Shampoo may be your first defense against an environment that is continually dusty, grimy and full of particles that are harmful to your skin, eyes, especially your hair.

In the past, people used so-called ‘proto-shampoos’. Most of these proto-shampoos combined soapy herbs and fragrances. Records of these proto-soaps and shampoos can be traced back to the Egyptian empires, where commoners as well as royalty used these concoctions to make their baths more enjoyable.

The shampoo of today differs chemically and cosmetically from the Egyptian proto-soaps and shampoos, but their function remains essentially the same: to clean and to render fragrant the skin and the hair.

So, What Makes Shampoo Work?

Many people often wonder: what is it that makes shampoo so good in cleaning the hair? What makes this particular invention compatible with the thousands of hairs on our heads?

The answer to this question is of course, surfactants. Technically, surfactants are a group of chemicals that are added to commercially manufactured shampoos to perform specific ‘duties’ as part of the shampoo.

If we were to compare the roles and functions of surfactants to the jobs of other chemical compounds, then we would come to the conclusion that no shampoo can even exist as shampoo without these compounds.

The Roles of Surfactants in Shampoo

The first job of surfactants is to make sure that no matter what kind of water is running through the shower or faucet, the shampoo would actually rise and bubble. This allows people with hard water to enjoy the benefits of shampoo as well.

The second role of surfactants is to do maintenance work on the hair. These compounds counter oil, dirt and grime and removes them completely, much like how soap removes surface grime from the skin. Some shampoos have vitamins added to them to make the cleansing doubly beneficial to the hair. B-vitamins are especially efficient in softening damaged hair.

The third, and perhaps most important job of surfactants is to make sure you won’t have to bruise your scalp and hair before you get the dirt out. Since these chemicals were synthesized specifically to dissolve and carry away dirt particles, simple rubbing unto the hair is enough.

Another important job of surfactants concerns foaming. Foaming is the ‘lifting’ action of shampoo, which allows the chemicals to carry away the dirt after rinsing. Without surfactants, rinsing would be very difficult indeed.

The Function of Surfactants as Equalizers

What stops the more active chemicals from the shampoo from going too deeply into the skin on the head? We all know that the scalp is quite sensitive because it houses dermal papillae and other important components. Again, we have surfactants to thank for this.

Surfactants act as equalizers that control the activity of other chemicals in shampoo. Surfactants also make sure that your hair does not become neither too alkaline nor too acidic. Both instances can cause undue damage to the hair.

As a rule of thumb, always pick commercial shampoos that have been formulated specifically for your hair type. You can either have normal hair, very dry hair or fine hair.

Using chemicals to treat your hair is not bad. However, overusing chemicals, or misusing them might cause some undue problems. Always remember that shampoos and conditioners are rarely inert mixtures of chemicals. They’re actually hodgepodges of active chemicals that systematically cleanse and repair your hair.

Not everything is positive about shampoos and conditioners. For one, many shampoos claim that they can remove the oil that’s causing the itching in some scalps. They’re very efficient in removing the sebum, to the point that the hair would look awful if not shampooed regularly.

Things to Remember

No matter what hair chemical you’re using make sure that you take note of the following:

1. Viscosity - chemical viscosity implies the dose that you would be using on your hair. Always use an ample amount on your hair, and never, ever overdo it. There’s a reason why manufacturers inform people of the proper amount because it’s the safe amount to use.

2. Acidity - You can control the acidity of a hair preparation if it seems too much for your hair. You can easily alter the acidity of a new shampoo or conditioner by adding soap to it or plain water. Also, reducing the amount of the chemical would buffer the acid-reduction process.

What Makes a Good Shampoo?

Aside from cleaning your hair after application, shampoo is actually quite unique because its formulation keeps out bacterial growth and it makes hair more attractive to the eyes.

Why do shampoos have fragrances? First, people like feeling and smelling nice when they use shampoos. That’s why all shampoos (save perhaps the medicated ones) make use of strong fragrances that can mask or hide the natural smell of a person’s scalp.

What is Dimethicone and Panthenol?

Why do shampoos contain these two chemicals? No need to worry, these two chemicals are actually derived from one of the most common vitamins known to modern man: vitamin B. These are included in shampoos to aid in moisturizing dry hair shafts. These chemicals penetrate deep into hair shaft, cleansing, moisturizing and carrying away the day’s load of dirt.

Aside from nurturing already existent terminal hair, these chemicals also help in cleansing and moisturizing areas in the scalp that have yet to be colonized by new hair. In a way, good, organic shampoos help speed up the ‘maintenance’ work of the scalp. Since modern individuals are exposed to more dirt and grime, this is indeed a welcome help.

