By Jc of The Natural Haven Bloom
Should you really leave conditioner in your hair?
This is a question that I have been asked several times. I must clarify first and say that when you wash your hair, you should rinse out all the conditioner thoroughly (for reasons known as potential itchiness, personal experience here, some science to follow). The question posed here is whether you can then use a little bit of conditioner afterwards as a moisturiser or on a daily basis. The answer to this question is yes you can use conditioner as a moisturiser but with caution.
So there are two main types of conditioner
1. Rinse out conditioners (heavier type that is used after shampooing to add softness – typical ingredients include fatty acids, surfactants and oils)
2. Leave in conditioners (much thinner and lighter, typically contain humectants such as glycerine to help moisturise hair )
Now, leave in conditioners are a no brainer, they are designed to be left in. The heavier rinse out conditioners are a little more tricky. They can be used but be aware
1. Using a silicone heavy conditioner (silicone in one of the first 5 ingredients) is not ideal unless you shampoo your hair. Co-washing your hair will simply not do.
2. Conditioners which contain protein (hydrolysed protein or amino acids) have been shown to cause irritation and itchiness in some people (contact urticaria is the medical term). (Allergy. 53(11):1078-1082, 1998).
3. Hair conditioner can contribute to build up. This was explained in a very intricate study (Journal of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists, pg 205-214,1989). The science behind this is that the hair conditioner has positive charges and the shampoo has negative charges. Depending on the amount and type of shampoo, the hair conditioner can either be removed or the shampoo can simply attach to the hair conditioner and cause build up. Naturally if you have been applying hair conditioner to your hair on a daily basis, then you will have much more of the positive charge.
So what precautions can you take if you want to use heavier conditioner as a daily moisturiser?
1. Don’t put the conditioner on your scalp, try as much as possible to target the ends of your hair (leave the scalp and the first 1-2 inches alone).
2. Read the ingredient list and if you are a no shampoo person, avoid silicones in the top 5 list of your conditioner. If you shampoo, then no worries here.
3. Pick a conditioner without proteins.
4. Rinse your hair thoroughly on your wash day.
5. Use a conditioning shampoo on your wash day if you are not anti-poo.
What is your experience with leaving conditioner in hair? Have you got the itchies or have you had a pleasant experience?
I’ve been using Herbal Essences Totally Twisted as a leave-in conditioner, and have seen a huge improvement in texture and moisture retention. No itchy scalp for me! The curl activating formula has worked wonders as well. My curls are always intact (and not frizzy!) at the end of the day :)
I have to agree Lauren. I use the HE Herbal Hydration as a leave in tho (blue bottle) and my hair loves it! But, as they said, i put it on my ends, not my scalp n i’ve had no problems, n I use shampoo…
Co-sign…HE TT worked much better for me as a leave-in than as a co-wash conditioner.
I used to make a leave-in consisting of HE HH plus some other ingredients (water, olive oil, a drop of honey, some others I forgot). Best leave-in ever…in fact I should try it again with AVJ and sunflower oil instead of water and olive oil.
What if you are using the Curly Girl Method? Does this apply since you are washing your hair so often?
If you’re doing the curly girl method you shouldn’t be using a condition with silicone period. If you are, switch to tresemme naturals or something like that.
Does anyone know if Terresentials remove Silicones? My hair is too thick and curly, so I have to use a silicone based conditioner in order to detangle it. I had to leave the curly girl method alone, too much buildup. But I use Terresentials not shampoo. I wash every two weeks now.
Just read the instructions that comes with the terressentials. From what I do remember they give you specific instructions as to how to remove whatever buildup you may have from your hair. In fact to be on the safe side go on their website and it should let you know. I remember that when I did my hair, i had to leave it in for a while and whatever buildup was on my hair, it left my hair feeling gooey and waxy, so the terressentials was gradually removing whatever it was, then after a while I had no problems.
With Teressentials you’re supposed to do an initial detox and then not use any commercial products except for theirs or natural homemade products. The website literally says in bold ” Do not use any other shampoos, conditioners or styling products as they are not compatible with the mud cleanser and will add plastics back to your hair, taking you right back where you started.” I found that to be too demanding which is why I never bought it. You may just want to keep it around as a clarifier and find a gentle shampoo to use.
