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Recently I was on a flight sitting in a middle seat when a flight attendant suddenly reached over and tugged on my hair. I thought it was bizarre and quite annoying because I spend a lot of time caring for my curls. The encounter left me unsettled, mostly because I wished that I had had a different response other than smiling to hide my discomfort. To that end, I want to be more prepared with a response the next time this situation inevitably happens. Here are some perfectly acceptable reactions when someone unexpectedly touches your hair.
Play it cool
There are many possible reactions to have if someone touches your hair, starting with playing it cool. If the person asks first and it doesn’t bother you, you can smile and show them where and how (gently”> to touch your hair, so they don’t mess up your curls. If it does bother you, you can wear a “Don’t touch my hair” pin everywhere. Point to that pin. Problem solved.
If the person doesn’t have the courtesy to ask first, you can step back to remove yourself from his or her reach or smile and put your hand in between his or her hand and your hair. You can get your point across without having to say anything.
Be firm
When playing it cool is not working for you, be a bit firmer in your reaction. If the person asks before touching your hair, you can simply say that it would make you uncomfortable. If that person lacks the perception to understand that invading a stranger’s space could cause discomfort, tell him or her. Don’t be nervous about the awkwardness; that person created the situation, not you.
If the person doesn’t ask first, say, “Please don’t touch my hair.” You’re still being courteous but it will get your point across.
Be aggressive
If today is just not the day for you, don’t be afraid to let your true feelings show. If the person asks before attempting to touch your hair, put the discomfort back on her. Say, “Only if I can touch your hair first.” It will become evident how strange it is to do such a thing. Otherwise, you can just say, “No” and turn away. It’s simple and effective. You don’t need to feel like you’re being rude, because you don’t owe this stranger anything.
If the person doesn’t ask first, and you’re just not in the mood, all bets are off. The times when I have felt most uncomfortable with a stranger touching my hair, I have had visions of grabbing a spray bottle, and spraying the offending stranger like you would a misbehaving cat until he steps away from my curls. If that person is going to treat me like a pet, I should be able to do the same. Unfortunately, I don’t usually have spray bottles handy, so another perfectly fine reaction would be to just start messing up that person’s hair too. They will be shocked by how creepy it is and hopefully back off.
At the end of the day, any reaction you have to someone unexpectedly touching your hair is perfectly acceptable. It’s your hair, so you are the one who decides whose hands can touch it or not!
Has anyone ever touched your hair unexpectedly? How did you react?
More and more consumers are interested in what ingredients are in their beauty products, as almost 60% of adult women “read beauty product ingredients prior to purchase.” Women with textured hair are particularly on the lookout for sulfates, whether they follow the Curly Girl method or not. We are lucky that there are so many products available now that are, “sulfate free,” but what about sulfate alternatives? Here’s what you need to know about a common sulfate alternative ingredient found in cleansers, Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate.
What is Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate?
NaturallyCurly asked Aisha Crump, a chemical engineer and the founder and CEO of Honey Baby Naturals, to draw on her expertise from many years in the beauty business to help us understand Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate. She says, “Consumers are always reading labels and looking for things we know aren’t good for our hair such as parabens and surfactants. We see [that] a product is sulfate free per the marketing, but then you spot an ingredient that sounds like a sulfate, Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate.” Without a deep knowledge of ingredients, it can be very hard to tell, but while Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate may sound like a sulfate, it is not.
According to Crump, DLS “is a cleansing agent also known as a surfactant but [it] is not considered a sulfate. It is a common chemical found in many ‘greener’ or more natural formulas that is used to replace the harsher sulfates because of its non-irritating yet effective properties. It is found in many shampoo and cleansing formulas and is used for its degreasing, foaming, and emulsifying benefits. It is known to be extremely gentle to the skin and hair even at higher concentrations.”
Should I avoid this ingredient?
Now that we know that DLS isn’t a sulfate, how do we know if we should steer clear of this ingredient or not? Crump says that, “Shampoos are so important for textured hair because they remove build up and keep the scalp clean to promote growth.” Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate will cleanse the hair, but “will not strip the moisture from hair the way harsh sulfates do.”
