep the whole thing “glued” together. Unfortunately, you’re stealing shine from your hair every day and you probably don’t even realize it. If you want good gloss, you should avoid these twelve things that can rob hair of shine. Or as we like to call them, the Dulling Dozen:

Flood damage

Even “harmless” water can be a shine stealer. That’s because too much moisture swells the hair shaft and causes the cuticle to buckle. The more frequently you wet your hair, the less shine you’re likely to have.

Shampoo scrubbing

Scrubbing bubbles seem cute but that rub-a-dub-dub lifts the cuticle even more. Using a conditioning shampoo can help because the hair shafts won’t snag against each other when you’re lathering up.

Careless underconditioning

OK, we don’t all need to condition every time we wash our hair. But if your hair is dry to begin with, it’s much more likely to be damaged during and after styling if you skip conditioner. You’re just giving shine away!

Death by towel-drying

So now your hair is wet. What do you do? Blot, don’t rub! A rough towel can cause an amazing amount of damage on wet hair.

The brush-off

Don’t fall for that old myth that you should brush your hair 100 strokes every night. While brushing does temporarily help by distributing natural oils, in the long run it strips off layers of cuticle and weakens hair.

Hot-styling appliances

Heat is the natural enemy of shine. That’s because high temperatures damage the natural lipids (fancy word for oils) that help keep hair flexible and shiny. If you do decide to heat-style, use protection, like the silicone-containing TRESemmé Thermal Creations Heat Tamer spray.

Protective product residue

Yes, you do need to use heat protection, but be careful what you wish for. Some leave-in creams and gels leave behind a dulling residue.

Color my world

Chemical coloring is very damaging because it breaks down the inner structure of hair protein. Even if you use the special conditioner that comes with the coloring kit, your hair never fully recovers.

Wave bye-bye

Permanent waving is another chemical process that’s highly damaging.

Twist and shout

Twisting and playing with your hair is a dangerous habit as far as shine is concerned. That’s because the torsional forces (fancy word for twisting and bending) loosen the cuticles.

I dig a pony

Wearing your hair in a ponytail may seem like a hassle-free style, but if you pull it back too tightly you may be creating microfractures in the hair that will reflect light unevenly and cause loss of shine.

Here somes the sun

And with the sun comes damaging UV radiation that can wreak havoc on natural hair lipids like 18-methyl eicosanoic acid. Without these lipids, hair dulls quickly. If you can’t stay out of the sun, make sure you’re protecting your hair with a good conditioner.

ARE HAIR EXTENSIONS KILLING YOUR HAIR?

Wanda writes: I got hair extensions almost two years ago. I paid $4,000 for the kind that are put on individually with clips, which need to be put in and taken out with a tool that only salons have and they have to be adjusted every month.

After about nine months, as the stylist was adjusting the clips, I noticed that my hair was coming out along with the extensions! There was no more hair below the clip of hair extension hair. My hair was just gone. It all broke off at hundreds of different places where the clips were attached. It looked like a horror film!

I cried for months. Now my hair is still growing from my roots, but it’s not getting longer. Is there anything I can do to help strengthen my hair and stop it from breaking? If I were a multimillionaire, would there be some way? Do movie stars have some way that we don’t know about to repair their hair?

Based on her description, Wanda probably has a condition known as traction alopecia, a type of hair loss that is caused by pulling on hair. In some cases this can be caused by wearing your hair in a ponytail; in this case it’s caused by the weight of the extensions. Over a long period, this pulling stress can cause the follicle to atrophy and stop producing normal hairs. Depending on the intensity and duration of the stress, the follicle may or may not recover.

FOLLICLE RECOVERY

If the extensions are removed in time, the follicles will recover and begin producing thick, strong hairs again. But if the follicles were permanently damaged, there’s not much that can be done. Sadly, there is no secret millionaire’s product that can solve the problem; there is no known medical treatment for late-stage traction alopecia.

One thing that might help increase hair strength, though, is treatment with pure coconut oil. Coconut oil is one of the few natural oils shown to penetrate the cortex and provide some strengthening effect to hair. It won’t make hair grow any thicker, but it might help protect thinner, weaker strands.

STRAIGHT TALK ABOUT STRAIGHTENING IRONS

Corinne asks: I’m in the market for a high-end straightening iron, and I feel completely overwhelmed by all the product choices out there! The major differences I see for most irons are the types of plates used, which include tourmaline/ceramic mix, ceramic and metal. While I’m presuming it’s the high heat (some heat up to 450°F) that helps straighten the hair shaft, how do these different plates benefit the hair? Are these newer kinds of straighteners with the tourmaline and ceramic healthier for your hair? I’m looking for an iron that works well, but doesn’t completely wreck and fry my hair shaft.

The number of choices for hair appliances is, indeed, paralyzing! But you don’t have to pay too much attention to all the hype about the different types of ironing plates. While it’s true that more expensive irons can be made from higher-quality materials, that really just means that the heating element is more rugged and the plates are built to take wear and tear. Cheaper flat irons may have inferior plates that can’t handle the heat and may snag your hair.

