Wash hair with warm water only?

Question

I'm reading an article on Matthew Parris from last week's 'Independent' newspaper; he claims to have washed his hair only in warm water, and to have kept up this practice for ten years, with the result that his hair is 'as light and fluffy as a kitten's coat'.

Wow! What a revelation- but is he correct? Can we get by without shampoo, so long as we rinse- will it work with certain hair types, but not others? Or is it a foolish step to take?

Over to you!

Answer 1

I started trying this about three months ago (which I read was the time your hair/scalp needed to start selfcleansing/adjusting..)
For a couple of months my hair looked great-still looked clean and shiny, and smelled really fresh. However,when you get to three months i found it needed a single wash; if you think about it, although the natural oils are good for the condition of your hair and scalp, particles of dust and general atmospheric dirt and pollution get trapped in this sebum and accumulate, eventually leading to lacklustre hair (this only really becomes apparent at around 2&a half/3months though..a couple of my dreadlocked friends tend to wash their hair every 3months..),so that after I combed my hair my fingers would have some black dirt stuck to them(which you couldn't see in the hair,but could tell by it's dull appearance,though this improves to be gradually more sheeny again..but at this 3month stage i gave my scalp/hair a good scrub with a shampoo bar,so not sure if eventually the dirt would have worked itself out;but after washing,my scalp/hair felt so good,my hair,because of the 3months of being naturally conditioned&chemical-free,looked better than it ever.I haven't washed it since,and am going to continue with the cycle and see if this time, because my hair has become more accustomed to not being washed,and has had one little wash to help it whilestit was adjusting, that this time around I might not even have to do that.
My hair's definitely coping better with not being washed this time around; it's over a week since that one clean, and it hasn't got greasy etc at all yet.
Only use cold water to rinse your hair with; it's the oils that condition and maintain your hair, and, unlike sweat, which's water soluble and can be removed from your hair just be washing in cold water alone, the oils won't wash away with cold water (but, the heat from really hot water will cause these oils to wash out of your hair, which you DON'T want to happen-it'll onlock all of the time you've put into your hair, and will leave it feeling tacky.)Cold water also makes hair appear more shiny, as the scales on the hair molecules are flattened,making them smoother and more light-reflective.
If you live in an area with SOFT WATER,it's perfect' it is easy to rinse away the residue and remain with soft,fluffy hair,and it may not even get tacky or dirty at all-i have hardwater&there's not much info out there for comparison. Hard water areas however don't seem to wield quite such good results,making the hair have a slightly tacky film to it (though i only have hardwater and it's not too bad).
As with the oil, some types of dirt/pollutants are hydrophobic(waterhating;won't dissolve in water alone),so in the first cycle of hairwashing before your 3month wash(if your hair becomes noticably dirty like mine&you have to wash it with detergent)you may find,whilest the oil is still being produced over-abundantly that your hair DOES become too dirtattracting.Since your scalp will gradually release less and less of this dirtattracting oil,(which's over-released as a reaction to the incredibly harsh oil-stripping properties of all chemical shampoos/detergents,(which's why we need manmade conditioners as our own is stripped away..then it becomes oily again,needs washing,then we need to condition..-a never-ending cycle if you give in,soon you 'need' to wash it twice a day as your poor scalp is going haywire)so therefore is released less when it's NOT being bombarded by chemicalstrippers when we stop washing our hair)eventually it'll probably not be enough to attract such noticable dirt accumulation,and will be clean. However, I think it probably needs a clean in the midst of this readjustment to remove this clogged dirt so it doesn't remain (I have heard a tip of placing some cheesecloth over a brush,so that if you don't want to use soap/shampoo it supposedly removes the oil/dirt onto the cheesecloth.Also,you can grow a plant called soapwort,boil it's roots and use the liquid as an allnatural soap.It contains saponins,the lathering substance you also find in soaps.).
Since it's the scalp and not the hair that produces the oil, the hair Never 'needed' to be cleaned when shampooing anyway,just the scalp.
To keep the scalp healthy and to break down the builup of deadskin/flakes,make sure you massage your scalp thoroughly when slooshing just cold water through your hair.
Thin hair may look even thinner whilest the scalp/hair is still experiencing the overcompensatory effects of oil production at the beggining,but i doubt if it'd even show on thicker/curlier hair,especially afrocarribean.
Shampoo is the biggest beauty industry scandal ever. Don't be dissuaded by any negative remarks which ignorant/showy-offy people may have;the end result will be worth any couple of weeks of having your hair not quite as aesthetically pleasing as normal. Just imagine,beautiful healthy hair,no chemicals going into your system/impacting on the environment, and, lots of money saved;you may never 'have to' buy allergy-causing shampoo again! And think of the time you'll have saved for other things.
Good tip;wearing a hat(or having braids for a while)wil help for your 'off' days-it's only the roots which are oily for a while, the rest doesn't even show, and just looks better!If you backcomb your hair ever-so-slightly if it looks too flat/limp,it instantly looks great;fluffy,more body etc.
Hope this helps, good luck with your journey, let us know how it goes! :) :)

