Why You Should Avoid Sulfates and Other Harmful Ingredients in Shampoo

Your skin was designed to protect you by providing you with a natural protective oil layer. When this natural layer is removed by harsh chemicals, which are often used as hair and skin care ingredients, we become more exposed and susceptible to skin irritation and disease.

Common Sulfates in Shampoo

Some of the most common sulfates found in personal care products are sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS),sodium laurethsulfate (SLES),ammonium laurylsulfate,and ammonium laurethsulfate.

Why Do They Use Sulfates?

The main purpose of these ingredients is to “degrease.” In fact, one of the original uses for sulfates was to clean the oil off a driveway! Because sulfates are surfactants, you will also find them in many other products, such as dishwashing liquid, body wash and toothpaste, just to mention a few. The big question is: Why?

Bottomline: synthetic products like SLS are very cheap to manufacture, plus they create lots of lather. This, of course, must make you clean, right? Sort of.

Why Are Sulfates Harmful Skin Care Ingredients?

In reality, sulfates in shampoo leave your scalp so clean and so degreased that your skin is defenseless to protect you from irritation and sometimes illness. Your hair and skin are so “clean”that you actually need to replace the oil or moisture with lotions(often made with another list of chemicals that are not necessarily great for your skin – see our list of ingredients to avoid).

I have seen many scalp disorders thateasily can be linked to the overuse of sulfates and SLS. No one wants oily hair or greasy skin, but it is neither necessary nor beneficial to degrease the scalp or skin.When you use a degreaser on even an oily scalp, the extreme removal of oil signals the skin to produce extra oil, perpetuating the oily scalp issue. Another scenario is the irritated scalp. SLS and other harmful skin care ingredients remove the protective oil layer, making the scalp more prone to eczema and other forms of scalp irritation.

Also, when SLS is used, the skin is open, unprotected and exposed to other chemical ingredients in hair and skin products. Many of these harmful skin care ingredients are known carcinogens; they may include color, fragrance or perfume, endocrine disruptors, and estrogen mimickers such as methyl, propyl, and butyl parabens.

What Skin Care Ingredients Are Safe to Use?

Simple,naturalskin care ingredients are essential for healthy hair, scalp, and skin. Choose products without SLS,and try to avoid heavy use of cocamidopropylbetaine and olefin, which are similar in makeup

At Ilumina Organics, we believe it’s best to keep products simple and close to nature. Our Shampoo Bar, Soaps and Body Wash are made simply, work well, and are completely safe for you and the environment. Our Shampoo and Conditioner, along with our entire line of hair and skin care products,have been used and enjoyed by our staff, our clients and friends.

All of our products are packaged in estrogen-free bottles.