This is my primary go-to hair style.. I rinse, condition, and de-tangle my hair every morning with Organix Moroccan Argan Oil Conditioner. The difference is that my curls dry with more definition. I do not get the itchies from build up. On a positive note over time I reap the benefits of deep conditioning so on the rare occasion that I straighten my hair it is much softer than it was before I started doing this. I included a link to my fb page in case anyone wanted to see my hair type.
This is my primary go-to hair style.. I rinse, condition, and de-tangle my hair every morning with Organix Moroccan Argan Oil Conditioner. The difference is that my curls dry with more definition, I even vary the amount of product used depending on how much volume I want. I do not get the itchies from build up. On a positive note over time I reap the benefits of deep conditioning so on the rare occasion that I straighten my hair it is much softer than it was before I started doing this.
Love your hair!
Gorgeous!
Thanks
Obviously this isn’t true for everyone because everyone’s hair is different.
I cowash only and if I am twisting my hair right after I don’t rinse out all of my conditioner. Also, before I untwist them in the morning I moisturize with my conditioner. Leave in conditioner is glorified water to me so I use a heavy conditioner. My hair is super dry and sucks up anything I put on it so I never have an issue with buildup even when I place it on my scalp. The only time my head itches is when I straighten it for some reason so no itches :)
Well said
I agree! I always leave in my heavy conditioner. And it’s a Protein conditioner. I don’t have the itchies and my hair feels very soft and looks alive! My hair is normally super-DRY so it loves the conditioner. I tried the “Leave-Ins” and all they do is well – nothing. A waste of money. Both my shampoo and conditioners are free from all sulfates and cones and mostly protein. After washing I either use coconut oil or argan oil (sometimes both) for moisture. My hair loves them. Everyone’s hair is different.
Not complaining on the info or articles, but am I the only one who notices that almost everything that is listed as a must for natural hair is then listed as a potential danger? Water is the purest form of moisture; then you hear of hydral fatigue (constant wetting and drying of hair). Protective styling, then is it right for you or not? Conditioners and promotion of co-washing, NOW leaving in conditioners can be potentially harmful.
If you are a newbie or attempting to get solid information, it can drive you crazy (it doesn’t to me, but I’m sure it can confuse some). It’s almost like that old saying, if you knew EVERYTHING that was in your food, you would starve. Let’s just leave it at the old adage what works for some MAY NOT work for all. But some of the posts can be downright conflicting.
Ok, opinion-sharing over……
Hi
You’re not the only one. The thing is if we knew how toxic everything was we wouldn’t move. Sad to say, I’m just going with what makes my hair feel/look good.
+
Yes! I can definitely see how all of this information can be overwhelming for some. But I think the main key is moderation along with research and exercising common sense. It’s a mindset, things do not have to be so complicated. My humble opinion.
that’s my take as well!
I agree
I really dislike leaving conditioner in my hair(that is not meant to be left in). It makes my hair frizzy. So I usually just wash it all out. Then I will go in with a leave-in conditioner.
Leaving conditioner on has one of two effects for my 4b hair:
1. It becomes crunchy and dry.
2. It becomes mushy and weak, too elasticated and then comes the breakage.
I realise this method can be wonderful for curly heads and even good for people with kinky hair types but my hair just doesn’t seem to benefit from this. Then again it is always arid and doesn’t get anything out of steaming or DCs. I skip DCing for more than 15 mins, an hour or heat makes no difference.
When your hair becomes crunchy and dry is when it needs more moisture and when it goes on the other end and becomes mushy and weak is when more protein is needed for your hair. You have to find the proper balance for your hair, because either one or the other extreme is not good, you are then going to lose hair.
Yes and that is how non leave in conditioners affect my hair when they are left in, that is why I NEVER leave them in.
I used regular conditioner for WnGs intermittently for years. Then, I started using conditioners formulated as leave-ins. Over the last several months, I started using Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose as a leave-in for braid-outs and it has worked amazing for me!! My hair is moisturized and it gives me a light, firm hold! Aubrey HSR is protein and silicone free and I use DevaCare No Poo to wash and I’ve never had any problems with build up or an itchy scalp. I never had problems in the past with silicone containing conditioners, but I would usually shampoo once every 4 weeks with a sulfated shampoo or DevaCare No Poo.
Shelli
I think I’ll try Aubrey HSR to twist my hair … Thanks for the tip :)
P.S. Love your blog/hair!
Your
Hair
Is
Absolutely
GORGEOUS!!!!
