Do Ingredients Really Matter?

So I went shopping for some hair products today with my friend, and we happened upon some products that I used to use before I really began reading hair boards, watching youtube hair videos, and everything like that. When she asked me If I was going to re-buy them, I told her that I shouldn't because they have mineral oil, and petroleum, etc. She then posed a question that made me re-think everything that I've learned: Why stop buying them if they worked for you before?

I've seen so many videos where women have bought all these things before, that they say they like, but once they read somewhere that whatever ingredient is "bad," they immediately throw it away.

I'm sure that this has been researched, and I'm not really doubting that mineral oil or petroleum clogs your pores or whatever, but if something is or has been working for you, are you just going to throw it away because someone says that it's not good for you, or it has one ingredient that is bad for you? if your hair is growing, and your scalp and hair feel moisturized ... i don't really understand the problem?

i always think for myself, and i'm wondering ... are we getting too busy hopping on bandwagons and listening to others rather than listening to ourselves and our inner voices?

just food for thought, ladies. would love to hear your thoughts.

I use what works for my hair. I use Creme of Nature shampoo....it has sulfate in it. I use MJ Baby Buttercream...it has beeswax, mineral oil and parabens in it.

Creme of Nature is the BEST store bought shampoo I've found so far and I will continue to use it until my hair says otherwise. Same with the MJ Baby Buttercream.

I agree with Lynn...Use what feels best on your hair.

The reason I don't buy products with many of those ingredients has more to do with getting my money's worth. I don't want to spend $12 on a product if the petroleum used to make it is only worth 30 cents. Fact is, most of us had hair breakage when we were relaxed so none of that stuff was really working for us. My momma used all kids of products when I was little. The growth I had then had more to do with the fact that she was putting my hair in protective styles without heat, not because Blue Magic hair grease is actually a good product, lol.

Yeah...I feel u. Weirdest thing...my hubby was telling on his coworkers about me goin natural and she said she was also a natural haired girl and I said..."But she has straight hair. Using heat is frowned upon." WTF!!! I immediately laughed at myself, I couldnt believe I said that! But...it's true if ur a newbie to this whole thing you just listen to reviews b/c ur pretty much clueless to this whole thing. What works for me may not work for you....it's all trial and error. Like I can shampoo once a week and have no dryness...

But seriously...in my opinion it seems sometimes that some ladies think whatever curly nikki uses and does is The Bible [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
But...to answer ur question...u have to figure out which ingredients matter 2 ur hair....

One of the best topics on this forum I have read thus far...(I'm eating popcorn waiting on the responses) lol

As someone who is transition, I've really taken a lot of what is said about products to heart (but throwing away products I already have is a no no...I don't believe in wasting perfectly useful products even if I have to use them sparingly).

I do notice a big difference in my hair when I use products without certain ingredients (sulfate, petroleum, etc). There are products that have mineral oil that I use that has continued to help my hair tremendously.

I wouldn't say stop using your old products, there were great products that I used on my hair when it was relaxed but when tried on my natural hair was a huge disappointment. Your hair will let you know what it enjoys and what it doesn't but be aware that some things..altho nice...just like relaxers..may have it shining and great for a while but slowly damaging it.

I totally suggest buying what works best for your hair....Im a trial and error type girl, if I try something and my hair rejects it, on to the next....however I dont buy really expensive products alot...

Wonderful topic. I have recently came to a point where im like okay reading all of these labels is tiring and boring. I dont know what the deal is with mineral oil either but everyone says its so horrible so I have kind of stayed away from it. The products I have now dont really work as far as moisturizing and my hair looks dull. So im gonna not worry so much about the products and just see what works. I cant wait to hear what the rest of the comments look like =)

this is a very interesting topic, and am glad this is being discussed. although i am a chemist, and it may seem biased, but ingredients make a huge difference. i know this not only because of the research (and science doesn't lie), but also from personal experience. my hair grew faster in five months when using completely natural products than it did for a year in a half using not so natural products (and my hair was in the same hairstyle in both observations and so, you can see the big difference in length and quality).

also, keep in mind that products with mineral, petroleum, etc give the false feeling that your hair is moisturized because these ingredients simply coat the hair and scalp, as per J Cosmet Sci. 2005 Sep-Oct;56(5):283-95 which states "where coconut oil was found to penetrate hair while mineral oil was unable to do so". Also, refer to J Cosmet Sci. 2003 Mar-Apr;54(2):175-92 which tested the protective abilities of coconut oil, sunflower oil and mineral oil. The findings state that "coconut oil was the only oil found to reduce the protein loss remarkably for both undamaged and damaged hair when used as a pre-wash and post-wash grooming product...Both sunflower and mineral oils do not help at all in reducing the protein loss from hair."

Always remember that like attracts like and opposites repel one another in science. Keeping this in mind will help you better understand why certain ingredients are not compatible with hair. Hair is made of protein, and coconut oil's fatty acid chemical composition is more compatible with protein, and thus penetrate the hair. Mineral oil, made completely of hydrocarbons, is not chemically compatible with protein--->will not penetrate the hair, and thus explains why it just coats the outside of the hair and gives the false feeling of softness and moisture. Sometimes i feel in some warped reasoning some companies still use mineral oil to 'keep' the more beneficial products adhered to the hair strand. Yeah, ok....

