How often do you 'poo?

[furie]

A couple of weeks before Christmas, I decided to try an experiment I've been meaning to do for years.

I wanted to see how long (or if it was possible) to go without shampoo. Obviously for those challenged in the follicle department it's pretty easy, but even then it's an act of cleanliness.

I'd heard many years ago (when I was a teenager and there was a show about the body on BBC 1 in the evening) that hair is self cleaning and doesn't need washing. They had people on who managed six weeks without washing their hair.

I looked into this and apparently you should do something but you don't need shampoo, you can just use water to rinse away the grease and dirt. Allegedly it helps with dandruff, psoriasis, etc.

General consensus is that more than once a week is probably too much and not needed; brushing is more important.

So just about six weeks along and how's it going for me? Well, my hair isn't a nastily greasy mop as you'd imagine. It looks okay the day after being washed with water, but by two days it feels itchy, nasty and greasy. Sometimes it's better and it's stopped my dandruff (but that may simply be because I have sensitive skin and I'm allergic to lots of chemicals like shampoo).

So I'm going back to washing it regularly, but I'm hoping that now it wont be the usual once every other day as it was. Maybe go back to once a week for my hair.

So how often does everyone else shampoo?

 

[nadroJ]

Makes me laugh when you get these girls (and guys) who wash their hair like, twice a day. It makes me almost ashamed to admit that I was mine probably......once a week? And the day after washing is the worst, it's all wispy and has a mind of its own.

 

[kimahri]

I have a very specific and planned route for bathing. If its a work night, I will have a full exfoliation of skin and hair or what ever. If it's not a work night, like a weekend or requested holiday or I'm staying over at someone's house and I'm incredibly shy to go to use their bathroom, completed with locking bolt and seclusion where no one can see. **** IT! I WILL WALLOW IN MY OWN DEAD SKIN CELLS AND LOOSE GREASY HAIIIR!

I may work on the showering in other people's houses... during ghosterforce last year I never washed. Narsty :x

 

[tks]

At the moment, 2/3 times a week as i'm swimming quite a bit, and Chlorine =/= good for hair.

 

[marc]

I was mine every day.

 

[SaiyanHajime]

The "hair is self cleaning and doesn't need washing" thing is ... just idiocy.

It's the grime that falls in your hair that's a problem, not the grim that you make.

Think of all the dust, dirt, and particles of **** that fall in your hair just being out and about.

It needs doing every day. Sorry. But it just does.

 

[nadroJ]

I don't believe it is self-cleansing, mine's just such a mammoth task that I can only be bothered to actually get on with it once a week. And that's around the point where it starts looking gross too.

And also, dry shampoo <3

 

[SaiyanHajime]

But does it not bother you that there's... just, well, dirt in it? And that gets transfered anywhere you rest your head?

Cuz I get the whole "it doesn't look gross" thing. Mine looks better if I go a day without washing it. But just no.

 

[Ben]

Every day. You're all a bit vile, tbh.

Never sitting next to Phil again <//3

 

[Hixee]

My hair is (usually) quite short, so it never really gets that bad if I don't wash if for a few days, however, I do wash it every day because I can. I don't see any harm in washing it, and it's a piece of cake for me to do due to the length, so I might as well.

 

[Snoo]

I lack hair so not very often. Twice a week if I don't do very much activity and more if I'm working out or working a lot.

 

[nadroJ]

But does it not bother you that there's... just, well, dirt in it? And that gets transfered anywhere you rest your head?

Cuz I get the whole "it doesn't look gross" thing. Mine looks better if I go a day without washing it. But just no.

I don't really think about it tbh, personal hygiene isn't at the top of my worry list. I wash the necessary amount and just get on with life I suppose. And I've been told that only washing once a week helps hair growth, by my hairdresser, so I suppose there's that reason too.

Freshly washed hair is just the worst.

 

[kimahri]

My hair starts to physically hurt if I don't wash is after about a week and half.

 

[mouse]

Every other day.

 

[ciallkennett]

Can't wait for Ian's post.

Like Jordan said, the day after washing, it goes all wispy and horrid <//3 It's the same if you wash it in the morning and you have to contend with hair for the rest of the day which is too "light" and goes all fuzzy. It's horrid. I genuinely hate washing my hair, but I know it must be done.

I do mine every time I shower, and I shower most days. I only ever use 2-in-1 anti-dandruff stuff though, which let's be honest, is more like a shampoo than two-in-one.

 

[furie]

The "hair is self cleaning and doesn't need washing" thing is ... just idiocy.

It's the grime that falls in your hair that's a problem, not the grim that you make.

Think of all the dust, dirt, and particles of **** that fall in your hair just being out and about.

It needs doing every day. Sorry. But it just does.

Now for the science bit*

Grime in your hair is an issue, but not as much as you'd think. The idea seems to be that grooming is the most important part of looking after your hair. Your hair produces natural oils called sebum. These oils start on the scalp and naturally coat the hair moiving from root to tip. Conditioner contains similar oils that are used to replace the sebum that shampoo strips away.

