Hair washing

Think if you didn't use shampoo your hair and scalp would become very smelly...I'd imagine you would have to use some kind of product to keep your hair smelling fresh

Yes. I just rinse mine in warm water.

When we shampoo our hair we're stripping it of natural oils. Our scalps then go into a continuous cycle of over-producing sebum which makes hair feel greasy and limp.

Warm water washes away dirt, dust, and other water-soluble debris from hair and scalp without stripping out the natural oils.

I read somewhere that after a few weeks the scalp and hair resets itself but must be pretty smelly especially in hot weather.

I haven’t gone that far but I do use a co wash that doesn’t contain parabens, silicone or sulphides and my hair and scalp are in good condition and clean.

I think it would depend on whether your hair was long or short.

My DH doesn't use shampoo but his hair is very short. He just washes it with water in the shower.

It would take a while (psychologically) to get used to not washing your hair. I believe the oils eventually keep your hair clean

I would worry about my hair picking up cooking smells etc. and how that would be if it was never washed

I wouldn’t care to try it. Even if it’d be only for a few weeks, the smell of unwashed hair is horrible. I smelt it often enough on my mother when she had dementia and refused to shower or wash her hair.

I couldn’t imagine not using shampoo. Surely water alone isn’t enough to get rid of the smells your hair absorbs, including sweat?

NanKate

Have any of you stopped washing your hair with products and just rinse your hair in warm water ? I’m told this can be good for your hair.

I did it for > 1 year.

No smells (at least none that were reported even from my DP who had a very acute sense of smell). My hair looked a bit unwashed for the first couple of weeks but then rebalanced and in fact looked much better than before.

I only stopped because I needed something to keep dandruff in check but I now use shampoo very sparingly.

Petera

NanKate

Have any of you stopped washing your hair with products and just rinse your hair in warm water ? I’m told this can be good for your hair.

I did it for > 1 year.

No smells (at least none that were reported even from my DP who had a very acute sense of smell). My hair looked a bit unwashed for the first couple of weeks but then rebalanced and in fact looked much better than before.

I only stopped because I needed something to keep dandruff in check but I now use shampoo very sparingly.

If any of want a look I'm the one sitting in the corner on my own....

I worked with the elderly all my working life and believe me ùnwashed hair stinks after missing a few washes...

Mine

I worked with the elderly all my working life and believe me ùnwashed hair stinks after missing a few washes...

But are you talking about unwashed, or washed without shampoo?

I’m talking about just using warm water. Still uncertain.

It's not only your hair that needs regular washing but your scalp too. My Mum had lovely hair and taught me to massage my scalp thoroughly when washing my hair.
She also used white vinegar in a rinse to remove all shampoo remains.

I can assure you my unshampooed hair does not smell.

Washing with warm water is enough. Body odour is just a mix of bacteria and sweat. If your feet are smelly after a hot day in shoes, rinse them with warm water and the smell is gone. Same with underarms or any other part of the body.

Shampoos can be a mixture up to 30 different chemicals some of them very toxic e.g. formaldehyde which is carcinogenic, parabens and phthalates which affect hormones etc etc.

www.healthline.com/health/shampoo-ingredients-for-different-hair-needs#what-to-avoid

My brother in law has done that for over 10 years, he has quite long hair, it always looks lovely, no smell.

If you brush your hair well a couple of times a day, massaging the scalp with the brush as you do it. And rinse with warm water once or twice a week, then your hair will be perfectly clean, not smell, and will begin to look a lot healthier.

I won’t be trying it. I have just below shoulder length hair and I can’t believe it would be clean and odour free just by rinsing it.

I won’t by trying it either. I love just washed hair!

I only use a tiny amount of cheap supermarket shampoo in the shower, every third day. That seems to work for me.

*freshly washed hair. Can’t beat it in my books.

I think I will continue to stick to shampooing my hair as usual.

I wash my (collar-length) hair every morning. I didn't have it washed when I was bed-ridden for a few weeks in hospital last year, and it felt horrible. It was a huge relief to get it washed.

Germanshepherdsmum

I won’t be trying it. I have just below shoulder length hair and I can’t believe it would be clean and odour free just by rinsing it.

I can understand the reticence. But literally everyone here who has tried it themselves says it works.

Oh no! I couldn’t go without shampoo, I actually put conditioner on my hair first wash off and then use shampoo after! I like to be different ?