Home Cosmetic Science Talk Formulating Thicker Hair

  • Thicker Hair

    Posted by natzam44 on December 28, 2017 at 12:49 am

    Hello!

    I have fine hair and I have been searching for a product which gives the appearance of thicker hair for a while now. My hairdresser started using a product called Nioxin Diamax (Diaboost in the UK) on my hair when I went in. The product is used to make the hair look and feel thicker and let me tell you, works great! It gives the appearance and feel of thicker hair and yet my hair feels as if it has no product in it at all.

    This product intrigued me so much that I decided to try to replicate the formula and make a similar product myself (the product is very expensive).

    The problem is that I cannot find an ingredients list anywhere. The only heading I have is what they state on their website.

    According to Nioxin’s website, there are three main ingredients which give the hair this “thicker feel”. These ingredients are panthenol, caffeine and niacinamide.

    I did some research and according to the websites I looked at, the function of these ingredients is as follows: 

    Panthenol - Is a lubricant for the skin but can also be used to add body to the hair.

    Caffeine - No concrete evidence that this does anything at all in the field of cosmetics.

    Niacinamide - Is apparently another name for Vitamin B3. Not quite sure if it does anything as there are many conflicting sources claiming multiple different things. 

    My question is: Are these ingredients really the cause of my hair looking and feeling thicker or are these just marketing ingredients?

    If they are just marketing ingredients, what are ingredients that could possibly be causing this effect on my hair? 

    Any replies would be greatly appreciated.

    Thanks 
      

    drbobverdient-biz replied 6 years, 2 months ago 7 Members · 9 Replies
  • 9 Replies
  • belassi

    Member
    December 28, 2017 at 7:20 am

    Just marketing. If you put the complete list we might be more informed.

  • komirra

    Member
    December 28, 2017 at 1:23 pm

    found the ingredients here  http://www.ulta.com/diamax-treatment?productId=xlsImpprod4450423

    Alcohol Denat., Water, Niacinamide, PEG/PPG-20/23 Dimethicone, Caffeine, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Fragrance, Panthenol, Triethanolamine, Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Oil, Menthol, Mentha Arvensis Leaf Oil.

    considering that you are supposed tp shake it into the root i wonder if its just making your roots stand up more with the  Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer  so it appears fuller… my guess

  • natzam44

    Member
    December 28, 2017 at 6:57 pm

    Thanks all for the replies!

    The replies have helped me a lot. Thanks again.

  • em88

    Member
    December 28, 2017 at 10:02 pm

    Seems similar with alpecin shampoo. It should give the hair more volume, which may be observed as thinker hair.

  • bill_toge

    Member
    December 30, 2017 at 6:51 pm

    my prime suspect is PEG/PPG-20/23 Dimethicone (Silsoft 430 / Silsoft 440); most likely, it does the donkey work of actually volumising the hair while the panthenol, caffeine and nicotinamide are included mostly for marketing purposes

  • oldperry

    Member
    December 30, 2017 at 6:59 pm

    Yes. If I were knocking this formula off these would be the ingredients I’d start with.

    Alcohol, Water, PEG/PPG-20/23 Dimethicone, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Fragrance, Triethanolamine

  • natzam44

    Member
    December 31, 2017 at 5:09 pm

    Thanks all for the replies. 

    I have done and test batch and am excited to try it.

  • em88

    Member
    December 31, 2017 at 5:44 pm

    Just curious, what formula did you try?

  • drbobverdient-biz

    Member
    January 7, 2018 at 5:08 pm

    D panthenol penetrates the cuticle/cortex and absorbs water swelling the hair shaft.You can measure this in-vitro (TRI Princeton) but best to do salon studies as volume  relates to consumer perception.

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