If you’re looking for a deep-cleaning shampoo, you may be asking yourself if clarifying shampoos really work.
After all, the promise of a good clarifying shampoo is hard to deny. We’re all overly aware of how much gunk can accumulate in our hair throughout the day. From pollutants in the environment and minerals in hard water to our own hair care products and oil, it adds up to a lot.
The result is hair that feels lifeless, dull, and heavy. Created specifically to cling to that residue so they can be washed away, clarifying shampoos should be the answer.
But if you haven’t used one for yourself, you’re likely wondering if clarifying shampoos are effective.
To answer that, we’ve gathered information about the ingredients in clarifying shampoos, how often to use them, and the results you can expect from regular use.
How Clarifying Shampoos Work
When researching whether clarifying shampoos really work, it’s worth keeping in mind the result you’re looking for.
Do clarifying shampoos work well as a daily shampoo replacement? No.
But if the goal of using your clarifying shampoo is to clear out impurities and residue from your hair and scalp on a regular basis, then the answer is yes.
Clarifying shampoos works through the use of chelating agents. These are chemical compounds that connect with the dirt, residue and buildup of oils to make them water-soluble. The clarification process binds to those oil particles so they can be washed away.
And though oil production is a natural process for the scalp, that sebum can start to weigh your hair down.
By comparison, regular or milder shampoos often don’t incorporate those ingredients, focusing instead on moisturizing and leaving your hair shinier.
As such, even after a single use of clarifying shampoo you should notice hair that perks up quickly as it’s freed from both oils and other impurities.
So if you’ve been looking for a shampoo that can clear out dust, spray, hair gel, and hard water residue, clarifying shampoos work.
What Makes Clarifying Shampoo Effective At Cleaning Hair
To understand how clarifying shampoos work, it’s useful to compare it to your daily skincare routine.
Though you wash your face every day, you know that’s just for the surface of your skin. It’s refreshing, it gets rid of the sweat and dirt, and it’s not invasive.
Then to help your skin glow, you know you’ll need something a bit more intense. To remove oil, blackheads, and dead skin, you look to exfoliate.
But just like you wouldn’t exfoliate every single day, clarifying shampoos are effective on a periodic basis for that more intense, deeper cleaning.
How Regularly You Should Use Clarifying Shampoo
The ingredients necessary for this kind of clean are better used on a twice weekly basis.
Your timing may vary depending on factors, including how often you wash your hair, how naturally oily your hair is, and what kinds of hair products you use.
Using Clarifying Shampoos With Conditioners
The process of using a clarifying shampoo is intended to give your hair a deeper clean.
Because you’re detoxifying your scalp at the same time and removing a buildup of oils, it’s important to follow with a conditioner.
How To Know If It’s Time For Your Own Clarifying Shampoo
Now that you know more about how clarifying shampoos work (and that they do work), here are a few signs it’s time to get one for yourself:
- Your hair still feels oily (even after you’ve washed it)
- Your hair is weighed down (making it hard to style)
- You’ve been using dry shampoo regularly (and now it won’t wash out)
- You’re a regular swimmer (and especially if you have blond hair)
- You’re getting ready to dye your hair
And if you’re looking for a recommendation, Moxy Clarifying Shampoo and Conditioner will give you all the good stuff your hair needs from a clarifying shampoo (without any of the harmful ingredients).