Increasingly many people are turning away from shampoos and washing their hair with more natural products. It doesn’t get more natural and chemical free than just washing your hair with plain old water!
If you are like me and have fine hair, then this might be a perfect solution. Fine hair can tend to look greasy, so you might be thinking that water can’t possibly have my hair looking clean and glossy. But you’d be surprised by how infrequently you need to wash your hair.
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How Often Do You Need to Wash Your Hair with Water?
Many of you will be shocked when I tell you that since switching to a water only hair wash regimen, I now only wash my hair once a week (depending on circumstances). But actually, it’s not that I don’t wash my hair often enough, it is more likely that I used to wash my hair too often, as many of us do.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise to learn that one reason we all wash our hair so often, is because we are told to. And who tells us to? Why it is the shampoo manufacturers of course.
I won’t go off on a rant here about how all shampoo manufacturers are evil, they aren’t. They just have a product to sell, and mostly, it is a good product too! But it could be that washing your hair too frequently creates a vicious circle caused by the way shampoo works. Many experts are now in agreement that most of us are washing our hair too often.
How does Shampoo Work?
Shampoo works by drawing the oils from your hair and scalp. Over time, if used to frequently, shampoo usage will dry these natural oils from your hair. This can cause hair damage, dry hair and even dandruff. And what do you do when you have any of these problems, you wash your hair. And the vicious circle has begun.
The thing about these oils that shampoo strips from your hair and scalp, is that they are really natural hair protection and to some extent an automatic cleaning system. The natural oil found in hair is called Sebum, and it is there for one reason, to protect our hair.
How to Switch to a Water Only Hair Wash?
It is best not to just stop your existing product altogether at first. Changing to a water only hair wash means your hair will go through a period of transition until it achieves the balance of oils that nature intended.
Initially I washed with my normal shampoo at least once and sometimes twice a week and washed with water the rest of the time. Luke-warm water is best and really work it into the roots, I usually then rinse it with cold water.
I always used a good conditioner after washing my hair in both cases, to lock in the oils in the case of my water wash and to help the oil loss caused by the chemicals in the shampoo.
Within a month I was washing my hair once a week with shampoo and two or three times a week with water. Even at this point I was beginning to see the difference, my dry hair wasn’t as dry anymore and when it was at its driest was after my shampoo wash.
Move forward another month and the shampoo is gone altogether (well not quite, I use it occasionally still if my hair has somehow got really dirty, the last time was after swimming in the ocean). Apart from these occasions I can now happily state that I am a water-only hair washer.
The Benefits of Washing Your Fine Hair with Only Water
Let’s just start with one that we haven’t mentioned yet in this article, cost. I used to spend a small fortune on shampoos. Special formulas that were guaranteed to give my fine hair bounce and volume, or repair shampoos that were supposed to undo the damage that my bounce and volume inducing shampoo had caused.
Whilst saving money wasn’t a big factor in my decision to stop using shampoo, it is a very pleasant side-effect.
The main benefit of washing my hair with water only, is the sheer health and shine of my hair. I have fine hair, so I wasn’t expecting miracles, and I still have fine hair. But what I can say is that it is by no means as fine as it used to be, and it carries a natural sheen that used to cost me a fortune.
As I mentioned, the frequency of my hair washing is also a fraction of what it used to be. Why? Because it doesn’t need it! Okay so washing my hair once a week only is at the most extreme end of the scale, I confess most weeks I will wash my hair twice, but no more than that.
My hair is now healthy and strong, it has bounce where before it had fly!
Natural Conditioners to Use with Water Only Washing
My hair has a natural tendency to be both fine and dry. Washing with water helps in preserving the natural sebum oils that hair produces. I like to give it a helping hand by finishing each wash with a good conditioner. Most recently I have changed to using natural conditioners, after all it seemed a waste to cut out all the nasties from shampoo just to replace them with the chemicals present in conditioners!
Two fantastic products that are completely natural and work a treat are Apple Cider Vinegar and Coconut Oil. The vinegar was a surprise to me, but it works really well. Its PH level is close to the natural level of your own hair’s PH and as such it works in conjunction to protect the oils without stripping them from your hair.
Coconut oil is also a fab choice for this, and it feels so luxurious too! It is also full of natural oils that work to protect and enhance your hair’s natural sebum.
If you have never tried a water wash only on your fine hair, what are you waiting for! Try and see if it works for you, it is free after all!
