Ignore The Hype. Read Your Labels.

[esoterica]

this is a classic example of something that really gets on my nerves, even if i don't use the product.

Product:

Herbal Essences Fruit Fusions Shampoo, Protecting for Color-Treating Hair

The Claim:

Infused with hand-picked essences of Mandarin, Star Fruit, and Papaya, this nourishing formula:

• Replenishes vital moisture to the ends
• Restores shine, softness and rejuvenates lifeless strands
• Leaves hair soft, luminous and light, enriched with nourishing essences of coconut and palm oils.

The Ingredients

Water, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Chloride, Citric Acid, Sodium Citrate, Fragrance, Citrus Nobilis Fruit Extract (Mandarin Orange), Averrhoa Carambola Fruit Extract, Carica Papaya Fruit Extract (Papaya), PEG-60 Almond Glycerides, Cocamide MEA, Sodium Benzoate, Tetrasodium EDTA, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Linoleamidopropyl PG-Dimonium Chloride Phosphate, Sodium Xylene Sulfonate, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone, Orange 4, Red 4, Red 33

The Reality:
Anyone who has ever read a product label knows that fragrance is usually one of the last things on the list. thats because its used in very small quantities, usually 2-5%. so, if the fragrance in this product accounts for even 5%, then the fruit extracts must account for less than 4% since there are other ingredients. there is more salt in this shampoo than fruit extract. i have seen many products where the natural ingredient that they shout about on the front, is after the paraben! parabens are usually used at 0.3% - 1.0%. Oh, and those "nourishing essences of coconut and palm oils" are basically Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine. maybe thats why mechanics use this stuff. to nourish those garage floors.

 

[Neroli]

this is a classic example of something that really gets on my nerves, even if i don't use the product.

Product: The Claim:


The Ingredients


The Reality:
Anyone who has ever read a product label knows that fragrance is usually one of the last things on the list. thats because its used in very small quantities, usually 2-5%. so, if the fragrance in this product accounts for even 5%, then the fruit extracts must account for less than 4% since there are other ingredients. there is more salt in this shampoo than fruit extract. i have seen many products where the natural ingredient that they shout about on the front, is after the paraben! parabens are usually used at 0.3% - 1.0%. Oh, and those "nourishing essences of coconut and palm oils" are basically Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine. maybe thats why mechanics use this stuff. to nourish those garage floors.

I feel you! Everytime someone raves about a product, I always want to know -- what are the ingredient? ALL the ingredients! That will speak more for the product than anything else . . .

 

[Victorian]

You're so right. It cracks me up on labels where you see SLS, SLES, etc. and then they have "(Coconut)" or "(from coconut)" right after like that's going to help You know they know better.
One of the best habits I've gained from being here is always reading the labels. I used to have no clue what any of those chemical names were. Now I know all about surfactants and quaternary ammonium salts and which ones are preservatives and which ones are good vs. bad alcohols. Knowledge is power!

 

[RainbowCurls]

I usually roll my eyes when I hear/read hair product claims.

The Herbal Essences conditioners are a joke.

They say:

"These rich luxurious products contain a blend of ginger flower, cassia and banana flower extracts to leave hair looking and feeling sensuously smooth – perfect for indulging in even the wildest fantasies."

When what they actually mean to say is

"Loaded with super-silicone Cyclopentasiloxane, this conditioner will coat your hair and hide the damage. For now."

 

[zoj2]

Pantene is the same. The ingredients for all their products are practically the same (i.e. intensive treatment spray has the exact same ingredients as their light conditioning spray). Pantene puts more money into packaging and commercials than actually making quality products.

 

[esoterica]

Pantene is the same. The ingredients for all their products are practically the same (i.e. intensive treatment spray has the exact same ingredients as their light conditioning spray). Pantene puts more money into packaging and commercials than actually making quality products.

Panetene is a joke. their claims are ludicrous and untrue. more silicone in there than you can shake a stick at.

 

[*ElleB]

I was just thinking this! I was in the BSS this weekend and was checking out the Miss Keys 10 en 1. It said "Contains the 10 essential ingredients for hair!" I looked at the ingredients and was like There was nuthin in there that was essential to hair! Chemicals, cones, Emulsifiers......

