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What makes a shampoo “color-safe”?
Is it the surfactants used? Other ingredients? Is there any way to know for sure that a formula is color safe without actually testing it on people?
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11 Replies
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Marketing makes it color safe.
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Hehe, I was waiting for you @perry
I knew exactly you’re going to say that. -
I had a feeling this is the answer i would get. Does the same go for color boosting shampoos? Just marketing or is there something real happening with those?
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@Paprik - I guess I’m a bit too predictable. I remember learning that when I was on the VO5 shampoo line & in my first year of formulating. We have an “extra body” formula and a “for color treated hair” formula and the difference was color, fragrance and a couple extracts.
@GeorgeBenson - In truth, exposure to water is responsible for the vast majority of hair color loss. So, the shampoo you use just doesn’t really affect it that much.
As for color boosting, no those can actually have an impact. Well, that is if they include basic or acidic dyes at a high enough level. For example, those purple shampoos really will help remove the yellow brassiness out of hair. But often, these are also just marketing stories.
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@Perry nooo you’re not predictable at all.
It’s just I remember someone asked that before in here and I remember your answer. Was very similar.I am currently looking into formulating purple shampoo
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Some surfactants swell the cortex a bit more, letting dyes leach easier. Mixtures of surfactants (adding amphoterics) can reduce this phenomena.
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@ketchito - I’ve not seen evidence of this (or that it matters) in practice & I specifically worked on a research project to explore this.
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I would argue that a well-formulated SLS/SLES shampoo is colour safe. Why? Because it washes well enough to keep hair clean longer, and by doing it delays the next wash => less washing, more colour
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Hi @Perry! Long time ago, I remember I was involved in a shampoo project for dyed hair. We performed half head washes with consumers, and we saw how the water from a commercial product had high concentration of red dye while our prototype’s washing liquor had a very faint color (no significant difference in conditioning systems, but only in surfactants). Of course, this is just ANECDOTAL data and shouldn’t be considered as reliable evidence smile:
Nevertheless, at that time I searched for some info and found the following studies:
1) https://www.researchgate.net/publication/339136698_An_ex_vivo_study_of_the_effects_of_co-surfactants_and_conditioning_additives_on_hair_colour_protection
2) https://ualresearchonline.arts.ac.uk/id/eprint/8361/1/Personal_Care_Europe_June_2015.pdf
3) https://www.cosmeticsandtoiletries.com/formulas-products/hair-care/article/21836550/structured-surfactant-systems-for-high-performance-shampoos
4) https://www.cosmeticsandtoiletries.com/testing/method-process/article/21836538/assessing-the-impact-of-hair-damage-types-on-color-retention
5) https://library.scconline.org/v060n02/128Even though the most significant “color protection” effect comes from the use of a polymer (the more hydrophobic, the better), the selection of surfactant or surfactant blend seems to play also an important role. Interestingly, I was watching some lecture as part of TRI’s 9th International Science Conference on Applied Science, and Dr. Trevor Evans mentioned this phenomena, only he didn’t talk about differences between surfactants.
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From one-trick-pony microbiologist - could av chlorine in tap water also be a factor?
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ketchito said:Even though the most significant “color protection” effect comes from the use of a polymer (the more hydrophobic, the better),
What type of polymers?
Can you name some top ones
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