But whether it is tourmaline or ceramic, there’s nothing about the composition of the plate material that makes it intrinsically healthier for your hair. And don’t believe any of that crap about ionic straighteners. That’s pure marketing hype without a shred of scientific validation.

THE BOTTOM LINE

When buying a straightening iron, you’ll need to pay a bit more for high-quality construction, but you don’t need to pay extra for bogus scientific claims. There is no proof that tourmaline irons are better.

HOW TO KILL LICE AND NOT YOUR HAIR

Susan scratches her head: I’m having a lice problem. I just want to know what’s the most effective way to kill lice and nits and not dry or damage my hair in the process.

Head lice are tiny crawling insects about the size of a sesame seed or smaller. They have six clawed legs that they use to crawl over your hair; they cannot hop, jump or fly. Lice lay eggs, also known as nits, which they glue to individual hair shafts. Lice live only on humans, not pets, and (here’s the best part) they feed on human blood!

9 TIPS TO STOP SMELLY HAIR

It seems that a lot of people are complaining about smelly hair, and the blogosphere is buzzing with tips on how to neutralize hair odors. Here are nine ways to get rid of the odor and keep your hair smelling great.

1. Wash and condition your hair: This may seem obvious, but it’s the most thorough way to get your hair clean and odor-free.

2. Hair wipes: Hair wipes are like baby wipes made especially for your locks. Ted Gibson has an excellent product that should help remove any odor from your hair.

3. Hair fragrance: One way to get rid of an odor is to cover it up with some other odor. Hair fragrances are great for this purpose.

4. Use your perfume: If you can’t find a “real” hair fragrance, just improvise with your favorite perfume or cologne. Just be sure not to use too much!

5. Powder shampoo: Instead of getting your hair wet, you can use a dry powder shampoo to add a little fragrance and remove the odor. Just sprinkle it in and brush the odors out.

6. Leave-in conditioner or combing cream: A touch of leave-in conditioner or another styling product can mask icky odors.

7. Do a speedy, secret sink wash: Wet your hands, take a tiny dab of liquid soap and run your fingers through your hair. Caution: This doesn’t work on all hairstyles.

8. Dryer sheets: You’ll cover up the odor and you’ll get rid of embarrassing static cling.

9. Use an antimicrobial shampoo: This can help if your smelly scalp is caused by scalp fungus or bacteria.

NIT PICKING

The good news is that there several over-the-counter drug products that are effective against lice and nits. The bad news is that these products contain isopropyl alcohol, which can dry your hair. There are “natural” lice cures, but there is little or no data to prove that these are effective. The safest and surest way to get rid of lice and not damage your hair is to use a lice comb to pick the nits out one by one, but this is a very tedious and time-consuming process.

Recently, there was a study done by researchers at the University of Utah in which they created a steam-cleaning device (a cross between a vacuum cleaner and a hair dryer) to kill lice. It’s not even available to the public yet, but it could prove to be an interesting new treatment.

BEST LICE TREATMENT

Which treatment method is best? Rather than spelling out all the pros and cons of each method here, go to HeadLice.org for a thorough question-and-answer page. And if you do decide to use the lice-killing shampoo, make sure you follow that with a good conditioner to counteract the drying effects of the alcohol.

3 HAIR MYTHS

While your mom, friends and stylist are well-meaning when they give you advice about hair products, they may not be giving you accurate, science-based information. We do that here as we explore some common myths about hair products and let you know whether they are true or not. Should you really avoid silicone? Do certain products leave plastic on your hair? Read on to find out.

ARE YOU SPENDING TOO MUCH ON CONDITIONER?

Christine queries: Will a more expensive conditioner make my hair stronger? I’m a science teacher, so don’t spare me the technical details!

Expensive does not always mean better when it comes to hair and skin care products, but to explain further, we’ll have to fill you in on how conditioners work.

HOW DO CONDITIONERS STRENGTHEN HAIR?

The outer layer of the hair consists of overlapping scales, called cuticles. These cuticles are like the shingles on the roof of your house—they protect what’s beneath it. As your hair is damaged from washing and drying and combing and brushing and perming and coloring, the cuticle starts to wear away. When this happens, your hair is broken more easily.

Conditioners strengthen hair in two ways. The most important thing they do is smooth the cuticle and help keep it in place. The “strengthening” effect can be shown by measuring combing force. The other effect is internal. Some ingredients, like panthenol, penetrate into the cortex, the middle part of the hair. By interacting with the proteins in the cortex, these conditioners can improve the tensile strength of hair. This type of strength is measured with an instrument that pulls on individual hair fibers (after they’ve been removed from your head, of course!) and measures how much force it takes for the hair to break.

ARE EXPENSIVE CONDITIONERS BETTER?

So do expensive conditioners strengthen hair better than cheap ones? Not necessarily. The very, very cheap conditioners typically rely on one or two conditioning agents to do the job. And they usually can’t afford to use silicones, which are among the most effective smoothing agents. So, chances are, if you’re only spending a buck or two on your conditioner, you’re not getting the best product.

