What are the problems with sulfate-free shampoo?
Does sulfate free shampoo makes hair greasy?
If you could swear your new sulfate-free shampoo made your hair greasy, seconds after you washed it, you’re not alone. A lot of sulfate-free shampoos do leave hair greasy. Why, exactly? It depends on what is in that shampoo – and what’s on the hair.
Many sulfate-free shampoos are formulated with ultra mild cleansing agents like decyl glucoside or coco glucoside. These are great for not stripping delicate scalps and hair, but their mildness is also their weakness. Since they’re so gentle, these cleansers are simply not strong enough to remove the product buildup many people have on their tresses.
They also require more work in terms of lathering to remove dirt, oil and grease. If you’re accustomed to the easy sulfate cleansing experience, you might not realise you now have to put in that work. That’s one more reason why going sulfate-free can leave hair greasy.
Another reason for the oiliness is that to make up for this lack of strength, a lot of manufacturers like to up the surfactant concentration. This can defeat the purposely of using mild cleansers since higher concentrations are harsher on your hair. The overcleansing causes your oil glands to overreact, spewing tons of sebum to remoisturise your panicking scalp – hence the greasiness.
Sulfate-free shampoos can be harsher than sulfate shampoos
It’s so good at what it does that olefin sulfonate actually cleanses better than the sulfate most commonly used in shampoos today, sodium laureth sulfate (SLES). But that’s not a good thing.
Sodium laureth sulfate has all but replaced sodium lauryl sulfate in sulfate shampoos.
The ‘eth’ in its name is the clue; sodium laureth sulfate is chemically modified, ‘ethoxylated’ to be milder than the harsh sodium lauryl sulfate which sparked the whole sulfate backlash.
Olefin sulfonate is every bit as harsh as the original sodium lauryl sulfate.
Point blank: Just because a shampoo says sulfate-free doesn’t mean that it’s milder or gentler or better for your hair.
Are sulfate-free shampoos bad for your hair?
Keep this in mind: the only way to tell if a shampoo, sulfate-free or otherwise, is good for your hair is to look at the whole formulation. At the very least, that means a)making sure that key drying ingredients aren’t there, so no sodium lauryl sulfate, ammonium lauryl sulfate, olefin sulfonate, or salt (sodium chloride) on the ingredients list, and then b) trying it out and seeing what it does to your hair.
Sulfate-free shampoos are suited for which hair type?
Having said that, some hair types do tend to do better on sulfate-free shampoos than others. People with oily hair often find sulfate-free formulas less suited to their hair, as do many people who use a lot of styling products.
Since many sulfate-free shampoos are based on gentle cleansing agents, they might not be enough to remove buildup for some people – especially people who tend to use a lot of product, or whose product options include styling butters and creams, which tend to leave difficult residues. Few sulfate-free cleansers can remove non-water soluble silicones, either.
Are sulfate-free shampoos expensive?
Even when you look at sulfate vs sulfate-free shampoos in the same brand, the sulfate-free formula is often more costly. This is because the ingredients are often more expensive and the R&D required to make a sulfate-free shampoo that works, balancing effective cleansing and mildness could be very costly – all of that will show up in the price.
Sulfate-free shampoos can also work out to be expensive just for the fact that they are not as powerful. Often this means that people have to use a lot more shampoo to get the same results they would get with a sulfate shampoo.
Sulfate-free shampoos can also work out to be expensive just for the fact that they are not as powerful. Often this means that people have to use a lot more shampoo to get the same results they would get with a sulfate shampoo.
But if you’ve found your ideal sulfate-free shampoo, and it takes your hair right to that equilibrium between cleansed and not stripped – it may well be worth it.
Just remember to make sure your washday routine is gentle enough overall; damage from rough handling can be as bad as any harsh shampoo; sulfate or sulfate-free.
Use this checklist to make sure your complete washday routine is kind to your delicate curls.
34 COMMENTS
RAFA 12/5/2020 10:04:07 AM
I love your blog. You have definitely helped me with the information you provide here. I have a question though. I imagine you are very busy but if you have some time, could you please tell me if Aveeno Pure Renewal Shampoo will remove silicones. Their website shows the ingredients below. Thank you so much in advance even if you can’t answer me, I appreciate your blog.
Water, sodium cocyl isethionate, cocamidopropyl betaine, ammonium lauroyl sarcosinate, acrylates copolymer, cocamide MEA, dimethicone, sodium hydrolyzed potato starch dodecenylsuccinate, fragrance, phenoxyethanol, sodium hydroxide, citric acid, caprylyl glycol, propylene glycol, glycerin, guar hydroxypropyltrimonium chloride, laminaria saccharina extract, polyquaternium-7, methylisothiazolinone, titanium dioxide, mica.
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DANIELLA 18/7/2020 06:18:01 AM
Hi!
I need to find a shampoo with sulfate that’s safe for color treated hair. Do you have any recommendations? Thanks in advance!
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AALIYAH 8/10/2020 04:11:45 AM
Hey, your article is really informative and I completely agree with your viewpoint. I recently shifted to sulphate free hair care and I have been facing all the issues mentioned above. I have an oily scalp but frizzy hair. Also I have fine hair. Would you recommend sulphate free or sulphate based shampoo in this scenario? Also, would appreciate a few recommendations from your end.