Some shampoos also claim to treat dandruff. Basically, these shampoos control sebum and production on the scalp and help carry away some of the bacteria that might be contributing to the flakiness of the scalp. Other than that, we should remember that the Food and Drug Administration should be omnipresent on the labels of the shampoos that we do use.

As for shampoos that offer to add volume to your hair, these are actually quite necessary if you want to maintain shiny hair when the winter months come in. These also add volume to your hair by re-introducing lots of moisture to your drying hair shafts.

Let’s fly in the face of conventional wisdom right from the start. Are you wondering why a doctor would make such a statement as “Stay away from doctors and don’t take pills?”

I have been an emergency room doctor for fifteen years and I used to see nothing wrong with people going to doctors. I also used to believe that pills had overall beneficial effects and that folks would be prescribed medications only when it was in their best interest.

I have changed my mind.

Over the years I have seen a constant parade of people whom I believe are worse off because they went to doctors and took pills.

Oh, sure, if your appendix is ready to burst go to a doctor. If you fall and you can’t walk because the bone is sticking out of your leg, oh, all right, go see a doctor. If you have chest pain, can’t breathe and feel like you’re dying of a heart attack and would rather not let nature take its course, by all means, come see me in the ER!

Of course there are legitimate reasons for seeking the advice of a doctor, a practitioner of traditional western medicine, but, in so many cases not only is it not necessary, the plain truth is you would probably be better off to stay home and read a book. Really.

Let me explain.

Say, for example, you have a cough and your nose is plugged and when it does work there’s green snot pouring out of it. You think, “Oh, I’d better go to the doctor and get some antibiotics. The last time I had this the doctor gave me a prescription for……. (fill in your own favorite antibiotic). Yes, the medical profession has trained you well. Job security, you know.

Are you aware that most cases of bronchitis and sinusitis are viral illnesses or related to allergies. Antibiotics do not kill viruses nor do they treat allergies. They kill only bacteria. Ergo, an antibiotic will not cure your illness. Oh, sure, you’ll get better and you’ll think the antibiotic pills did it, but, in truth, time and your immune system are what did it.

Also, antibiotics have been known to have adverse effects on the body. They can kill off the good bacteria that live happily and harmlessly on your skin, in your mouth, in your gut and in other unmentionable places, and, in so doing, allow more virulent bacteria or yeast to prosper and make you sick. They also can cause allergic reactions, sometimes life-threatening ones.

What! Antibiotics can make you sick? You bet.

So why in the world would you ever want to take one for a viral illness? Probably because you’ve been lead to believe that every ache and pain needs a pill and that every infection needs an antibiotic.

But you understand what I told you, right? This ain’t rocket science. Would you like an example or two?

There is a diarrheal illness called pseudomembranous colitis, a fancy name for the diarrhea from hell. It is a condition caused by a toxin produced by clostridium difficile (c. diff for short), a bacterium that lives harmoniously in everyone’s bowel. “C. diff. colitis”, as we doctors lovingly call this condition that causes you to defecate uncontrollably, is caused by taking antibiotics: and just about any antibiotic can do it. C.diff can kill you.

You see, the good bacteria in you gut keep the c.diff bacteria under control. If the good guys get killed off by that antibiotic you took for your bronchitis then c. diff can grow in large numbers and produce its toxin. Believe me, after you have spent a day or two on the crapper, with a potentially life-threatening illness you will see the wisdom of avoiding unnecessary antibiotics.

Another problem with antibiotics is that over the years, since the successful introduction of penicillin, antibiotics have been prescribed so much that bacteria, the little bugs we are trying to kill, have become resistant to them, necessitating the development of more and more powerful drugs to kill the stronger bacteria. You might have heard of one of these bacteria, MRSA (methecillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus). MRSA seems to be everywhere now and is just one example of the fact that bacteria will continue to outsmart us. The unnecessary use of antibiotics has been a major factor in the development of resistant bacteria.

Another example of the ability of medications to cause harm is a condition called Steven Johnson’s Syndrome and its ultimately lethal cousin, toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN). These conditions can develop as drug reactions to certain antibiotics and unless the patient has a previous history of such a condition, the doctor has no way of knowing that it will happen. TEN causes huge blisters to form everywhere, with subsequent sloughing of the skin. It’s the equivalent of having second degree burns over your entire body.

What a shame if you die a slow painful death after taking a medication you did not need in the first place.

Now that’s what I call having a bad day.