But once you get up in price to the $4 or $5 conditioners, the differences in strengthening are less significant. For example, Pantene and TRESemmé are among the best conditioners we’ve ever tested and they’re certainly not that expensive. Most mid-or high-priced conditioners will do a pretty good job of lubricating your hair to prevent breakage.

CAN A CONDITIONER BE TOO EXPENSIVE?

What about the conditioners that are $30 per bottle? They use the same basic types of ingredients as products that cost $10 or less. They may cost three times more, but they certainly don’t strengthen your hair three times more! But, as we always say, you should buy what you like and what you can afford. If you really like the way Frederic Fekkai’s Overnight Hair Repair makes your hair feel, and you can afford the $195 per bottle, then go for it. (Yes, that’s right—it’s nearly $200!) But don’t buy it just because you think that it will make your hair stronger than a less expensive brand. It won’t.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Picking the right conditioner is a personal thing. There are literally thousands of combinations of ingredients out there and it’s tough to know which one is best for you. So talk to your friends who have similar hair types. Or just experiment until you find something that feels good. But don’t be tricked into spending more money than you want to.

ARE SILICONES BAD FOR YOUR HAIR?

Bonnie is confused: There seems to be a lot of conflicting information about silicone-heavy hair products, and whether or not they help make hair soft and silky. I’m concerned about buildup and having my hair dry out. Also, how do more natural alternatives, like coconut and sweet almond oil, compare?

In general, silicones work by covering hair with a thin, hydrophobic (waterproof) coating. This coating serves several purposes: It helps reduce the porosity of the hair, which makes it less likely to absorb humidity; it helps reduce moisture loss from the inside of the hair; and it lubricates the surface of the hair so it feels smoother and can be combed more easily.

PROPERTIES OF SILICONES

The properties vary depending on which silicone is in the formula. Some silicones leave a heavy coating on the hair that can be hard to wash off. Others are very water-soluble and don’t build up at all. Dimethicone (sometimes called simethicone), for example, is the heaviest of all silicones used for hair care. It provides the most smoothing effect, but it is also the hardest to wash out. Cyclomethicone, on the other hand, gives a great slippery feeling while you’re rinsing your hair, but it evaporates quickly, leaving nothing behind.

Some natural oils are effective conditioners. Coconut oil, for example, doesn’t provide the same surface smoothing as silicones, but it has been shown to penetrate hair and plasticize the cortex, making hair stronger. (This isn’t true of all natural oils, however.) So oils are useful ingredients, but they’re not direct replacements for silicones.

THE BOTTOM LINE

It’s tough to tell which silicones are the best simply from reading the label because there are so many types of silicones and they can be used in combination with each other. You can’t simply say that all silicones are bad. Some women will find silicones too heavy for their hair; others will love the soft, conditioned feel they provide. You have to experiment to find what’s right for you.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A SILICONE AND A POLYQUAT?

Jackie just needs to know: What’s the difference between a silicone and a polyquat? Do both coat and stay on the hair? Do they both need to be removed by sulfates? Do they both tend to build up on the hair?

Silicones and polyquats are ingredients found in both shampoos and conditioners. They are put in formulas to offset the drying effects of detergents, improving hair by making it easier to comb, making it feel softer, increasing shine and reducing static flyaway. They really are amazing materials. The primary difference between them is their chemical composition and the way they stay on the hair.

**Caution: Science talk coming up …

SILICONES ARE MADE OF SILICON

Silicones (or “cones”) are molecules that have silicon in them. The silicone, which is typically derived from sand, reacts with oxygen, carbon and hydrogen to make useful materials. Ingredients like dimethicone and cyclomethicone are naturally slippery and shiny, which is why they are excellent for hair.

POLYQUATS ARE MADE OF HYDROCARBONS

Polyquats are molecules that are composed primarily of carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen. The quat part refers to the fact that they contain a positively charged nitrogen atom and the poly part refers to the fact that they are polymers. They also have a slippery effect and can smooth hair while reducing static charge.

BOTH STAY ON HAIR, BUT IN DIFFERENT WAYS

Because of the different chemistry of polyquats and silicones, each of these compounds uses a different method to stay on the hair. On hair, the damaged portions are typically negatively charged. The positive charges on the polyquat allow it to stick to these negative sites on the hair. It is a bit like two magnets being attracted to each other.

Silicones are not usually charged, but stay on the hair because of their incompatibility with water. If you put a drop of silicone in water, it will not dissolve, no matter how much you stir it. When a silicone product is put on your hair, it deposits and resists being washed off.

DETERGENTS ARE NEEDED TO REMOVE THEM

Since silicones and polyquats stick to hair, they need more than just water to remove them. In fact, silicones can stick to hair so well that they may require multiple shampooings before they are removed. Similarly, some polyquats may be difficult to remove from hair. While a sulfate shampoo isn’t required to remove them, sulfates are your best bet.

