No More 'Poo

For 30-odd years, I have been wedded to shampoo and never thought anything different about it.  Well, actually, I do remember wondering how hippy folk with dreadlocks who said "hair cleans itself" managed, when what I saw didn't seem so "clean".  Being somewhat crunchy nowadays myself, although dreadlocks wouldn't really suit me, I am enjoying departing from the flock in so many areas of life and, dare I say it, feel like shouting about it from the rooftops! 

* * * * I've given up shampoo! * * * *

If that has the ring of someone hailing their lost vice, it is for good reason.  My hair feels great!  (Who was it that said the recently converted shout the loudest?!) 

Being rather sheepish in my ways, I am often wary of trying something new and drastic until I've seen what happens to others first.   After considering it for some time (the Contemplation stage*), I have taken a leaf or two from other no-poo-ers' experiences and finally gone ahead.


I haven't used shampoo for about a month now, hopefully long enough to make an objective assessment of the results.  But first, it may help to provide a bit of background as to the thought processes I've been through to get to this stage.

Once upon a time, I worked in a molecular laboratory, where we used SDS (or SLS: sodium lauryl sulphate), a detergent found in most shampoo, shower gels etc, in DNA extractions to lyse the cells (ie break them open!).  It is an efficient oil-stripper, and an irritant, so, not having the sort of job where I smear myself with major grease and dirt everyday, I began to ask myself why we were using this on our bodies.  After a trial and error process over some years, I had settled on using Dead Sea Spa Magik mineral shampoo as it was the only one I could use that wouldn't exacerbate the seborrhoeic dermatitis that I've been mildly bothered by for a long time.  (And it isn't made by Unilever! Yay!)  It is actually a really nice shampoo, with many agreeable ingredients, although having long hair, I had to use a tonne of it to get a full lather.  It doesn't contain SLS, but it does contain a surfactant derived from coconut, so will have some oil dispersing properties, although thankfully not akin to the likes of Fairy Liquid.  It is more expensive than ordinary shampoo.  So, on my life-simplifying and naturifying journey, it is another product I have consigned to the what-you-can-LIVE-without pile.

Reading around, the most popular natural alternative to shampoo seems to be bicarbonate of soda.  So, I bought myself a large bag (3 kg actually).  I calculated that this should last approximately 1 year, and cost less than £10.  (And, it has many other household uses......)

The Basic Method


1) Add 1 T bicarb to a squeezy bottle (an ordinary used squeezy shampoo bottle would also do, but you might have trouble getting the powder in if the hole is small) while in shower/bath (or maybe before your hands get wet)
2) Get your hair all wet
3) Add ~1 cup water to your bicarb and give it a good shake
3) Squirt all over your roots and give your scalp a good massage.
4) Rinse

I tried making it before I got into the shower one day, but by the time I came to wash my hair, the solution had cooled down - so, unless you want a sitz bath on your head, add the warm water just before using it.  Having long hair, I also found I needed to use more like 1.5 T (20-25 ml) in a bit more than 1 cup H2O, but I am still experimenting with slight alterations to concentrations and volumes. 

Initial Results

For the first week or two, my scalp went through an oil rebalancing process.  My hair felt a bit straw-like and the midlengths were sticky and felt unclean.  I began to wonder what the heck I was doing, but things soon improved and my confidence was renewed.  Then I began to use some vinegar to add condition and shine.  The recipe is basically as above, although I use slightly less than 1 T vinegar because it can lead to increased greasiness.  Many no poo-ers are using apple cider vinegar, although I am not sure what the advantages are over basic distilled malt vinegar except perhaps its naturalness.

My hair, washed about 3 days ago:

It looks and feels fine.  The next part of my hair story will be a celebration of GREY!  Or, in my case, white.  I am also giving up hair colouring because I am fed up of the maintenance now that the ageing process is well underway.  Meanwhile, if anyone knows of any good natural violet rinses to tone down yellowness in the coloured sections of my dyed white hair, please let me know.


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*I refer to the Transtheoretical Model of Change here because, although somewhat more benign than smoking or drinking alcohol, washing my hair is something other than conventional shampoo has been a big step for me to take.