Having only used shampoo bars to wash my hair for the last 7 years, you can bet that I'm the number one supporter of the shampoo bar revolution! I've always had dry hair and an unbelievably dry scalp. pH has a huge impact on the health of your hair and drug store shampoo was not acidic enough for me, leaving my cuticles open, drying out my scalp and leaving me scaly.
The very first time I used a shampoo bar it left this weird film on top of my hair and I looked like greasy. However, after using it repeatedly, I started to see better results. The problem was two-fold, and these are the most common two shampoo bar troubleshooting issues that we've seen arise:
Common shampoo bar issue #1 - The hair needed some time to adjust to normal after switching to the shampoo bar because store-bought shampoos strip the oil out of your hair and your scalp produces more oil to try and compensate.
Common shampoo bar issue #2 and the cause of most problems - The WATER. Shampoo bars will react differently to different locations due to water hardness. Water hardness is a function of mineral content, usually referring to the amount of calcium and magnesium present, and the higher the content, the harder the water. The film that you are feeling on your hair is shampoo bar reacting with the excess minerals in the water to form soap film. Hard water also causes the hair cuticle to stand up and is drying on the skin.
Doesn't matter if you're new to using shampoo bars or have been for a while. If the shampoo bars leave a thin film on your hair, or your hair feels heavy and greasy, there is a good chance that it is your water. Either wash your hair with distilled water or invest in a water softening system of a filtering shower head. The water in my area is pretty good, but every time I start to have some issues with my shampoo bar, I soak my shower head in cleaning vinegar and voila! Problems gone.
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