 

[StartinOvah]

i didn't even read food labels before i came to this site. now it takes me about 2 1/2 to 3 hours to grocery shop because i'm so busy reading the labels.

and as nice as they are, i catch the owners of the bss i go to staring at me, wondering why i spend so much time reading labels. they probably think i work for dateline nbc or something.

 

[sweetascocoa]

i keep telling people that most drugstores products are not the best. yeah they have a lot of commercials. they are okay for short term use but i would not advise anyone to use them as staples except if they have good ingredients.
i used pantene for a while until the state of my hair became very bad. people point out to me that it was the 3 minute deep conditioner i was using. i threw it in the trash andme and my hair never looked back.

 

[MizaniMami]

i keep telling people that most drugstores products are not the best. yeah they have a lot of commercials. they are okay for short term use but i would not advise anyone to use them as staples except if they have good ingredients.
i used pantene for a while until the state of my hair became very bad. people point out to me that it was the 3 minute deep conditioner i was using. i threw it in the trash andme and my hair never looked back.

I really belive this. MOST (but not all) are so watered down it is ridiculous. I know we could use the water but I am not paying for 85% water and other ingredients that are so small it has no beneft to my hair.

 

[*ElleB]

I really belive this. MOST (but not all) are so watered down it is ridiculous. I know we could use the water but I am not paying for 85% water and other ingredients that are so small it has no beneft to my hair.

Wow, but you keep hearing so much about "Drugstore products and Salon products in most cases are the same." But I know alot of ladies feel differently....Hmmmm.....need to get on my game....

 

[Neroli]

Wow, but you keep hearing so much about "Drugstore products and Salon products in most cases are the same." But I know alot of ladies feel differently....Hmmmm.....need to get on my game....

One way to determine if they "are the same" is to check those ingredients, and the order in which they appear . . .

 

[felicia]

are keracare products ok? ***crossing fingers****

 

[Cichelle]

I agree that checking the ingredients is so important. There are all sorts of claims on hair care products, including saying the product is "natural", "herbal", "organic", etc. But the list of ingredients tells the real story. Thank you for posting this, j...

 

[esoterica]

are keracare products ok? ***crossing fingers****

if you've got the ingredients of a specific product we can have a look.

 

[*ElleB]

bump..........

 

[esoterica]

*****bump*****

 

[MizaniMami]

Wow, but you keep hearing so much about "Drugstore products and Salon products in most cases are the same." But I know alot of ladies feel differently....Hmmmm.....need to get on my game....

Girl don't let those people tell you that! They are NOT the same. Salon brands are more concentrated that drugstore lines. That's my experience. I have yet to find a good drugstore line that I would use on a long-term basis.

 

[scribblescrabble2]

What about the "natural" lines like J/A/S/O/N Natural, Nature's Gate, etc? They claim to be natural but they have a whole lot of unnatural things in their products. Alot of these lines use ingredients that are no different from the ones you would find in regular stores.

By the way, can anyone tell what the coconut fatty acid base in Aubrey Organics is? I think it is probably Cetyl or Stearyl Alcohol, but I am not sure. I emailed them twice over the past 8 months but they never bothered to respond.

 

[esoterica]

i never looked at a Nature's Gate label before, but looks like they're selling crap too. nice fake green to give the illusion of herbs. water extracts could be 99% water with 1% herbs.

Nature's Gate The Original Herbal Hair Shampoo

Water Extracts of Nettles, Sage, Chamomile, Kusambi Bark, Lavender, Yarrow, Rosemary, Wild Cherry Bark and Thyme, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Cocamide DEA, Citric Acid, Methyl/Propylparabens, Chlorophyllin, Fragrance Oils

 

[esoterica]

****bump****

 

[Mimi22]

I really like J/A/S/O/N shampoo & conditioners. They have no lauryl sulfates, which is great cuz i found that SLES make my skin itch really badly!

 

[Esq.2B]

I was just thinking this! I was in the BSS this weekend and was checking out the Miss Keys 10 en 1. It said "Contains the 10 essential ingredients for hair!" I looked at the ingredients and was like There was nuthin in there that was essential to hair! Chemicals, cones, Emulsifiers......

I knew I wasn't crazy! That explains why my hair laughs at this stuff! Each time I've used this, I regretted it! It made my hair a tangled, matted mess!

Sorry for bumping this old *** thread. lol

 

[Lucky's Mom]

These claims are laughable. Hence my on going account with natural product stores and the supermarket..