BOTH MAY BUILD UP ON HAIR

Depending on the type of molecule, both silicones and polyquats may build up on your hair. Dimethicone is one of the most difficult silicones to remove and multiple use of products with it can make your hair look dull and weighed down over time. Cyclomethicone, on the other hand, evaporates from hair like water and will not cause the same problems. Polyquats do not build up as much, but still require occasional washing with a polyquat-free shampoo.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Silicones and polyquats are different materials but they both stay on hair and can build up over time. It is a good idea to wash your hair once a week with a shampoo that doesn’t contain either one in order to prevent buildup and keep your hair looking fresh, shiny and manageable.

WHY DOES SILICONE BUILD UP ON HAIR?

When it comes to buildup, the type of silicone (and how much is used) is more important than if it’s used in a leave-on styler or a rinse-off conditioner. There are many types of silicone with scientific names that can be confusing, so let’s look at a few common examples.

NO BUILDUP

One of the most common types of silicone is called “cyclic” because the chain of silicone atoms that composes this kind is linked together in a ring structure. This type of silicone evaporates and won’t build up on your hair at all. It gives a silky-smooth feel and leaves the hair with incredible slip when wet. It’s used in both leave-on stylers and rinse-off conditioners and is commonly called cyclomethicone or cyclopentasiloxane.

VERY LITTLE BUILDUP

Another type of silicone is designed to be water-soluble. This kind provides very light conditioning and is unlikely to build up because it washes away easily with water. It is often used in conditioning shampoos. Look for polyol in the name, as in dimethicone copolyol.

MODERATE TO HEAVY BUILDUP

There is a different kind of silicone that is chemically modified to stick to your hair better. That means it conditions well, but it can also be more challenging to remove. This kind generally has amo, amine or amino somewhere in the name. For example, amodimethicone is commonly used in leave-in conditioners.

POTENTIALLY HEAVY BUILDUP

Finally, perhaps the most powerful type of silicone is referred to as a silicone oil. It comes in many different forms but is typically used at very high molecular weights to make it highly waterproof, so it provides good shine to the hair. Because it’s so water-insoluble, it can be very tough to wash off, depending, of course, on how much you have on your hair. Typically, this is used in rinse-off products. Look for it on the ingredients list as dimethicone.

IS BABY SHAMPOO GOOD FOR ADULT HAIR?

Sylvia asks: Are baby shampoos sufficient to clean adult hair? I know they are sulfate-free and I have been looking for this type of shampoo to minimize the drying effect from shampoos with sulfates.

There is a lot of misinformation out there about sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and shampoo.

IS SLS BAD?

First of all, don’t believe all the urban legends about SLS causing cancer or being bad for you because it’s used in garage cleaners. We’ve debunked this myth in chapter 10. Most people can use sodium lauryl sulfate or ammonium lauryl sulfate shampoos without any problem whatsoever.

But, some people do find that SLS can dry out their scalp. Those people should consider SLS’s milder cousin SLES (short for sodium lauryl ether sulfate) or they should consider using sulfate-free shampoos.

ARE BABY SHAMPOOS GOOD CLEANSERS?

Baby shampoos are good examples of sulfate-free formulas. Instead of SLS, they contain materials known as amphoteric surfactants, which are less drying to skin and milder to the eye. (Hence the “no more tears” claim of many baby shampoos.)

The downside to these types of formulations is that they don’t clean as well as the stronger detergent systems. While SLS is a very good cleansing agent that can remove sweat, dirt, styling product residue and scalp oils, baby shampoo formulas are not so effective.

WHY NOT BABY YOURSELF?

Is this a problem? It depends. If you’re using a ton of styling products, you might have to shampoo your hair multiple times with baby shampoo to get it as clean as with an SLS-based product. That’s not such a bad trade-off if your scalp is really dried out.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Sulfate-free baby shampoos can clean hair adequately enough for most adults. They are less drying and irritating but will not foam as well, so you might not think they are working. If you’re curious, we recommend trying baby shampoo for a week or two to see if you like the effect. If not, you can always switch back.

CAN YOU REALLY REBUILD YOUR HAIR?

Amanda asks: What is the deal with “restructuring” treatments for hair? I get that the vague concept is to “restore proteins” to your hair or some gobbledygook, but isn’t hair essentially dead? Can a restructuring treatment really force-feed amino acids or whatever into our manes?

The Beauty Brains love Amanda’s skepticism, because the idea of being able to slather on a hair restructuring treatment to actually re-form hair is ridiculous. True, hair is made of amino acids and putting them on hair may provide some minor benefit. But it won’t restructure, restore or rebuild the hair. This would be a bit like trying to repair a weather-worn Kate Spade bag by pouring a basket of thread and fabric on it. Sure, the stylish sack is made of thread and fabric, but you can’t just randomly put them on the worn bag and expect to get a new purse.

RESTRUCTURE HAIR?

It’s the same with hair and amino acids. To restructure the hair, the amino acids would have to be chemically arranged in a specific way. This arrangement can only be done in the hair follicle when the hair is growing. After that, nothing can be done except coat the hair with a good conditioner that mitigates some of the signs of damage. So what are these restructuring treatments? In essence, they are just glorified rinse-out conditioners.