Mineral oil use in hair and skincare care products can be beneficial when used appropriately and in specific situations: like when you REALLY need that barrier between your scalp and relaxer, when used in sulfur 8 or used to benefit burn victims (this is a prime empirical example that its not a moisturizer because its used to protect the burns from infections).

also, i do believe many companies use products with sulfates and petroleum byproducts a) they care more about their financial bottom line than the welfare of their consumers and b) part of a sad marketing cycle to keep you hooked onto their products.

with that being said, if something 'seems' to work well now, and you know your hair can benefit with something even better, then your hair will only thank you for the switch.

also, its not only the products that make your hair grow, but the type of protective styling, how often you moisturize, amount of heat used, genetics, exercise, diet, stess level, medications that you may be on, etc.

I recently read this article Effect of mineral oil, sunflower oil, and coconut oil on prevention of hair damage and it made me a believer that ingredients do matter. I like to believe in things that have been proven by research and/or trial and error. But I still feel that you should use what your hair likes. It's just nice to know what you are using and the potential benefits or harm from using the product.

tiashauntee wrote:I recently read this article Effect of mineral oil, sunflower oil, and coconut oil on prevention of hair damage and it made me a believer that ingredients do matter. I like to believe in things that have been proven by research and/or trial and error. But I still feel that you should use what your hair likes. It's just nice to know what you are using and the potential benefits or harm from using the product.

yes, this is one of the articles that i was referring above. I should have just used the paper's title instead of notation?

dajewel wrote:

tiashauntee wrote:I recently read this article Effect of mineral oil, sunflower oil, and coconut oil on prevention of hair damage and it made me a believer that ingredients do matter. I like to believe in things that have been proven by research and/or trial and error. But I still feel that you should use what your hair likes. It's just nice to know what you are using and the potential benefits or harm from using the product.

yes, this is one of the articles that i was referring above. I should have just used the paper's title instead of notation?

It was so informative. I found it using Google Scholar and searching "hair." I find a lot of great info that way.

I think ingredients matter on your hair in the long run. I've had natural hair my whole life but used stuff with mineral oil and petrolatum and let me tell you, now that I don't there is a huge difference in my hair. My scalp has never been healthier and it doesn't flake or anything. Now grant it, I'm a student on a budget so I'm not spending on a truck load of products but I know what does and doesn't work for MY hair. For instance shampoo is not for me, just isn't and I'm not sure I'm a fan of castor oil. So I co-sign on just figuring out what works best, not what someone says, although consider the information. Just because you're natural doesn't mean you should abuse your hair with crappy and cheap filler ingredients when there are better alternatives out there easily accessible...

I have tons of hair grease left over from my press-n-curl days. I need to do something with it, I hate being wasteful....any ideas?

tiashauntee, whats a press and curl? I've heard that so many times but have no idea what that is...

WOW, I don't know what to say because I've never been asked that question.....Hmmm.
I never had a relaxer but my mom would hot comb my hair. We usually called it just "press"
Am I making sense?

lol was that a silly question?

I think I know what you are talking about. Never had one or seen one done but I recall an aunt telling me how she would get burned using a hot comb...and my mom randomly had one in the house, but never used it.

thanks

No not silly at all! It just shocked me. We are all here to learn.

Yea your Aunt is right. Whoo, my ears used to get burned all the time!
This is how it looks:

that really looks horrifying to me, I'm not gonna lie lol. I don't even like blowdryers....

thanks so much for the video reference

It is....and my mom still does it to her hair

For me I look at it as the difference between your hair 'looking' healthy and actually being healthy. because of the way mineral oil/petroleum coats your hair your hair may look really shiny but your hair still isn't get the nourishment it needs.

so if you wash your hair and let it dry without using any product (your 'naked' hair) what is the state of your hair? That said, I think the ingredients do matter but of course don't use anything that doesn't work for your hair. When you stop using things like mineral oil you will be surprised at the state of your hair and it will kinda have to go into rehab lol.

here's one of the articles about naked hair: http://www.curlynikki.com/2009/11/curl-whisperer-on-naked-hair.html

I am trying to find natural products that my hair love. After joining the Use Your Stash challenge I realized some of these products don't work for me. Some of the items have bad ingredients in them. For example, I was using ORS shampoo. I LOVED this stuff. Well, I decided to look at the ingredients and the second and third ingredients were ammonium lauryl sulfate(ALS) and ammonium laureth sulfate (ALES), respectively. Although they are not as bad as SLS, ALS is boderline.

Therefore, I switched to my KBB shampoo which is all natural. I had GREAT results. It was thick and made my hair soft. It gave me the same if not better results than ORS without the harsh ingredients. Find what works best for your HAIR but that is also natural. I think it is possible to have both.

You use whatever works well for you hair. As you experiment with different products, you will find yourself reading the labels, but you'll know if you hair agrees with that product or not. I use a conditioner with a cone in it, and my hair loves it. Not all "bad ingredients" are harmful to your hair. The obvious ones, such as, mineral oil, alcohol, petrolatum. etc., you may want to stay away from. Our hair responds to different things, so you're right. I wouldn't fret over ingredients alone. It's the results that really matter, IMO.

Thank you girls, I loved reading all of your responses