Shampoo VS Conditioner

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Most people I come across always have the mindset that the shampoo that they use isnt important; that it is the conditioner that really matters. So that got me thinking...Does everyone feel that way? YOU decide after reading below...

Shampoo as we all know, is meant to cleanse the hair. It removes dirt, oil, and product build up on the hair and scalp. So all shampoo's are the same then right? Wrong. Lesser expensive shampoo's use lower quality ingredients, the main one being the foaming agent. They often cleanse the hair so much that you actually strip your hair and scalp of its natural oils thus causing unnecessary dryness. The proper shampoo is key to healthy hair.

Conditioners seal the hair cuticle, helping it lay flat. They can give the hair a shot of either protein or moisture, helping to improve the general condition of the hair. They also make the hair more managable and easier to style.

So, now I ask...in your opinion, is shampoo just as important as conditioner? Why or why not...

 
I dont know where the notion came from that you could slap conditioner in your hair and says its washed came from. I believe in shampoo+conditioner. Shampoo is important to relieve the hair from buildup, and I believe that the poo haters were using cheap shampoo which did make the hair worse, not better. But I let people do them, but I do shampoo and conditioner

 
I can't do one or without the other. It has to be both. I have oily hair to I have to wash it every other day. When I don't work, I don't wash it but mainly bc I hate how it feels the first day it's washed and I don't go anywhere special and it's easier to hold up when its dirty lol. If I don't use conditioner, like last night for the first time in years bc I ran out, my hair feels horrible when I try to air dry it. I always air dry it and you could see and feel the difference; i hated it. Like when I use Zest after using a heavily moisturing soap for awhile, all tight and dry.

 
I think they are both equally important.

But I have to disagree with you Gina - I don't think spending more gets you a better quality product.

 
Got2b and Garnier Fructis are great styling products

Coconut oil is fabulous - apply before shampooing. Helps strengthen and condition.

I use a White Rain/Tame shampoo.

And I believe that Pantene make great conditioners.

 
Originally Posted by Dragonfly /img/forum/go_quote.gif I think they are both equally important.But I have to disagree with you Gina - I don't think spending more gets you a better quality product.

If you use a lower end product (say..shampoo) on one side of your head and then use a higher end shampoo on the other side...I'm absolutely positive that after 2 weeks of doing this, your opinion would be different.
 
I agree, cheap shampoos (with an exception to everpure or whatever its name is) Is full of sulfates and stuff to make bubbles, making you think that your hair is clean. You have a better change of getting less damaged hair using laundry detergent. And Pantene conditioners I have found to be full of perfume!

 
Originally Posted by Aprill /img/forum/go_quote.gif I agree, cheap shampoos (with an exception to everpure or whatever its name is) Is full of sulfates and stuff to make bubbles, making you think that your hair is clean. You have a better change of getting less damaged hair using laundry detergent. And Pantene conditioners I have found to be full of perfume! LOL I've been known to use cheap shampoo's from time to time as laundry detergent......cheaper conditioners are full of waxes which coat the hair making it feel healthier, but in reality you're just causing a large buildup of wax
 
Shampoo is definately just as important as the conditioner. I use good quality salon shampoo and conditioner and I can definately tell the difference between those and cheaper brands, though I must admit, I have used cheaper brands that I have been just as impressed with.

 
i am proboably one of the few people who think the shampoo is more important than the conditioner.

i tend to buy salon quality products for my shampoo and than whatever is on sale at the drug store for my conditioner

 
I think both are equally important. Because then you're just half-as*'ing the job.

Would you buy amazing paint, but terrible paint brushes? No - you don't get the same effect if you were using the best of both worlds.

So yes, Gina I agree about the 'you get what you pay for'.

 
I've always been willing to shell out extra bucks for a good conditioner. I have thick, course hair that tangles easily and using a cheapo conditioner just aint gonna cut it! I would pair it with a basic drugstore shampoo for the longest time. Well, Ulta had a sale so I decided to get a salon shampoo. WOW! All that scalp itching I was having went away. Plus the buildup I had disappeared! Now I'm sold.