Let’s take a look at the ingredients in a “restructuring” conditioner: purified water, glyceryl stearate, PEG-100 stearate, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine, cetyl alcohol, propylene glycol, stearyl alcohol, dimethicone, triamino copper nutritional complex, hydroxyethylcellulose, panthenol, aloe vera gel, soydimonium hydroxypropyl hydrolyzed wheat protein, hydrolyzed keratin, citric acid, methylparaben, fragrance, disodium EDTA, propylparaben, peppermint oil, tocopheryl acetate, cholecalciferol, retinyl palmitate, vegetable oil, FD&C Blue 1, D&C Red 33.

The rules of cosmetic labeling require that ingredients be listed in order of concentration above 1 percent. In general, the more of an ingredient in the formula, the greater the impact it has on the product. The ingredients near the end of the list are just put in there to make a nice marketing story or are color, fragrance or preservatives.

In this formula, some of the main working ingredients are stearamidopropyl dimethylamine, cetyl alcohol, stearyl alcohol and dimethicone.

But then take a look at the ingredients list in a regular rinse-out conditioner: water, stearyl alcohol, cyclopentasiloxane, cetyl alcohol, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine, glutamic acid, dimethicone, benzyl alcohol, fragrance, panthenyl ethyl ether, EDTA, panthenol, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone.

Notice any similarities? The main working ingredients here are stearyl alcohol, cyclopentasiloxane, cetyl alcohol, stearamidopropyl dimethylamine and dimethicone.

THE BOTTOM LINE

A restructuring conditioner will not rebuild your hair any better than a standard rinse-out formula. And it certainly won’t rebuild your hair better than thread and fabric would rebuild a worn-out Kate Spade bag.

DO YOU REALLY NEED TO PUT PROTEIN ON YOUR HAIR?

Debbie says: I’ve been told that hair needs protein and moisturization to stay healthy. So for protein I use Mane ‘n Tail and for moisturizing I use hair cholesterol products (like Le Kair, Queen Helene) and coconut oil. Is this good for my hair or could I be causing any kind of long-term damage?

These conditioners won’t damage hair. You might find that your hair is weighed down if you’re using them all at once, but other than that they won’t do anything bad to your hair. So if you like the way these conditioners make your hair feel, then keep using them any way you like. The real question here is does hair need both protein and moisturizer? The answer is yes and no.

YES, HAIR NEEDS MOISTURE

That just means you need to keep your hair from drying out, which is the whole idea behind conditioners. You can moisturize by adding water (which doesn’t really stay in your hair very long) or you can moisturize by fighting the effects of dryness. That’s what any good conditioner does. Conditioners, like Le Kair and Queen Helene, work by smoothing the outer layers of your hair, the part called the cuticle. If you don’t keep the cuticles “glued down,” they tend to come loose and fall off. Whenever you’re doing anything to your hair (including washing, drying, styling or coloring), you are causing some degree of damage to those cuticles. What a good conditioner does is smooth the cuticles, forming a protective layer over them so they don’t become as damaged.

NO, HAIR DOESN’T NEED PROTEIN

Although hair is made of protein, it’s dead. So putting protein on top of the protein in your hair doesn’t make it “healthy.” But the right kind of proteins used at the right levels can act as conditioning agents that form a protective film on the hair. So it’s not that your hair needs protein, it’s that it needs something to form that protective layer.

Proteins will do it to some extent, but there are other ingredients, like fatty quaternium compounds or silicones, that will work even better. So protein conditioners like Mane ‘n Tail are good for your hair, but not necessarily because they contain protein.

THE BOTTOM LINE

There are many, many great hair conditioners on the market that will moisturize your hair. Mane ‘n Tail, Le Kair and Queen Helene won’t do anything bad to your hair. The important thing is to find the products that feel right for your hair and that you can afford. But don’t worry too much about special ingredients like proteins. And by the way, coconut oil has an added benefit. It penetrates through the cuticle to strengthen the inside part of the hair called the cortex. See page 7 for more about this.

HOW MUCH HAIR LOSS IS NORMAL?

Janelle asks: Every time I shampoo, I tend to lose around 40 strands and the same again when combing. Is this normal? And does the shampoo I use have anything to do with how much hair I lose?

One of the things we forget is that we are animals and, just like all other animals, we shed. So you shouldn’t be surprised that you lose some hair every day. But is 40 to 100 strands normal?

On the average person’s head (assuming there aren’t any bald spots), there is an average of 100,000 hairs. Feel free to count them if you like … we’ll wait. This is somewhat related to your natural hair color: Brunettes average about 120,000 hairs while redheads have only 90,000. The number of hairs is strictly controlled by your genetic makeup, which means there is nothing you can do to increase the number of hairs on your head.

At any given moment, each hair follicle on your head is in one of three growth phases. The anagen phase is when the hair is growing and actually getting longer. This can last anywhere from two to seven years. The catagen phase is a transitional phase, when growth slows and eventually stops. The telogen phase is the final phase, in which growth has completely stopped and the hair is vulnerable to falling out. The hairs that you naturally shed are all in the telogen phase.

