Shampoo for oily, thick hair?

[Anaamika]

Go to the local grocery store or drugstore. Look at the shampoos. IME 75% of them will be for dry hair. 25% will be for so-called normal hair.

What do you do when your hair is oily and thick naturally? I am talking about my SO's hair. I kid you not, his hair is so thick it has literally speared fingertips - it actually penetrates the skin. I tend toward dryer hair, so we need to use different shampoos, but are there any shampoos out there that don't attempt to make your hair oily and give it body? Trust me, his hair's got plenty of body.

[TravisFromOR]

Ivory soap. In the bar. The white stuff.

[Freudian Slit]

How do you get up a lather with bar soap for hair? That sounds impossible!

I have pretty thick hair that has a tendency to get oily if I don't wash it every day. I use Pantene. It doesn't really make a difference what kind I use (whether it's for thin or for dry or for thick hair). Works pretty well for me and I have a serious amount of hair...but then your SO's hair might be oilier than mine.

[ZipperJJ]

My mom's got thick oily hair, but she chooses her shampoo for color-treated hair. Hmmm...

I've got dry hair but it is super thick. I started using Head & Shoulders' "Smooth and Silky" for my frizz - and flakes - and not only did it kick the flakes' ass but I continue to use it because it's just plain old good shampoo.

They have a version for oily hair, it's citrus (http://www.headandshoulders.com/en-US/collection/citrus.jspx).

Head & Shoulders is, like, a million times different (better) than I remember it from 10 or so years ago.

[TravisFromOR]

How do you get up a lather with bar soap for hair? That sounds impossible!

I have pretty thick hair that has a tendency to get oily if I don't wash it every day. I use Pantene. It doesn't really make a difference what kind I use (whether it's for thin or for dry or for thick hair). Works pretty well for me and I have a serious amount of hair...but then your SO's hair might be oilier than mine.

Lather it up in your palms, as if you're washing your hands, only with lots more lather. Rub the lather into your hair.

[Freudian Slit]

I just don't think that would be enough. I have a lot of hair. It's just not...lathery enough. I am tempted to try but I'm also afraid it would dry the crap out of my hair, too.

[kenobi 65]

I used to work for a hair-care company. In the past (and this is 15-20 years ago or more), you could find shampoos for oily hair -- there was even a brand, FOHO, "For Oily Hair Only", and many other brands had a variety for oily hair.

The market for such products was always small, but it seems to have decreased even further, to the point where (as you've discovered), it's very hard, if not impossible, to find "oily hair" shampoos any more. There are likely a couple of reasons for this:

1) People wash their hair more frequently now. 30 years ago, it wasn't common for people to wash their hair more than a few times a week; today, there are many people who wash their hair daily. Shampoo tends to dry out hair, someone who feels that they have oily hair if they wash it every other day may not feel that it's that oily if they wash it every day.

2) Heat appliances (such as blow dryers) dry out hair, and are very commonly (and frequently) used now.

I'd suggest looking for a "clarifying" shampoo; they're meant to clean build-up from styling products (and thus, have a high detergent level).

BTW, just another observation: bar soap and shampoo are two different sorts of products. Shampoos are actually detergents (closer to dishwashing detergent than anything else).

[the lone cashew]

To Freudian: You grasp the the bar with one hand, rub vigorously onto your scalp area, then distribute lather down the length of hair. But it will dry out your hair, too, as noted. So I do not recommend this. (The same kind of soap that will make your hands squeaky clean is not so great for the doo)

[SeaDragonTattoo]

I have very oily hair. I switched to using 1 tablespoon baking soda with 1 teaspoon sea salt in 8oz warm water to wash my hair. Rub it in, scrub scalp with fingers vigorously, rinse well and finish with an organic "light" conditioner. I now wash every 2-3 days instead of every day and my hair's much happier, plus it seems my scalp produces a bit less sebum than it used to.

It did take some getting used to. Right after washing, my hair's more like it used to be on the 2nd day after washing with shampoo. I wasn't so sure about it at first, but then by the second day, it's still like it was the day before, not oilier. If that makes sense.

[Rachellelogram]

Dish soap. I've used it a few times when I ran out of shampoo and it dried the CRAP out of my scalp and hair. And it smells good.

[Freudian Slit]

Dish soap? Bar soap? My hair is crying in sympathy pains!

[kenobi 65]

Dish soap? Bar soap? My hair is crying in sympathy pains!

As I noted, dish soap is, chemically, pretty close to shampoo anyway (but with a higher detergent level).

You should see if you can find Prell shampoo -- it's changed hands several times in the past few years, and is probably difficult to find now. As one of my chemists at my old job used to say, "it's a stripper!" (It was originally made by P&G, and had the highest detergent level in the shampoo category.)

[Lightlystarched]

Have him stop using shampoo with sulfates in it. They strip the hair so much, that the scalp pours our oil to compensate. I used to "have" to shampoo daily, and now with the right shampoo I can go 5-6 days before I need to shampoo again.

The Burt's Bees stuff is nice.

[BrotherCadfael]

I have oily hair -- thin, not thick, but oily is more the problem, I think -- and I use Pert's Light formula. It works pretty well.

[the lone cashew]

It seems like a good shampoo would work, maybe just use a larger amount? Other than going through the nuisance of shampooing twice, this seems like it might work.