Awww, thank you Claudette and DaynaJoe!! :)
Shelli
I notice a lot of conditioners add sodium hydroxide (lye) as an ingredient; so it may be a good idea not to leave it in or even use these conditioners for that matter.
^Sodium hydroxide is used to normalize the Ph in the product. Not enough to cause concerns. Honest.
Yep. Yay Science!
I leave in DevaCurl’s Heaven in Hair every day (Along w/some of their styling aids). They promote it as their deep moiturizing treatment, but my hair soaks up this heavy conditioner for my daily wash and gos. Occasionally my scalp does get itchy, but I find that’s when I’m due for a wash. I do wash with their sulfate free NoPoo twice a wk and those nights I sleep in Heaven in Hair to replenish the moisture. So far I have more defined curls and much less frizz.
Noo…. I so don’t agree with this article, It’s gonna be too much confusing for newbies ?
Exactly.
I think the article is informative. I think the problem for newbies is having to decipher the factual information from the misinformation that is of often spread within the natural hair community.
Yep I am confused and a newbie plus I live in Australia where it is hard -where I live anyway- to find products for curly hair that don’t cost the earth. We can’t get a lot of curly products mentioned online. I find it funny that the Aussie line of products is not even available here.
I’ve used Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose and SheaMoistures Deep treatment mask as a leave-in. I never had an issue with them. Are the rules different for all natural/organic products? Or if you have low-porosity type hair?
I wash my hair weekly and rinse out my Hello Hydration conditionner. Then I detangle and moisturize my hair with the Aubrey Organics White Camelia conditionner and leave it in. Not only does it make my hair uber soft but it also smells good. I just make sure not to apply the condish on my scalp b/c that could lead to itchiness.
I personally find that my hair responds to conditionners better than leave-ins.
I love how Hello Hydration makes my curls look but it also makes my scalp itch like crazy so I had to give it up. :(
I’ve been doing a revised Curly Girl Method and it’s been working with my wash and go’s. Thankfully, the above warnings about the conditioners don’t apply for me since I use those with more natural ingredients.
Any conditioner from the herbal essence line when left in my hair will cause my scalp to itch like crazy! Is it just me? When used as a regular rinse out conditioner it works fine without the itchies. However, the tressame naturals conditioners, the aubrey organic conditioners, trader joe’s conditioner and the giovanni conditioners all worked fine without any scalp irritations when left in and I’ve used them all for a few months. The tressame naturals conditioners are currently my favorite since starting the curly girl method back in April.
Whenever I leave in rinse-out conditioners in my hair my scalp always starts itching. But it wasn’t until I tried the HH Hello Hydration that MASSIVELY huge flakes occurred. It was absolutely disgusting. I had to wash my hair about 3-4 times just to get out all of the dandruff. Then (because I was tired of my head being bent over the sink) I had to go through each section of my hair with a fine tooth comb to get all the flakes out that were stuck to my actual hair strands.
Anyway…the point I wanted to make is that you aren’t alone when it comes to scalp irritations
What i love about being natural is you can make your OWN rules. :)
I first heard about leaving conditioner in from Teri La Flesh.
I must say it works for me who has kinky hair and my daughter who has kinky curly hair.
I like Herbal Essence Hello Hydration and it works well. I don’t put it on my scalp so that avoids it being itchy.
Remember the instructions will only ever say what THEY want but being natural is doing what your HAIR wants,as long as you use common sense they is nothing wrong with it as it saves money.
i use her method too! it’s awesome! my hair’s never been healthier. but i wash my hair so frequently that i’m sure the buildup is a nonissue. i also use shampoo once every week or two weeks. Her method is such a godsend because it allows for so much flexibility.
I use Teri Laflesh’s tightly curly method, too. It works for me, it’s cheap, it’s simple – I love it. It’s flexible and you can shampoo with regularity.
I also use AO Honeysuckle rose as a leave in like Shelli but I also leave the glycogen protein balance in my hair for days on in (also by AO) and there are no ill effects.
Again, I think that with all advice you need to take it with a grain of salt………..especially when you know your own hair. What works for some (leaving in conditioner for ex:) may not work for another. I’ve used all types of conditioner in my hair with no ill effects. Specifically I like Teri LaFlesh’s explanation and research on leaving conditioner in your hair. Some of those rinse out conditioners have very similar properties as leave ins.