Studies have shown that you should expect to shed approximately 0.1 percent of your hair each day. That means you lose 100 hairs every day. This is almost exactly the amount you are asking about. And remember: This is a biological rate; it has nothing to do with the shampoo you use.

The only effect hair products will have on the amount of hair you lose is that they may make you notice more lost hairs. Washing and styling involve lots of movement, so hairs will be more likely to fall out if they are ready. However, this will be true of any hair care brand.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Hair falls out naturally and the brand of shampoo you use will not have any added effect.

WHY DO GRAY HAIRS LOOK AND FEEL DIFFERENT?

Tiffany wants to know: Why do my gray hairs seem more kinky and unruly compared to the rest of my hair?

Gray hair looks gray because it has lost its melanin, which gives hair its color. Melanin is naturally produced in the hair follicle and “injected” into the hair fibers as the protein is formed and pushed out of the head. It’s the same kind of melanin that gives your skin its color. Two basic types of melanin (eumelanin and pheomelanin) are responsible for every hair color from brown and black to blond and red.

No one knows why hair follicles stop producing melanin. Genetics mostly. There comes a point where the melanocytes (the melanin-producing cells) just stop producing. Thus you get gray hair.

WILL HAIR DYE GIVE YOU CANCER?

Every so often you hear about how chemicals in your cosmetics are responsible for cancer, birth defects or even autism. Unfortunately, the sources for these conclusions are rarely cited and, when they are, they are typically a biased political committee or marketing group.

An article titled “Can dyeing your hair really give you cancer?” recently caught our eye. The article discussed a major conference that was being held in Belfast in which the long-term link between bladder cancer and people with dyed hair was being discussed. It stated:

Evidence exists to indicate regular and long-term use of hair dyes can be associated with the development of the cancer, which kills more than 4,000 in the UK each year.

Now, if this article was all you read on the subject, you might conclude that hair dye causes bladder cancer. You might also get the impression that experts are in agreement. After all, they did get their information from Questor, a European environmental research center.

Being the skeptical Beauty Brains that we are, we went to see what the medical journals had to say on the subject. A search of “hair dye” resulted in 649 hits. The most current research is useful for answering questions like these; review articles are best. Review articles are designed to summarize all the work that has been published before.

An article about hair dye and cancer published in late 2006 in the Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health concludes:

Results for bladder cancer studies suggest that subsets of the population may be genetically susceptible to hair dye exposures, but these findings are based on small subgroups in one well-designed case-control study. Replication of these findings is needed to determine whether the reported associations are real or spurious.

This is a bit different than the definitive bladder cancer/hair dye link suggested in the newspaper article. Essentially, the researchers say certain genetically predisposed people may have issues, but even this isn’t a certainty. A more thorough study is needed. But the important implication is that for most people, this isn’t a problem. Hair dye will not cause cancer.

What you read, see or hear in the mainstream media rarely tells the whole story. When it comes to issues about health and safety you would not be wrong to immediately reject their conclusions. If you want to know the real story, do a little research for yourself using the least biased sources you can find. Research in this case would find that the majority of studies show no established link between hair dye and cancer. So feel free to color with abandon.

For a more thorough summary of the cancer/hair color research, read this article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association: http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/293/20/2516.

CAN YOU SLOW IT DOWN?

No one has figured out how to do this yet. And the truth is that only the pharmaceutical companies would be looking for the solution anyway. Cosmetics companies focus on things that do not react with your body. I’m not sure if there will be a solution to this problem anytime soon. (By the way, there are products out there like Reminex that claim to restore melanin production, but we’ve seen no data to indicate that they work.)

WHY DO PEOPLE THINK GRAY HAIR IS SO DIFFERENT?

There are probably two reasons: First, we know that as you age, the follicles produce less of their natural lubricating oils. That can make hair feel dry and coarse. Second, gray hairs are just easier to notice because of the color difference. Think about all the hairs on your head that are unruly. Those that are the same color as the rest of your hair simply don’t get noticed.

THE BOTTOM LINE

There is no solid data to show that gray hair has a different physical structure that makes it feel more kinky and unruly. In fact, we’ve seen experiments that show if people close their eyes they cannot feel a difference between gray hair and “normal” hair.

WILL HONEY AND CINNAMON HELP STOP HAIR FROM FALLING OUT BUT TURN HAIR GRAY?

Sosina says: I read on the internet that applying honey and cinnamon to hair is good for treating hair loss. But people say that honey makes hair gray. Which one is true?

The internet is a wonderful tool, but remember anyone can write anything, and you never know what is really true. (Unless you’re reading the Beauty Brains, that is.)

WHAT DOES HONEY DO ON HAIR?

Honey is a humectant, which means it has a tendency to hold on to water molecules. This is a desirable property in a moisturizer, especially one designed for skin. But unlike skin, hair is not alive and it doesn’t need as much moisture as skin does. Honey is not a good lubricant, so it doesn’t have any benefit for making hair slippery and smooth. In fact, it’s the opposite of slippery—it’s sticky because it’s basically a sugary solution. (Rub some between your fingers and you’ll see!) It will not smooth your cuticles or help a comb pass through your hair without damaging it. So any moisture-grabbing benefits that honey might give your hair are offset by its stickiness. The bottom line is that honey is not good for conditioning your hair.