Answer 2

Wash Hair With Water Only

Answer 3

I tried this..no good results at all :(.5 months ago i started to wash my hair only with water,first week was ok,but it still got greasy,as i read it needs time i continued...now it's over 5 months and i've lost half of my hair (i have very very thick hair nor) and it gets greasy even often.What do i do wrong?I wash it with warm water cuz cold water didn't washed away the grease,not even a little.Can anyone help me pls?

Answer 4

The hair is self clensing but like the others have said it will look very lank and greasy for at least six weeks.

As for washing hair with shampoo, avoiding very hot water is best. Very hot water makes the hair oilier, warm water is best for while washing, then finish with some cool water which closes the hair folicles and makes your hair shinier.

If you were looking for a way to avoid the hassle of washing your hair, you could try dry shampoo between washes such as Lee Stafford, available at Boots. Its in an aerosol type can and you spray it into your roots and it stops it being greasy looking!

Good luck x

Answer 5

Washing them everyday means dryer hair just after wash and oily after half a day as body produces more oil to compensate!!. If you feel your hair isnot clean or out of shape then try to wash them everyday with just water and use shampoo only 1-2 times a week
After about 6 weeks you scalp produce less oil.

Answer 6

I saw an article on Daily Mail last week regarding this. 2 out of the 4 girls trying to survive without shampoo thought it was worthwhile doing and will not use shampoo again to wash their hair. These people had brown hair so the oiliness didn't show, but the blondes hated it as their hair look dreadful. So I guess it depends on many things: the colour of your hair, its texture etc.

Answer 7

My hairdresser suggested this to me, and it is what he does with his own hair. His hair does NOT appear oily, and clearly (as a hairdresser) he uses product in his hair daily. What most people don't seem to realize is that you are not just rinsing your hair, you want to get under the water and massage the scalp as though you are working product in. He suggests that if you must wash it with something while doing this (example- he went swimming and had to get chlorine out) use conditioner.

I can't vouch for that by experience, because I followed another hairdresser's advice: I wash my hair with conditioner only. My hair is short, thick, and oily typically and I use gel (or spiking glue) on a daily basis. I take a shower every morning and I use a handful of conditioner (b/c conditioner doesn't lather up like shampoo does) as though it were shampoo (i.e. I work it into the scalp really good) and then rinse it out completely. I've been doing this for about two months and my hair is a darker color than before (it was very dark brown before and now it appears almost black- BUT, and I want to emphasize this, it doesn't look dirty or greasy), it feels softer, and it is more managable. No one to date has ever thought my hair looked or smelled unclean. After trying this, I never want to use shampoo again.

Answer 8

Wash in Warm to clean off all of the residue and then condition, let the conditioner seep into your hair -- if you get the greasies then only go for the ends (tips) and let sit for about 3-5 minutes. Then rinse with lukewarm and then finish w/ cold as it will close the cuticles of your hair making it shine.

Answer 9

I read years ago when Take That was megga that Mark had'nt washed his hair for years. I could not live without washing me hair with shampoo like.

Answer 10

the hair is self cleansing but the your hair will be thick of grease for 6 weeks while your oil grands readjust. It's suppossed to be good for your hair.

Answer 11

Ive heard a lot of people do this, apprently if you leave it it will go manky but then will get better.
There is no way Id live without my shampoo though!