There are two popular options: No Poo: Ultimately transitioning to not shampooing at all, only rinsing your hair with water and the occasional vinegar or clay rinse. Low Poo: Using shampoo bars that are based on saponified oils (soap) rather than liquid shampoo that relies on harsh detergents.
Before quitting shampoo cold turkey, you can try slowly stretching the time between washes for a few weeks. People with curly or very coarse hair may see the most benefits of no poo because the natural oils produced by the scalp can make hair smoother and less frizzy.
Shampoo can cause chemical buildup.
Shampoos can leave nasty chemical buildups on your scalp. Over time, this can mess with your scalp and can cause your scalp to overproduce oils, leaving it greasy.
For the average person, every other day, or every 2 to 3 days, without washing is generally fine. “There is no blanket recommendation. If hair is visibly oily, scalp is itching, or there's flaking due to dirt,” those are signs it's time to shampoo, Goh says.
Feisal shares that “washing with water alone is like taking a shower without soap—great as a quick refresh, but probably not ideal for most of us to do all of the time. Water will only help rinse the hair's surface of dust and debris, but will not do much else and especially won't 'wash' your hair.”
Not washing your hair regularly can make the scalp flaky and lead to dandruff. It will make you feel itchy and you can also get rashes on your scalp. “You can develop major dandruff problem if you don't wash your hair for 1 or 2 weeks,” she warned.
When you don't wash your hair, oils may accumulate on your scalp. This can cause odor on the scalp and hair. If you use hair care products, these can also build up on your scalp and create odors, even if the products themselves smell good.
Prolonged periods of not washing can cause cause buildup on the scalp, damaging hair and even impeding its ability to grow, Lamb said. Grime from dirt, oil and hair product can show up within four to six days for people with finer, straighter hair.
The phrase “low poo” means a sulfate-free shampoo that still contains cleansing ingredients (called “surfactents”).
“The average individual can typically go 2 to 3 days without shampooing their hair. However, if your hair is visibly oily, you may not want to wait that long,” she says. “Usually, you can go longer without washing your hair when your hair is styled up, but no one should ever go more than 14 days.”
She says it's more important to consider your hair type, texture and amount of oil production you usually experience. “I typically advise patients to keep to a standard hair washing schedule, whether it is three times per week, weekly or once per month, regardless of activity level,” she says.
“Shampooing your hair twice is beneficial because it allows for proper cleansing, giving you longer periods of time with a clean scalp and keeping away the oily hair problem,” he says. “It also keeps you away from over-shampooing your hair, which is a mistake that most women make.”
Make sure that you rinse your hair thoroughly with water before shampooing. Shampoo lathers better on wet hair and spreads evenly. You'll also notice requiring lesser shampoo to wash your hair if you wet your hair properly beforehand.
The general recommendation is to use shampoo to cleanse the hair before conditioner. Follow these steps for best results: Completely saturate your hair with warm, not hot, water. Squirt a small amount of shampoo into the palm of your hand.
Many doctors say a daily shower is fine for most people. (More than that could start to cause skin problems.) But for many people, two to three times a week is enough and may be even better to maintain good health. It depends in part on your lifestyle.
'If you go long periods of time without washing there will be a build up of natural oils, bacteria, dead skin cells and cause greasy hair. But, if you wash your hair every day you may possibly over-stimulate the oil glands situated beneath your scalp and may eventually experience oily hair,' he adds.
Cold water is good for hair as it seals the cuticle back up and locks in the moisture from your conditioner. This leaves your hair looking extra hydrated, frizz-free and shiny.
A wash-and-go is when you wear your hair in its natural curl pattern without manipulating the hair with any styling tools, braids, or stretching. So, in other words, it's a wet set style.