But what about hair loss and graying?

HONEY AND HAIR LOSS

Hair loss is one of the most vexing cosmetic problems facing both men and women. Hundreds of thousands of materials have been suggested as a treatment but the truth is the only topical treatment that has been proven to work is Minoxidil. And even this is not effective for the majority of people. There is no proof that honey prevents hair loss and there isn’t even any scientific reason that it would work.

HONEY AND GRAY HAIR

Gray hair is the result of melanocytes (pigment-producing cells) in your hair follicles shutting down. Literally, your gray hair has no pigment, thus no color. Fortunately, exposure to honey will not cause your hair to turn gray. In fact, it might even help stain your hair to make it darker.

CINNAMON AND YOUR HAIR

While honey is primarily sugar, cinnamon is made up of a variety of bioactive materials, including cinnamaldehyde, essential oils and antioxidants. If either honey or cinnamon would have an effect on hair loss, cinnamon certainly would be a better candidate. There is some evidence that cinnamon has an anti-inflammatory effect. Another anti-inflammatory ingredient, silanediol salicylate, is currently being studied for its potential to reduce hair loss, raising the possibility that cinnamon might also help in a similar way. However, there is still no solid proof that anti-inflammatory agents help stop or reverse hair loss.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Neither honey nor cinnamon has been proven to help stop hair loss or turn hair gray, but if you are going to try one, go for cinnamon. At least it has the potential to do something.

ARE THE PICTURES ON THE BACK OF THE SHAMPOO BOTTLE ACCURATE?

Rosanna requests: On the back of many Pantene shampoo bottles, there are pictures—one that shows damaged hair and one that shows repaired hair after the use of Pantene. Are those pictures realistic and, if so, how long does it take for the repair to take place?

Pantene has been the market leader in shampoo for over ten years, partly because it is an inexpensive and excellently formulated product. However, to maintain this kind of market dominance, you need more than great technology. You need the best marketing in the industry and that’s what Procter & Gamble (the makers of Pantene) has.

PANTENE SMOOTHES HAIR FIBERS

Believe it or not, the pictures on the back of Pantene’s bottles do give a reasonable representation of what is happening on your hair. What is shown are two pictures of hair strands—one strand has cuticles that are jagged and lifted up, the other strand is smooth and nicer-looking. The message you are supposed to get from this is that by using Pantene shampoo and conditioner, your hair will be softer, smoother and shinier. Is it true? It is true that the cuticles (the outer layer of a hair fiber) of damaged hair will look jagged and lift up from the fiber. The image is an artist’s rendition of a close-up microscopic view of the hair. When a fiber is treated with a conditioning shampoo like Pantene, it leaves a coating of silicone and polyquat that “glues” down the cuticles and makes the hair look smooth.

This effect is immediate and doesn’t require weeks of product use. But Pantene’s advertising claims that your hair gets better after a month is more story than fact. Hair gets better right away. There could be a minor improvement over time but, for the most part, as soon as you apply Pantene you’ll get the benefit.

We should mention that almost any conditioning shampoo could put a similar picture on the back of its shampoo bottles. Any shampoo that leaves a coating of silicone or polyquat will have this smoothing effect on the cuticles. Also, any conditioner will have this effect, too.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The images on the back of a Pantene shampoo bottle do demonstrate how the product actually works. The effect is immediate and one you can get from almost any moisturizing or 2-in-1 shampoo.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ALL THOSE HAIR COLOR PRODUCTS?

Sandy wants to know: What do all those different hair color products do? Also, do they damage your hair if you add highlights?

Highlights, lowlights, washable, semipermanent, demipermanent, permanent! With all the different hair color products out there, it’s no wonder people are confused. Add to that all the different color shades and it’s enough to make you give up.

TYPES OF HAIR COLOR PRODUCTS

Hair colors are all classified by the length of time they will last in your hair. Here they are in order of shortest-lasting color to longest.

1 Washable: These are temporary dyes and stains that wash off relatively easily with shampoo. They are also called “deposit only” colors. The benefit of this type of coloring is that it does not damage hair. The drawback is that the color does not look as good or last as long.

2 Semipermanent: If you are unsure about a new hair color, the semipermanent route may be the way to go. These products deposit color on and just below the surface of hair. They do not break down your natural color so they can only be used to make your hair darker. Demipermanent hair colors use the same basic technology but last a little longer. They look good and do not damage your hair as much as permanent colors, but they also don’t last as long.

3 Permanent: These colors completely change the hair and can make even the darkest brunette into a bleach-blond bombshell. They work in a multiple-step chemical process. First, the color that is already in the hair is chemically broken down with hydrogen peroxide. This step also has the effect of opening up the hair “pores” so the color molecules can get in. Next, color is applied and allowed to chemically react. As it reacts, the color molecules get too big and become locked inside the hair shaft. This is how the color becomes permanent. This method gives you the most natural, longest-lasting hair color possible. Unfortunately, it is also the most damaging to hair. There’s always a trade-off.

