Is "Silicone-free Shampoo" worth buying? You will understand after reading this!

Recently, a certain brand has caused heated discussions among netizens on social platforms. The reason is that the brand released a video about "rumors about silicone oil", calling on everyone to learn about silicone oil!

After watching this video, many netizens exclaimed: This is a real business war! So what exactly is silicone oil? Does it harm our scalp? Let's find out today!

What is silicone oil?

Silicone oil is a colorless, odorless, non-toxic, non-volatile liquid. It has many special properties, such as low temperature-viscosity coefficient, high and low temperature resistance, oxidation resistance, high flash point, low volatility, good insulation, low surface tension, no corrosion to metal, non-toxic, etc., and has various viscosities. Due to these characteristics, silicone oil has achieved excellent results in many aspects.

Among all kinds of silicone oil, methyl silicone oil is the most widely used and the most important variety of silicone oil. Methyl silicone oil has good chemical stability, insulation and good hydrophobicity. In addition to the well-known shampoo that adds emulsified silicone oil to improve the lubricity of hair, it is also commonly used as high-grade lubricating oil, shockproof oil, insulating oil, defoaming agent, mold release agent, polishing agent, isolation agent and vacuum diffusion pump oil. After emulsification or modification, it can also be used in the finishing of textiles, which feels smooth and soft after use.

Image source: unsplash.com Photographer: Lindsay Cash

At the same time, because it is non-toxic to the human body and is not decomposed by body fluids, it is also widely used in the medical and health industry. Some ointments that have good therapeutic effects on burns, dermatitis, bedsores, etc. often use silicone oil as the base oil. For example, a silicone cream for the treatment of eczema and dermatitis, when applied to the skin to form an oil film, can protect the skin and prevent chapped skin, and does not affect the normal function of the skin, which shows its safety.

Will long-term use of silicone shampoo cause hair loss?

As for the rumor that "the silicone oil component in shampoo will make hair smooth, but it will clog hair follicles. Long-term use will damage the scalp and cause hair loss", is it true?

Before answering this question, let’s first talk about what hair looks like.

Image source: unsplash.com Photographer: Liubov Ilchuk

Our hair grows from the hair follicles in the scalp, and its main component is keratin. Under a microscope, you can see that there are uneven hair cuticles on it. These things that look like fish scales are hair scales. When there are damaged hair scales on the hair, the friction between the hair increases, and the hair begins to tangle together, making it difficult to comb.

Many people will notice that their hair becomes smoother after using shampoo containing silicone oil. This is because after using shampoo containing silicone oil, the hair scales will open up, and the silicone oil will adhere to the hair scales to fill the gaps between the hair scales, making the hair naturally smooth.

Moreover, silicone oil is a large molecule and cannot be absorbed by hair follicles. Sometimes there are other ingredients in silicone oil, and its water solubility is also increased, making it unlikely to clog hair follicles. What's more, there is not much silicone oil in shampoo (generally speaking, the silicone oil content in shampoo is 1%~2%). Flushing with a large amount of water, coupled with the effect of cleansing surfactants, will leave almost no residue.

In fact, as early as the 1950s, silicone oil has been widely used in the cosmetics industry. Today, silicone oil can be found in various detergents. In shampoo, the most important effect is lubrication, that is, reducing friction resistance. In the whole system, silicone oil is relatively stable and will not affect the decontamination ability of shampoo.

So far, there is no authoritative statement confirming that silicone oil can cause hair loss , and all regular products sold from the factory have undergone strict quality inspections, and the ingredient content meets the various indicators stipulated by the state. Safety assessments have also been conducted, so consumers can use them with confidence.

How to choose the right shampoo products?

Since shampoo containing silicone oil is harmless to the scalp, is it suitable for everyone?

First of all, when choosing a shampoo, you need to look at the specific ingredients and effects of the shampoo, and choose a suitable product according to your hair quality and needs. If your hair is healthy and basically there is no big problem, but you just want to wash it clean, you can focus on the cleaning ingredient "surfactant" in the shampoo. Generally, you can choose a cleansing shampoo containing amino acid surfactants.

Image source: unsplash.com Photographer: Matthew Tkocz

If your hair is very dry, brittle, tangled, and difficult to comb, you can choose products containing certain oils and other conditioners, such as silicone oil and vegetable oil. The principle is that their residues can protect the hair, prevent the hair scales from curling up, reduce the evaporation of hair moisture, and make the hair smoother.

If the following conditions occur on your scalp, you can choose different shampoos to clean it:

1. Oily scalp

An oily scalp is acidic and has a low pH value, so you can use a shampoo with a higher pH value to neutralize it. A dry scalp is alkaline and needs a shampoo with a lower pH value.

2Sensitive scalp

If your scalp is sensitive, you should avoid strong anionic surfactants and some irritating ingredients, such as salicylic acid and parabens. You can choose shampoos containing soothing and anti-allergic ingredients such as bisabolol and dipotassium glycyrrhizinate.

3. Scalp itching

If your scalp is oily and itchy, you can use shampoos containing anti-dandruff ingredients such as zinc pyrithione, salicylic acid, and climbazole, and avoid shampoos containing oily ingredients.
In short, the ingredient silicone oil is not scary and is harmless to the human body. You can use it with confidence, but you should choose suitable hair care products based on your personal hair quality.

Planning and production

Author: Wang Fang, attending physician of cosmetic dermatology, master of medicine

Review | Feng Jun, Deputy Chief Physician, Dermatology Department, General Hospital of Datong Coal Mine Group Co., Ltd.

Planning丨Yinuo

Editor: Yinuo