 
I think I tend to get the same brand of shampoo as I do conditioner. I know that you generally want a conditioner that works with your shampoo, so I figure they'd make the most compatible combinations.

I switch up brands, but I definitely notice a difference in certain brands that i now avoid. (some shampoos make my hair feel -- not silky. like...almost rough or horsehair-like or like matted doghair-like...and then the conditioner doesn't make it feel insta-silky back again. better shampoos make my hair still feel like human hair, but wet...like if you were swimming. and then the conditioner makes it feel silky smooth)

Shampoo cleans my hair -- if it's been a while since my hair has been washed, it starts feeling dingy and oily. Shampoo gets this out and feeling clean. Conditioner makes it so my hair feels silky so I can run my fingers through it without yanking my hair out. You need do to both, imho. I don't think I could ever go without both, unless I was on a trip and all I had was shampoo though. (just doing conditioner would make me feel like my hair was still dirty and I had lotioned it or something, I dunno. I've never done that before)

 
LOL @ Darla!!!

Yea, the no poo thing, I tried... Doesn't work on locs... I'm gonna stick to my poo + condish.

 
Both are equally important for me.vShampoo is important, i have fine hair so every problem like grease on the roots, dryness on the lengths and split ends are only more visible on my hair. For that reason, i read labels, and i don't care if better quality means throwing a few more euros, i remember the disaster cheap supermarket shampoos have done.

As for conditioners, my quest relies in finding a good moisturising conditioner that won't flatten my hair. Considering i rarely use one, one bottle lasts me months so i don't really care about the price either, it's an investment.

 
I think conditioner is way more important. There's a reason why it's instructions can vary while 90% of all shampoos all have the instructions "apply, rinse, and if needed, repeat". Depending on the ingredients, a conditioner can strengthen or moisturize your hair, or if it's really good, both.

I also think people need to get off labels and into information. There is a big difference between a surfactant (which is the shampoo ingredient that cleanses the hair), a sulfate (which is a type of surfactant), and foaming agents (which actually don't have the ability to clean but give you the emotional feeling that it does). A large amount of money also does not mean you get a better quality product. It's the ingredients that matter. If SLS/SLES shampoos don't work for you, it doesn't matter if you spend 50 cent or 50 dollars, your hair will suffer because it's not the right shampoo for you.

Originally Posted by HairEgo /img/forum/go_quote.gif LOL I've been known to use cheap shampoo's from time to time as laundry detergent......cheaper conditioners are full of waxes which coat the hair making it feel healthier, but in reality you're just causing a large buildup of wax Can you give an example of what you consider a "cheap" conditioner and provide an ingredient list and show where wax is listed? Because I've tried a wide range of conditioners at various prices and I have yet to see one that had 'wax' anywhere on the ingredient list.
 
Originally Posted by Noir Sakura /img/forum/go_quote.gif I also think people need to get off labels and into information. There is a big difference between a surfactant (which is the shampoo ingredient that cleanses the hair), a sulfate (which is a type of surfactant), and foaming agents (which actually don't have the ability to clean but give you the emotional feeling that it does). A large amount of money also does not mean you get a better quality product. It's the ingredients that matter. If SLS/SLES shampoos don't work for you, it doesn't matter if you spend 50 cent or 50 dollars, your hair will suffer because it's not the right shampoo for you.


Can you give an example of what you consider a "cheap" conditioner and provide an ingredient list and show where wax is listed? Because I've tried a wide range of conditioners at various prices and I have yet to see one that had 'wax' anywhere on the ingredient list.

To the first bolded comment - you are contridicting yourself. A more expensive shampoo has higher end ingredients.
To the second bolded comment - I sure could supply you and anyone else who wanted to know ingredient and chemical compound lists, however....product education is something I get PAID to do, and even though i'm generally more then happy to answer any hair related questions as many users will atest too, i'm not particularily willing to jeprodize my career by posting brand testing info.

You are entitled to your opinion, just as everyone else on the forum is. I'm not here to make everyone agree with me...i'm here cause hair is my passion
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