4 Highlights: Blond highlights are the result of bleaching hair in a controlled way. Aluminum foil is often used to keep the peroxide bleach away from hairs that are not to be colored. The process is permanent (until your hair grows out, of course) and highly damaging. But it does make your hair look great!

DOES HIGHLIGHTING HURT HAIR?

Permanent highlights chemically break down hair, so they definitely make it weaker. But most people like how highlights look, so they are willing to suffer a little damage. Washable highlights are based on temporary colors and do not damage hair. If you are unsure whether you will like having highlights, starting with the washable kind is an excellent idea. If you want the look to last longer than a couple of days, however, you’ll have to get permanent highlights.

THE BOTTOM LINE

While permanent hair color is damaging, it looks better and lasts longer than the semipermanent and washable options. If you want your hair color to look as good as it can, go for a permanent color and have it applied by a skilled hairdresser.

IS A RELAXER THE ONLY WAY TO GET HAIR REALLY STRAIGHT?

Valerie asks: Is there anything out there in the market to straighten my hair without using a harsh chemical relaxer?

The quest for straight hair has led people to try everything from pulling, ironing and blow-drying to chemical treatments. Chemical relaxers have a number of drawbacks, including being inconvenient, expensive and, worse, painful. Relaxers are the most damaging cosmetic treatment you can do to hair.

Unfortunately, there is nothing on the market that works as well or lasts as long as chemical relaxers. However, there are at least five other things you can try to get straight hair that won’t cause as much damage. These include the following:

Hairdressings and silicone creams: Products to control your hair shape have been around for over a hundred years. They contain oily materials like petrolatum, mineral oil and lanolin, which coat hair and prevent it from taking its natural shape. Silicone creams are also available and contain materials like dimethicone or cyclomethicone. The product is put on damp hair and combed straight. VO5 Hairdressing is the most famous of these types of products.

Performance These treatments work well for all types of hair, are nondamaging and are relatively inexpensive. On the other hand, they leave hair feeling greasy, looking unnatural and they only last until your next wash.

Brushing, blow-drying and styling: When hair gets wet, it straightens out. If you can hold the hair in that shape while drying it, you can keep it straight. To aid in this process, styling products like gels, mousses and pomades can all be used. These products will add an additional polymer coating on hair to keep it straight.

Performance This method can be effective but requires a lot of time and some skill in applying the product and shaping your hair. It is minimally damaging and can lead to a natural look. However, the effect doesn’t work on all hair types and lasts only until your next wash. This is much easier if done by a stylist.

Flat iron: If you have really curly hair and the blow-drying + brushing method doesn’t work, a flat iron might. Used on clean, dry hair, it gets hair straight in the same way as blow-drying, but it is more intense and effective on nearly all hair types, especially dry hair.

Performance Flat irons work with almost any hair type and can give a nice, natural look if you know what you are doing. However, they are damaging to hair and hair will frizz out when humidity is high if you don’t use a styling product, too. The results are temporary and have to be redone any time your hair gets wet.

Brazilian hair straightening: This is a chemical treatment in which a stylist applies a keratin protein formula and uses a flat iron to get your hair straight. Theoretically, the protein crystallizes on your hair, which helps keep it straight for many weeks. To retain the look, you need to avoid washing your hair.

Performance Although this method works, at $150 and up per treatment, it hardly seems worth it. You can’t wash your hair or it will return to its natural, curly state. There’s also the issue of a significant amount of formaldehyde being released during the process. It is probably not a problem for occasional use, but imagine your poor stylist! You can get the same effect using a flat iron, styling products and less frequent hair washing, so it’s probably not worth the money.

Japanese straightening system: This is a more permanent way to remove the curls from your hair. At $500 and up per treatment, it is the most expensive of all the methods listed. During the Japanese straightening system, the stylist applies a special formula consisting of reducing agents like Thioglycolates. Then a flat iron and a neutralizing solution make the hair straight. With proper care the effect can last for six months.

Performance The high price of this procedure has kept most people away from repeat procedures. It uses a process similar to traditional relaxers and is just as damaging. If you are looking for a replacement for relaxers, this is not a good choice.

Relaxers: No doubt about it—relaxers are the most effective and permanent way to take curls out of hair. They are more effective and less expensive than either the Brazilian or the Japanese systems. Relaxers employ a chemical like sodium hydroxide to break down hair bonds and permanently change the structure.

Performance Relaxers are the most damaging hair treatment, so your hair will break more easily and feel dry. Also, your curly hair will grow back so you’ll need to continue to relax your hair every six weeks to keep it straight.

THE BOTTOM LINE

At the moment, there is no less-harsh treatment that works as well as a relaxer. Blow-dryers, styling products and flat irons can mimic the results, but they take a long time and are short-lasting.

WHY DOES SHAMPOO HAVE MEAT TENDERIZER IN IT?

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