Hair Product Review Thread

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 pinkecube wrote:

 liesnalibis wrote:

I looked at the label. Which ingredients indicate protein? And yeah I was gonna give it another shot just to say I gave it a fair shake.

Shea moisture restorative conditioner:

Ingredients: Deionized water, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea butter)*, Argan Oil, Coconut
 Oil*, Behentrimonium Chloride, Essential Oil Blend, Vegetable Glycerin,
 Emulsifying Wax, Sea Kelp Extract, Panthenol (Vitamin B-5), Avocado 
Oil, Lonicera Caprifolium (Honeysuckle) Flower (and) Lonicera Japonica 
(Japanese Honeysuckle) Flower Extract, Tocopherol (Vitamin E),  Daucus 
Carota Sativa (Carrot) Seed Oil

*Certified Organic Ingredients

SheaMoisture Coconut & Hibiscus Curl & Style Milk

Ingredients: Deionized Water, Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea Butter)*, Cocos Nucifera 
(Coconut) Oil*, Sugar Starch, Silk Protein, Essential Oil Blend, Melia 
Azadirachta (Neem) Seed Oil, Caprylyl Glycol, Sorbitol Esters, Algae 
Extract, Hyssopus Officinalis Extract, Salvia Officinalis (Sage) Leaf 
and Equisetum Arvense Extract, Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Seed Oil, 
Lonicera Caprifolium (Honeysuckle) Flower (and) Lonicera Japonica 
(Japanese Honeysuckle) Flower Extract, Tocopherol (Vitamin E), Hibiscus 
Flower Extract 

*Certified Organic Ingredient

I bolded some of the ingredients that i think u may want to look into your hair not liking, and bolded the main points I made below so it's easier to read (since it's a lot). There is actually protein in the curl and style milk, it's silk protein. If your hair is low porosity, it's likely an ingredient your hair does not like, or you are protein sensitive.

 It's also possible your hair is being dried out from the vegetable glycerin in the conditioner. Since you are using it in the winter especially, it's likely the vegetable glycerin is pulling moisture out of your hair and into the atmosphere. That's why if i were using a product with glycerin in it, it wouldn't be something i would leave in my hair. The conditions have to be right for it to do what it's supposed to do, which is pull moisture out of the air and into your hair-- that isn't going to happen during the winter months, it's too dry and cold. A lot of products have glycerin in them, which is one of the reasons many naturals complain about the winter weather drying their hair out and even causing breakage.  If you had to use this conditioner, I would only use it as a cowash, if at all. Maybe it will help pull the steam from the shower in to your hair?

Many people use glycerin and believe their hair "likes" it , just b/c it makes the hair feel soft temporarily. They may live or be in a humid enough environment, but I believe a lot of the time, the water that's being pulled toward the hair just kind of sits on the hair shaft. The oil is a sealant, no more moisture is going to properly be absorbed into the hair shaft after you apply it. Your hair is going to feel soft while the water is on it, but eventually the water will evaporate into the atmosphere with out your hair having drunk from it, leaving a dry, greasy, brittle feeling. This could happen anywhere from a few hours, to a couple of days.

Aside from that, maybe your hair doesn't not like coconut oil? Have u noticed any dryness from using coconut oil on your hair? For some, it acts like a protein, others like it, you could check into that.

As for panthenol, my understanding is that this is a light kind of protein, and paired with another protein ingredient, it can make the hair feel gummy, and also build up on the hair, which causes dryness.

Solution:
I understand when people have a problem with their hair, they want to jump into a protective style, but I believe the main problem here is your hair is dry. Putting your hair in braids right now may worsen the situation, or not do anything to improve it. What I would do is clarify my hair with a baking soda rinse (maybe 2 teaspoons bakingsoda, 1/3 cup of conditioner, and a little water, leave it on for 20-30 mins) and then I would rinse it out, section and apply some slightly watered down conditioner in my hair and GHE/DC for a couple of days. I would wear one of those fancy scarf protective styles to hide my shower cap from public viewing eye when i go out. Do it for maybe 2 days straight with out taking it off.

 You won't get moisture overload, moisture overload should really be called not enough protein syndrome, because low porosity and pretty much all hair imo does not absorb water endlessly like a sponge. If it was like that, we wouldn't have frizz or dryness. Moisture overload happens when there isn't enough protein in your hair, which clearly isn't the problem here. Proof of that is the super softness you feel will go away once you hair is exposed to the air and all the excess unabsorbed water has evaporated into the atmosphere.

I have low porosity hair and it prefers the Coconut and Hibiscus line from Shea Moisture. I've only ever used the Deep Tx Masque out of the Raw Shea line but it is my current go to heavy protein tx. As such, I've also added to bold some more ingredients that are proteins and act as proteins.