Can shampoos strip color from my hair?

Can shampoos strip color from my hair?

When researching shampoo, we noticed a trend in the questions. It had to do with shampoos and hair color dye.

Questions like…

Is your shampoo good for color treated hair?

Will your shampoo strip the color from my hair?

Why are sulfates bad for my dyed hair?

Taking 5 minutes to read this article will answer these questions and give you some insight you may not have realized about shampoo and hair dye.

THE MONEY FACTOR

We respect those wanting to educate themselves before making a purchase. Access to companies in so many ways today make it easier than ever to reach out and get answers.

When you pay a lot to have a beautiful color added to your hair, you want it to fade faster than it will naturally. No need to wash hard earned money down the drain when there are ways to plug the drain.

To accurately answer the common asked questions about sulfate shampoos and stripping hair, we had to do some deep digging and get a little biological. What we found might surprise you about the connection between shampoos and dyed hair.

WHAT A SURPISE!

It’s not really the shampoo doing all the stripping of the color, it’s the water! Turns out that sulfate – what gives most cleansers the ability to effectively remove dirt & oil –  has been getting a bad rap of stripping the color from color treated hair.

Sulfates still get some blame.

But sulfate is not the only culprit for why hair dye fades as different rates.

WHY 18-MEA MATTERS

Hair is primarily composed of protein, notably alpha-keratin.

The hair’s natural lipid layer, called 18-MEA, acts like a traffic controller, directing the rate at which water moves in and out of hair shaft. The lipid layer balance can be easily upset and permanently damaged.

During the coloring process, the natural lipid layer is destroyed. Therefore, the recommendation is to add extra conditioners to the hair care routine to dyed hair, to provide a kind of artificial layer of 18-MEA, the layer stripped away during the dye process.

When we lose this layer, hair tangles easily, appears dull and brittle, even feels course to the touch. 18-MEA gives hair its water-repellent property to keep the hair soft, and shiny, by allowing water to roll right off the shaft.

This natural water barrier in hair is easily broken down by external factors such as light (both UV and visual), chemicals (hair dye), and high pH products (like baking soda).  So, wearing a hat not only protects your face from sun exposure, but it can also protect the damage to the 18-MEA layer on your hair.

A LOOK AT SOLUTIONS

Back to the question about sulfate shampoos stripping hair color.

To get the hair color to last as long as possible, people are usually instructed to avoid the use of the ingredients SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate) and SLES (sodium laureth sulfate). Both these ingredients are very effective at the job to remove oils and build up from hair styling products which means the can also remove other things like hair dye.

Dye stays attached to hair due to its size.

Hair dye has large polymers that essentially get trapped in the hair, allowing the color stick. The polymers remain trapped until the hair opens up wider than the polymer, then they escape.

WATER DOES ITS PART

What makes hair open up like a flower to the sun? Water.

When hair encounters water, it causes the hair shaft to swell and the cuticle opens, making space for dye to immediately exit. Since it is impossible to wash hair without water, unless you use a dry shampoo – but that’s for another article all together – there is no way to keep the cuticle closed all the time.

When the natural lipid layer is damaged or removed, the hair losses its ability to repel water. So, no matter what shampoo, low pH or high pH, sulfate or sulfate-free, the cuticle will open, and the color will continue to strip from the hair when it gets wet. Environmental factors of sun and heated styling compound the fading.

Once the natural protective layer of lipids is stripped away, there is no way to replenish it naturally. The only option to is artificially replenish the layer with specific repair products or reduce the hairs exposure to damaging effects.

Most people who stop dying their hair and let the gray color grow naturally, they report a softer feel to their hair and the dullness is replaced by shine and more manageability.

THE RESULTS

There really is no true color safe shampoo available which uses water.

To reduce the number of hair washings, a dry shampoo without baking soda is the perfect tool.

The best way to reduce the effects shampoo has on stripping the color from hair is to use milder, less harsh ingredients, to slow the fading process. Reducing hairs exposure to environmental damage is the second-best way to extend the color of dyed hair.

HOW TO CHOOSE

Choosing a shampoo with natural ingredients will always be the best choice because it is made without toxic chemicals. Choose a natural shampoo and conditioner to help reduce dye from fading as quickly and when possible, choose options with minimal packaging.

Not only is less waste better, but natural can last longer than traditional brands saving money in the short and long term. Reduce plastic waste in landfills + less exposure to toxins + saving money, all are added bonuses to getting the most from the money spent at the hair salon.

THE SOLUTION

HERE is the perfect mix of natural & low waste for shampoos in a variety of scents to make your hair happy and your nose happy too.
If you want a bit more hair protecting ingredients, take a look at THIS BAR too.

If you want to add more conditioning to your hair care routine and also want to reduce your exposure to plastic, check these out HERE.

We love how long they last (>6 months even with daily use!) and each one replace 2-6 plastic bottles, depending on use.
Win-win for the wallet and the world.

Hope you found this article helpful.