Our aim is simple, we want to create a hair care range for every hair type and everyone that makes your hair the best it can be. To do that we need to put the best ingredients in, and leave the worst ingredients out. Healthy hair needs a cared for scalp and nourished, hydrated hair follicles. So we’ve left out any ingredients that irritate your scalp or damage your hair follicles. Leaving only good quality, clean ingredients that will care for your scalp and promote the health of your hair.
We’ve identified nine ingredients which we don’t believe are beneficial for your hair, and we’ve dumped them. You won’t find any of these nine nasties in our products, and here’s why.
SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate)
SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate) is a low cost detergent that creates the sudsy lather in many shampoos. SLS a very strong detergent so it cleans well, but it can clean too well when used on hair - drying your hair and stripping it of its natural oils. Causing your hair to overcompensate with more oil production which can lead to greasy hair. SLS is also a known skin irritant, it’s even been used to irritate the skin when testing products which heal skin conditions. So it’s no surprise that it can irritate your scalp causing redness and itching, and has been linked to hair loss.
We don’t put SLS in our shampoos or any other products. Instead we use a scalp and hair friendly cleanser called Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate. They may have the same initials but Sodium Lauryl Sulfoacetate which we use is a mild surfactant that forms a rich lather which removes surface oil, dirt and bacteria but doesn’t strip or dry your hair and scalp.
SLES (Sodium Laureth Sulfate)
SLES (Sodium Laureth Sulfate) is another common detergent used in shampoos that foams up and creates the lather. SLES is not as irritating as SLS, but it can dry out your skin and hair. The production of SLES can cause a by-product of dioxane which is a probable human carcinogen, so we’ve decided not to include SLES in any of our products.
We only use gentle cleansers that clear dirt and surface oil without drying out your skin or hair.
Parabens
Parabans are used as a preservative in many shampoos, increasing their shelf life. Parabens have been found to disrupt hormone function and mimic estrogen, and have been linked to breast cancer. Although it hasn’t been proven that parabens cause breast cancer there have been parabens found in tumors. We prefer not to risk your health and err on the side of caution so we’ve made our shampoos and all our products free of parabens.
Phthalates
Phthalates are industrial chemicals used for softening plastic and they’re also used in some shampoos, hairsprays, mousses and conditioners. Phthalates are hormone-disruptors and have been linked with a number of concerning side effects. Some of the nasty side effects include infertility, weight gain, worsening of allergies, changes in sex hormone levels, premature birth and behavioural changes. We’d rather not have any phthalates in our products so we didn’t put them in.
Mineral oil
Mineral oil is made from distilling petroleum (crude oil). It’s been used as a scalp treatment and to lock the moisture into hair. However, mineral oil doesn’t penetrate your hair, it leaves an oily coat on the surface which locks water in, so it’s ok for a temporary enhancement but has virtually no long term benefits. Mineral oil can actually clog your pores and leave your hair dryer than when you started because while it locks water in it also locks water out.
For our scalp treatment we use charcoal powder to detoxify impurities, relieving oily and itchy scalps, and coconut oil to nourish your scalp and help remove sebum build up, leaving your hair light and healthy.
Our nourishing argan oil moisturises your scalp and helps repair and protect hair follicles.
DEA
Cocamide diethanolamine (cocamide DEA) is a chemically modified form of coconut oil used as a foaming agent or thickener in many shampoos, conditioners and soaps. In small doses it can cause an allergic reaction in some people. In larger doses it’s potentially carcinogenic to humans. Cocamide DEA has been banned in California since 2012 because of its potential to cause cancer. We don’t use DEA for the same reason.
Harsh sulfates
Harsh sulfates like sodium laureth sulfate, sodium lauryl sulfate, and ammonium laureth sulfate are commonly used as detergents in shampoos and give the foamy lather. Using harsh cleansers like these strips the hair and scalp of its natural oils making your hair dry and brittle. We don’t use harsh sulfates in our shampoos or any of our products.
The only sulfate you’ll find in our products is magnesium sulfate, or Epsom salt, in our sea salt spray. Epsom salt can strengthen hair and its acts as a natural volume and curl boost.
Triclosan
Tricoslan is added to some products as an antibacterial agent. The use of triclosan is linked to some troubling side effects like weakening the immune system, throwing off the hormone regulating system (the endrocrine system), and increased chance of developing allergies, asthma and eczema in children. We don’t use triclosan.
Triclocarban
Triclocarban is another antibacterial agent used in soaps and lotions. when flushed down drains and into river and ocean systems triclocarban can be very harmful to organisms and the surrounding environment. We want to take care of your hair and the planet we live in so we don’t use triclocarban.