[Wesley Clark]

I have oily hair and Suave Daily Clarifying works pretty well. Even if I have been camping for several days and my naturally oily hair is even more oily, one lather usually gets rid of all the buildup. With the other shampoos I have tried, even after lathering/rinsing repeatedly my hair is still oily. I'm sure there are other good shampoos for oily hair but Suave's daily clarifying works well for me and is pretty cheap.

http://www.amazon.com/Suave-Shampoo-Daily-Clarifying-22-5oz/dp/B0000530LO

[kenobi 65]

I'm sure there are other good shampoos for oily hair but Suave's daily clarifying works well for me and is pretty cheap.


And happens to be made by my former employer. ;)

[bump]

If you can get it, you can't really beat Prell for oily hair. It's like the shampoo equivalent of industrial degreaser.

3 day hunting trip in Texas in September. Sweating like crazy, no shower from 6:30 a.m. Friday through about 4 pm Sunday.

Prell cut right through that grime like it wasn't there, and I tend toward oily hair myself, even if it's fairly fine hair.

[Anaamika]

Thanks! I think we'll start with the Suave Clarifying shampoo. I did get some Pert, it was the ONLY shampoo that didn't say "for oily hair".

[breezilla]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who's noticed this!

I've been using Herbal Essence's shampoos in the green bottles ("Drama Clean" or "Degunkify") and they seem to work okay. I used to use Pantene's clarifying shampoo but they recently relabeled everything and I can no longer find it. After reading through this thread, I think I might try to track down some Prell.

[lindsaybluth]

Prell and Neutrogena Anti-Residue (http://www.buy.com/prod/neutrogena-shampoo-anti-residue-formula-6-oz/q/sellerid/30485430/loc/67984/215953954.html). That'll get your scalp nice 'n dry.

[gallows fodder]

Have him stop using shampoo with sulfates in it. They strip the hair so much, that the scalp pours our oil to compensate. I used to "have" to shampoo daily, and now with the right shampoo I can go 5-6 days before I need to shampoo again.

The Burt's Bees stuff is nice.
This can't be stressed enough. I'm cringing at some of the answers here!

Your scalp (and rest of your skin) will over-produce oil when they get dried out. And your scalp will get dried out if you wash too often or with too harsh a shampoo (if your shampoo has sodium lauryl sulfate (http://www.cosmeticscop.com/cosmetic-ingredient-dictionary/definition/1396/sodium-lauryl-sulfate.aspx) in it, it is too harsh -- you do not need dish detergent on your hair; your hair is not a pan in which you've cooked bacon).

You get locked into a vicious cycle -- your hair is oily, you use harsh detergents to cut the oil, your hair gets oilier.

Do the opposite. Switch to a gentler shampoo (Burt's Bees is indeed good) and wash less (yes, less! not more!) often -- every other day if you currently do it every day, or every two days, etc.

Your hair will go through an adjustment period of increased oiliness for a while (could be a few weeks) before settling down the oil production, but it will settle down.

And Prell is terrible for your hair! See Shampoo ingredients to avoid (http://www.savvyskin.com/shampoo-ingredients-to-avoid)

Is there ever a time when it’s good to use “bad” shampoos?
Several years ago, I dyed my hair with a semi-permanent color, and for some reason my hair turned black, and it was all goopy and sticky, even after washing it 3 times! I was desperate and bought the cheapest, crappiest sounding shampoo I could find, hoping that it would be super harsh. I believe I bought Prell. Well, let me tell you, that Prell got all the goop out of my hair and it worked wonders to strip all the nastiness right out of there!

Pro-tip: if a shampoo is able to strip the dyed color from your hair, it's too harsh for daily use.

[Anaamika]

Well, I'll tell my SO. Remember, I don't need to worry about a thing - I use Pantene Pro-V. I have thin curly hair, which dries out and frizzes if i don't use the right shampoo + the right hair gel. So I have the opposite problem.

Isn't it great being a couple? :D

[gallows fodder]

Oops, I meant "you" in a general sense, not you you. :)

[Jennmonkye]

I agree with some of the folks above on the washing makes hair more oily. I have shoulder length, thick (used to be oily) hair. Got rid of shampoo about a year ago and haven't looked back. I wash about two to three times per week with a mixture of baking soda and almost hot water, then use conditioner and/or detangler....only apply the mixture to the scalp (as it rinses down, it will clean the ends of the hair). I was just at the salon the other day and my hairdresser (for eight years now) still cannot believe I haven't used shampoo for a year. She says my hair is incredibly healthy. And it is NEVER oily any more.

[tr0psn4j]

20something male here with oily hair. After reading a bunch of threads on here, I decided to go with conditioner only. It works great but takes 3 squirts to completely cover my hair.

[Freudian Slit]

Well, I'll tell my SO. Remember, I don't need to worry about a thing - I use Pantene Pro-V. I have thin curly hair, which dries out and frizzes if i don't use the right shampoo + the right hair gel. So I have the opposite problem.

Isn't it great being a couple? :D

I have thick hair and use Pantene as well. I think Pantene's just all around an awesome 'poo.

[Rachellelogram]

As an addendum, I just picked up a boar-hair brush and it's really good at redistributing the oils from your scalp to the rest of your hair. If you have perpetually oily roots and dry ends (like I do, it happens to a lot of people with longer hair) try picking up one of those. I am trying to get my hair used to being washed every other day, and the brush really helps my hair not look greazy on day 2.