The human hair is stronger than nylon, aluminum, or copper fiber of the same size, yet it often

behaves as a fussy, ill-tempered toddler after too much chocolate. The manes of many of us seem to
live lives of their own, and it’s now our turn to teach our locks the benefits of green living.

Our hair has structure similar to skin, but unlike skin, all the layers of hair follicles are dead.
Outside, the hair is composed of thick, horny cells known as cuticle. These cells are made of keratin,
a protein held together by amino acids, most importantly cysteine and methionine. Keratin fibers
shield medulla, an inner layer of cells containing fat granules, oxygen, and pigments. One end of the
hair reaches the sky, or at least peaks some place where our hairstyle allows it; another end roots in
the skin. There, a small onion-shaped hair papilla is producing new keratin cells while being
continuously nourished by blood vessels. Each follicle can only grow about twenty hairs in a
person’s lifetime. Separate sebum glands running along the hair follicle provide shine and protection
to the new cuticle cells of the hair. This is why it’s vitally important to feed your hair with sufficient
amounts of good proteins and essential fatty acids.

The average human head has about 100,000 hair follicles, and blonds definitely have more fun, at
least when it comes to hair. Scientists meticulously calculated that people with blond hair have
almost 50 percent more hairs than those with red or dark hair. But, no matter what the color is, our
hair, this incredible living fabric, requires much gentler handling than most couture textiles. That’s
why the words “natural” and “organic” that so commonly adorn bottles and tubes of various hair
treatments often mean very little. Follow this guide to truly natural hair products.

Green Cleansing for Hair

Well-groomed, shiny, and resilient hair is a surefire way to boost attractiveness and self-
confidence. We eagerly wash, moisturize, condition, straighten, and add volume and shine to our
locks. Since the scalp is the most absorbent part of our body, choosing genuinely green hair care
should certainly become a shopping priority.

Shampoo is the most frequently used hair product. Water and detergent make up almost all of a
conventional shampoo’s formulation, featured at the beginning of ingredients labels, with moisturizing
emollients and plant extracts often adding up to no more than 1 percent. But let’s not be deceived by
the word “organic” on the label. The amount of organic aloe vera extract in a shampoo may be very
minuscule—sometimes less than 1 percent!What truly matters for the health of our hair is the bulk of
the shampoo, namely, the quality of the detergent and the amount of emollients. Both have to be of
plant origin, derived without the use of toxic chemical processes.

We love the idea of herbs and botanical ingredients nurturing our hair back to health, but while
many mainstream herbal shampoos brazenly claim to be natural and organic, most contain tiny
amounts of beneficial botanical ingredients, with the bulk of the product consisting of harsh
detergents, preservatives, and petroleum-derived silicones.

The quality of a detergent—that foam-producing ingredient that dissolves oil and grime—is the
most important thing to consider when choosing a shampoo. The very nature of the detergent action of
shampoo interferes with the scalp’s natural barrier function and makes it even easier for chemicals to
penetrate. Most often you will find sodium lauryl sulfate and its milder brother, sodium laureth
sulfate, on the label. Both have been questioned as cancer-causing ingredients, although a research