In general, you should only use a clarifying shampoo once or twice a month, depending on your hair type and how often you wash your hair. If you have dry hair, you may use it even less frequently. If you're not sure how often you should be using a clarifying shampoo, talk to your stylist or a hair care professional.
When Should You Clarify Your Hair? I recommend clarifying your hair with a proper chelating shampoo once/month -- which is suitable for most hair types. If you live in relatively soft water, you can stretch that out to once every six weeks. If you swim regularly, I recommend reading my Summer Haircare post.
Clarifying shampoo is your friend (sparingly). ``Although you want to use this sparingly, things like hard water buildup, product buildup, environmental stressors, et cetera, are working to turn your new grays and whites a dully, grassy yellow. Clarifying shampoo is going to help combat that.''
Excessive use of clarifying products can cause hair breakage and scalp problems. With the deterioration of the balance of oils in the scalp, the hair becomes dry, frizzy, rough, uncontrollable and fragile.
"Clarifying shampoo is not meant for daily use, and using it too frequently could cause color to fade over time," says Rivera, who doesn't recommend using the product after a color service.
Clarifying shampoo uses stronger surfactants to remove everything: oils, heavy product buildup, chlorine, and even hard water minerals. It's like a "reset button" for your hair. While purifying shampoo is more of a gentle detox formulated for regular use.
Hair products with alcohol are a no-no for gray hair. As gray hair already struggles in keeping moisture and adding alcohol to your hair will only dry out even more and make it look even wirier.
Premature graying may be reversed with vitamin B12 supplementation only if vitamin B12 deficiency is the cause. If you are graying due to other factors, such as genetics, zinc deficiency, and medications, your gray hair cannot be reversed.
Grey hair may be more prone to not only dryness but also breakage, so choose shampoos that contain ingredients like biotin or keratin. These ingredients can strengthen your hair, reduce breakage and help keep it shiny and healthy.
Clarifying shampoos can help to fade permanent hair dye, but they won't completely remove it. These shampoos work by deeply cleansing the hair and lifting some of the color molecules. However, for a complete removal of permanent dye, professional treatments are more effective and safer for maintaining hair health.
Argan Oil: “Rich in essential fatty acids and vitamin E, argan oil is excellent for moisturizing and nourishing gray hair without making it greasy,” she says.
Regarding using baking soda for gray hair, experts endorse its potential benefits such as controlling pigmentation loss, lightening the strands, and providing texture. It can be used on coarse grey locks to make them smoother too by eliminating product buildup from oils or soaps.
That said, certain conditions may temporarily restore pigmentation. For example, if greying is caused by a vitamin deficiency, stress, or an underlying medical condition, addressing these issues may slow or even partially reverse greying. However, the complete reversal of naturally aged hair remains a challenge.
Context: Although the primary cause of premature hair graying (PHG) is considered to be genetic, certain environmental factors also play a role. Trace element deficiencies such as Vitamin B12, Vitamin D3, and calcium may also be associated with PHG.
The best colours to avoid in this case are neons, super bright, vibrant warm tones and super dark rich warm tones.
Moisture & Hydration
Because gray hair is prone to dryness, roughness, and frizziness, it require extra hydration to maintain its natural appearance and style. The best way to achieve this is by using moisturizing shampoo and conditioning treatments.
As opposed to pigmented hair, gray hair can be more resistant to holding curls. For this reason, when it comes to curling gray hair, it's recommended to use a strong-hold hairspray or styling product to make your curls stay for longer. Make sure to apply it after curling to set and maintain the shape of your curls.
How Often Should You Clarify? The average person should clarify once or twice a month, but if you use a lot of hair styling products or have hard water, you may need to clarify weekly. Be careful not to overuse clarifying shampoos as they can strip the scalp of the essential oils that keep hair healthy.
This is a great clarifying shampoo!
Yes, after using a clarifying shampoo, it's advisable to use a normal shampoo to help maintain moisture in your hair.