How does non tearing shampoo work ph

Polyethoxylated surfactants play a number of roles in a shampoo system. For example, sodium laurylglucoside promotes mild cleansing, whereas hydroxypropylsulfonate provides smoothing and soothing properties to the formulation.

Alkanolamides a category of surfactants —and an example of one you might see listed on a label is cocamide MEA— another type of gentle nonionic surfactant that provides foam stabilization and viscosity-building properties. These alkyl ingredients actually can temporarily numb the eye and worse.

They are used in pesticide products to anesthetize insects and they can penetrate the skin and cause organ toxicity in people. So when you see these ingredients listed on the label, you know that the shampoo is an acidic, lower pH formula with inexpensive, harsh, eye burning, stinging ingredients. TruKid uses the third choice above, for reducing eye burning or stinging. Silly Shampoo contains naturally derived mild and gentle surfactants from vegetable and fruit sources.

These ingredients make for a shampoo that is significantly less irritating to the eyes than other shampoos, while keeping with the commitment to make a safe, natural product without harsh, synthetic or anesthetizing chemicals. Silly Shampoo does a lot more than being gentle on the eyes. When I tried it, my hair was shiny without being oily, very manageable, soft and healthy looking.

A river of shampoo bubbles are making a break for it, leaving the crown of her head for the hills and dales of her eyebrows and -- oh no! Before you can react, she blinks, sending suds marching across her corneas. And smiles. She smiles? Where is the howl-inducing sting that comes with shampoo in the eyes? And then it hits you. This is baby shampoo.

No tears. A sans howling formulation. Although you're struck by a sense of relief, you begin to wonder: Why doesn't this shampoo sting her eyes? An adult formulation certainly would you know that from experience , so why not the baby version? Odds are, if you were to pose this question at your baby's next playdate at least one person would tell you the secret behind the "no tears" formula: It contains all the eye-stinging chemicals as adult shampoos, plus a desensitizing agent -- Novocain , lidocaine -- to numb the eyes.

Which makes scary sense, except for the fact that it's false. Baby shampoos don't contain anesthetics. If they did, your hands would feel number after washing baby's hair. And babies and children using the products would be at risk for overdose as they absorbed chemicals through the skin or accidentally ingested them as bubbles or bath water. Lidocaine, for example, is particularly toxic to little bodies [source: del Rey ]. If a "no tear shampoo" doesn't contain anesthetics as urban legend suggests , then why doesn't it sting sensitive orbs?

The answer lies in a few subtle changes in chemical formulas. Adult and baby shampoos contain surfactants short for "surface active agents". One end of the surfactant molecule is attracted to water. The other is repelled by water but attracted to oily substances. Surfactants work by reducing the surface tension of a liquid, allowing the shampoo to spread and penetrate better, and remove the thin layer of oil known as sebum from the hair and scalp [source: Schwarcz ].

Although there is not a standard definition for the concept of low-pH shampoo, in this work we consider a low-pH shampoo one with a pH of 5. This is a transverse and descriptive study, in which shampoos commercial, dermatological and antidandruff, pediatric were chosen at random, and in enough quantity from popular pharmacies and major national retailers in the city of Rio de Janeiro. At least, one shampoo was analyzed from each brand. The pH of all products was evaluated with the portable paper pH indicator from Merck, ranging from 0 to 14 and uncertainty of 0.

Every measurement was performed and confirmed by three observers. A total of shampoos were analyzed. The pH values ranged from 3. Most of the analyzed products have a final pH higher than the hair shaft pH of 3. The pH level is not a mandatory issue to be printed on the product labels or specified among the product formulation. According to the current literature, the usage of shampoo with a pH higher than 5. After using a shampoo of pH higher than 5.

If the conditioner is not recommended by a dermatologist, it is necessary to choose a shampoo with pH lower than 5. The authors believe that adults with dyed hair shaft, especially bleached hair, should not use pediatric shampoos to cleanse and condition their hair.

If the hair cosmetics are formulated above the pH - 3. Therefore, the more negative the net is, the more attracted to it are the cationic ingredients added to the formula of the shampoos. If a shampoo formula is above pH - 3. The prescription of a shampoo treatment formulated without the cationic ingredients will demand the use of conditioner after shampooing.

This situation is commonly avoided by dermatologists, which do not encourage the use of hair conditioners due to the possibility of worsening seborrheic dermatitis.

For commercial and popular available shampoos, the higher pH might impair the performance of the product regarding compatibility and manageability because of friction and frizz effect.

For extremely greasy and thin straight hair it may have a positive effect, of adding volume to the hair. It is of notice that a pH higher than 5. There is no standardized value for the shampoo final pH, and this is not a mandatory issue.

The pH value is not informed on the labels. As the hair fiber has a pH of 3. To address the treatment of the scalp, shampoos must not have a pH higher than 5. Most of the commercially available products in Brazil, from international brands, do not fulfill this requirement. Ideally, however, this rule should apply to any hair product since we know that it is important for the final result of using them. It is important that the dermatologist know that, besides the inclusion of antistatic agents in the shampoo and conditioner formulas, the formula and ingredients must create a final pH no higher than 5.

We consider that, to reduce aggression against the strands and allow adequate access to the treatment of the scalp issues, hair care cosmetic should not overcome the pH of 5.

Although the products were collected at the Brazilian pharmacies, the brands are international famous brands and may be found all over the world. Further works are needed to compare the performance of different levels of pH shampoo's formulas and their cationic ingredients present in the chassis as well as the type and percentage of the surfactants.

Source of Support: Nil. Conflict of Interest: None declared. National Center for Biotechnology Information , U. Journal List Int J Trichology v. Int J Trichology. Author information Copyright and License information Disclaimer. Address for correspondence: Prof. E-mail: moc. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3. This article has been cited by other articles in PMC. Abstract Aim: Dermatologists most frequently prescribe shampoos for the treatment of hair shed and scalp disorders.

Materials and Methods: In this work, we review the current literature about the mode of action of a low-pH shampoo regarding the hair shaft's health and analyze the pH of shampoos of international brands.

Results: All shampoo pH values ranged from 3. Conclusions: Alkaline pH may increase the negative electrical charge of the hair fiber surface and, therefore, increase friction between the fibers. Keywords: Hair care, hair fiber, shampoo, shampoo pH. Surfactants Surfactants are cleaning agents that substituted soap. Open in a separate window. Table 2 Adult and children's shampoos pH. Table 3 Regular and antidandruff shampoo pH.

Table 4 Commercial, dermatological, and professional shampoos pH. Shampoos: Composition and clinical applications. A comparison of hair quality and cosmetic acceptance following the use of two anti-dandruff shampoos. J Investig Dermatol Symp Proc. A novel cosmetic approach to treat thinning hair. Br J Dermatol. Draelos ZD. Essentials of hair care often neglected: Hair cleansing. Commentary: Healthy hair and protein loss.