Thanks in advance ! 🙂
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ANNA 24/10/2020 08:25:31 PM
I have recently tried switching to sulfate-free shampoos and tried both Renpure’s Tea Tree Lemon Sage shampoo and LiveClean’s Apple Cider Vinegar Clarifying shampoo. The latter is supposedly on the stronger end of sulfate-free shampoos. However, my hair seems to take the entire day to try each time I use these shampoos and they leave a heavy, greasy feeling on my roots (although my curls feel softer and more defined lower down the hair shaft than they do with sulfate shampoos). I don’t have this problem whenever I switch back to sulfate shampoos. At first I thought it was because I wasn’t scrubbing in the sulfate-free shampoos enough, however, I recently tried using sulfate-free shampoo after a regular shampoo in the same wash and the same residue problem remains, which means there is likely a common ingredient in these sulfate-free shampoos that is not working well for my hair type. Is it possible that glycerin/glycerol are the culprits?
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GRAY 2/11/2020 02:33:58 PM
while looking for a good shampoo for hair breakage i came across an article about sulfate-free shampoo that said “Most of the sulfates free shampoos are suitable only if used in a specific quantity. So, their inaccurate use can cause you a lot of hair loss.”
they didn’t give any more elaborate explanation, are they referring to the same thing you talk about here? or is there some other reason it would cause hair loss? or is it just completely false?
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KAYLA GAMEL 22/1/2021 08:13:29 PM
I switched to all sulfate and paraben free shampoos and all of them slowly caused my scalp to itch, burn and lose a lot of hair. Do you know any good shampoos that use sulfates and parabens
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SANDRA 1/4/2021 10:10:34 AM
Hi!
Great and informative article! I am currently searching for a sulfate-free schampoo. I have thin (both in quantity and strand thickness) hair and a bit oily. It is quite silky and soft but it seems like I have so much fly-aways and shorter strands sticking out everywhere and especially when it is clean it is really not looking good. It is also very easily electric. I also have quite itchy scalp, although not really dandruff. I really need help finding the right schampoo and I would much appreciate any advice!
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CAMI 22/5/2021 05:06:28 PM
Hello I’m a total ignorant about all of this and I’m just reasearching and trying to know what’s good what’s not, also noticing some say X thing is good and others denying it so I’ll just ask if the shampoo I’m currently using is actually bad or not (personally I think it did good to my hair it feel healthier and the curls are forming back) the brand is Sedal (green bottle) specifically for curly hair, the ingredients are:
Aqua,sodium laureth sulfate, cocamidopropyl betaine, aosium chloride, parfum, glycol disterate, carbomer, guar hydroxypropyltrimonium chloride, disodium rdta, mica, dmdm hydantoin, titanium dioxide, cocamide mea, dimenthiconol, paraffinum liquidum, arginine, methylchloroisothiazolinone, methylisothiazolinone, benzyl benzoate, hexyl cinnamal, limonene, linalool, citric acid, sodium hydroxide.
Thank you in advance.
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AKASH 18/7/2021 11:20:56 AM
Hello, this was an informative article about shampoos and surfactants regarding sulphate free and sulphate shampoos. I suffer with oily, greasy with sebum buildup with low seborhoic dermatitis. So, it’s hard to find products which will create health scalp not just hair.
Currently I use a regular dove sulphate shampoo and then wash with a medicated Salicylic acid and Ketoconazole shampoo. Don’t use any conditioner simply because I don’t need them with my short hair.
I’m considering using protein shampoo once a week for my thin strands to provide some strength from breakage. Can you please tell me which ingredients to look for hair thinning, falling and hair damage without negative effects?
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FIZA 28/8/2021 03:34:20 AM
Hi , this was a very informative post for me.
Over the years my hair texture has changed drastically from straight and smooth to wavy and frizzy with dry ends. I also oil my hair once a week with castor oil and then proceed to washing my hair.I believe i fall under the 2b hair type category. Due to the hype of sulphate free shampoos, i have tried all possible expensive brands possible such as kevin murphy, Averda, briogeo, Ouai but there has been no difference with regards to my the frizz and dry ends plus these shampoos do not remove the oils i apply to my hair.I recently have lost hope on all sulphate free shampoos and i am planning to shift back to sulphate shampoos. Could you suggest any good brands of sulphate shampoos?
Thank you!
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ANNA 9/10/2021 06:50:29 PM
I found this site by doing a search called “olefin sulfonate irritates my scalp.”
I don’t have natural hair in the sense that it is not African hair, but it is also “virgin hair” in the sense that I don’t do anything special with it except wash and condition it and use a little hairspray here and there.
But anyway, my scalp has been itching like mad for awhile – I thought it was the “sulfates” in shampoos based on the sulfate-free movement but it seems like a preponderance of SF shampoos have olefin sulfonate in it and so far, I strongly suspect that this ingredient is itching the daylights out of my scalp even more so than the sulfates that are supposed to be bad. I tell you, the irritation my scalp gets from olefin sulfonate is TERRIBLE. Talk about false advertising, making us think that just because it is SF that it will be better for our scalp. NOT.
I feel like I’m allergic to everything.
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