Each day, we produce sebum and lose skin cells and hairs. The problem is that if the sebum is allowed to pool on the scalp, it traps the dead hairs and skin. This in time causes scalp problems, in growing hair follicles and a smelly twisted knot of hair at the root. Very unpleasant.

There seems to be a consensus that what you need is a dense, soft fibre brush. If you brush with this, it pulls the sebum along the hair and removes the dead hairs and scalp flakes - keeping the scalp clean and healthy. It will also remove dirt and grime onto the brush.

However, there also seems to be a consensus that you have to do some washing too, but it's fine with just water to remove the worst of the offending dirt. I assume it's much worse if you live in a gritty urban environment that if you live somewhere with little traffic and dust.

The problem with using shampoo too frequently is that it strips the sebum away. This means you then need to use extra products to replace the removed sebum. Your body doesn't like this and tends to then over produce sebum to replace the lost stuff, which results in hair that becomes greasy rapidly (which most people deal with by washing more frequently).

Sebum is good stuff. Jordan is right that it encourages hair growth. It also helps stop greyness from creeping in and keeps your scalp much healthier.

Personal experience then. At times it was fine and I could for maybe three days without washing my hair (with just water) and it not feel gross. Other times I'd wash my hair and feel it needed washing again right away. It never looked any worse than before though and felt thicker and healthier generally. My scalp stopped itching and the dandruff went away.

Madame_Furie didn't know I'd stopped using shampoo until I told her after five weeks. So it mustn't smell or look bad (she'd be the first to stay away from me if I was unpleasant, believe me).

Last night I used some mild shampoo and broke the 'poo fast (it was never going to be something long-term). My head is itchy again and the dandruff is back mildly. My hair also feels dry. However, it generally feels "cleaner". I'll probably move to washing with just water when I shower and using mild shampoo once a week. I'll see how that affects my sebum levels next.




*Like I'd do anything like this without researching it first

 

[SaiyanHajime]

The problem with using shampoo too frequently is that it strips the sebum away. This means you then need to use extra products to replace the removed sebum.

Hey, hey... Phil, It's that time again!

EvErYbOdIeS DiFfErEnT!

As someone with thick greasy hair, living in an urban environment, it needs washing every day.

As a sweaty person. I need washing every day. Sometimes twice a day.

Really that simple. It's got nothing to do with being fussy, I would be a health risk to society otherwise.

For example. Tony doesn't use deodorant. He never ever smells of BO though. It's about the only thing he doesn't smell of, but stil. And since noticing this, I've found out that a LOT of people don't use antiperspirant deodorant, just smelly spray... Some really SHOULD be using proper deodorant, but most of them don't smell. I, however, need it or I'd stink. And I have to alternate between a couple of brands of hardcore stuff so I don't get used to it and so it doesn't start to burn me.

I'm going to throw a wild guess and say I probably have over productive sebum. It would make sense, since I have thick dark hair and lots of it.

I can't brush my hair, it does horrible horrible things if I do. And I still don't buy that "brushing" takes out particles of **** that I really really do not want transferred to my pillow.

 

[furie]

Does it need washing with shampoo every day though? Would you find that it balances out better if you use shampoo less frequently? This is why I wanted to do the test, to see if I could manage to go for a longer period and see if the "theories" paid out. Mixed bag really.

I have thick, dark, oily hair. When it was long, if I didn't wash it for two days then it was clearly nasty, greasy and horrid (hence why I didn't try this when it was long). So I understand where you're coming from, but unless you've tried to go for six weeks with just daily washing with water instead of shampoo, you can't say if you're different or not - you've only got one end of the experiment

I don't think you're wrong at all in what you're doing, mind - how can you be, you know what works for you. After being in a city, or getting hot and sweaty, I always need to wash my hair because it's horrid otherwise. Even worse when it was longer because you can feel it around your face, neck and bedding.

However, using shampoo regularly encourages over-production of sebum, because it's constantly being removed. Like me, you probably will over-produce anyway so you're damned either way. Just don't come moaning to me when you're bald and grey

 

[kimahri]

I think I'm like Joey, my hair always get greasy really quickly, even before puberty hit and hormones were like, OMFG LETS MAKE YOU SWEAT LOADS! or LETS MAKE YOU RAMDOMLY JIZZ AT NIGHT! My dad is the same I think. I kinda work in a job where I have to interact with people who don't actually own showers/ too stupid to use one so I have to look somewhat respectable (and wear a button shirt over the pants-on-head retarded t-shirt) so I look better than them cause they suck and are smelly.

I would like to try not washing my hair but the fact I'll have to maintain it by brushing and **** doesn't help my laziness.

 

[peep]

I wash mine whenever I feel like it, sometimes every day, sometimes every other day. I've been told several times by barbers that if I leave out shampoo for a couple of days it's meant to be like better for me etc but meh. I'm not too fussed, mainly because I don't have long hair and it behaves itself (unless I've used product, then it NEEDS to be washed with shampoo).