If you want to understand the science behind why DLS is a gentler alternative to sulfates, Crump offers this explanation: “Sulfates are harsh and irritating in part because they are small molecules that penetrate into the skin while Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate is a large molecule that can’t penetrate into the scalp and skin.” Going a little deeper, she says, “It is considered an anionic surfactant, meaning it has a negative charge. The safety and mildness of this surfactant is due to the removal of the sulfate ion and replacing it with a sulfonated ester. The result is an effective cleanser that is safer and less irritating to the skin, hair, and scalp.”
In short, Aisha Crump believes, “You can use your favorite Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate/ “sulfate free” shampoo with confidence and enjoy the results.”
What products include it and what products don’t?
If you still like to have a little lather in your sulfate free cleansers, there are many products that contain Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate. A good choice for fine or fragile hair is Kevin Murphy Angel Wash. Ouidad Color Sense Color Preserving Shampoo is a great cleanser for color-treated hair. Finally, Briogeo Rosarco Reparative Shampoo uses a coconut derived version of DLS bolstered by rosehip, argan, and coconut oil to nourish hair.
There are many great sulfate free cleansing options that don’t contain Disodium Laureth Sulfosuccinate, but I’ll highlight three that were Naturally Curly 2016 Editor’s Choice winners. Honey Baby Naturals Honeychild Moisture & Scalp Balance Gentle Shampoo uses two “green” surfactants to replace sulfates. I have used it to cleanse my nine-year-old sister’s 4c hair, but also find it to be an excellent option for my 3b hair. Alikay Naturals Moisturizing Black Soap shampoo is another option with a unique pointed nozzle to distribute the product directly to the scalp. Lastly, DevaCurl’s No-Poo Decadence Zero Lather Ultra Moisturizing Milk Cleanser was also a Best of the Best 2016 Winner, and is a personal favorite when I need an extra moisturizing cleanser.
What are some ingredients that you aim to avoid? Let us know in the comments!
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You have probably seen the ubiquitous infomercials for WEN by Chaz Dean products and may have heard about the customer complaints of hair loss caused by their cleansing conditioners. The latest news in a saga that began in 2014 and continued with a FDA investigation this summer is that WEN and its marketing company, Guthy Renker, have reached a preliminary settlement for $26.3 million in a class-action lawsuit.
What should I know about the case?
Despite the many positive reviews of its products, WEN has been plagued by controversy in the last few years. The FDA has received “127 adverse event reports directly from consumers about WEN… the largest number of reports ever associated with any cosmetic hair cleansing product.” Complaints claimed that WEN’s cleansing conditioners caused adverse events such as, “hair loss, hair breakage, balding, itching, and rash.” In July of this year, the FDA opened an investigation into these reports and also discovered “21,000 complaints reported directly to Chaz Dean and Guthy Renker”
The FDA investigation followed smaller class-action lawsuits against WEN beginning in 2014 and a larger lawsuit brought by over 200 women in 40 states. CBS Local news reported that a federal judge gave preliminary approval to a $26.3 million settlement. Wen made a statement that their products are safe and they decided to settle rather than undergo costly litigation. Despite the FDA investigation and lawsuits, WEN products are still being sold by the company and its retailers.
What we really wanted to know
One of the elements of the case that have caused mixed reactions is whether the WEN products can actually be blamed for hair loss, particularly due to clogged pores in the scalp. In a Twitter response to a concerned customer on October 24, 2016, the company claimed that “there’s no scientific evidence to suggest that there is a problem with WEN.” Even the FDA states that they “don’t have enough information to determine what caused the adverse reactions.”
Can a cleansing conditioner really cause hair loss?
NaturallyCurly reached out to two scientists to shed some light on attorney Amy Davis’s claim that using WEN’s cleansing conditioner is “like using lotion to wash your hair.’ This makes it harder to rinse out, which leads to build-up that can clog your hair follicles, halting hair growth and eventually causing hair loss.” Unfortunately, the jury is still out on this claim.
What do the scientists say?
Erica Douglas, a formulating cosmetic chemist and founder of SisterScientist and mSeed Group, states, “Hair loss is a common symptom of folliculitis: inflammation of the follicle caused by bacteria or fungus. However, hair loss from non-infectious folliculitis (which is usually caused by the clogging of follicles from oil and/or sebum”> is more likely to cause hair thinning than dramatic hair loss.” She believes, “It’s not impossible for non-infectious folliculitis to cause severe hair loss, but would most likely require extreme conditions and a very long period of time without basic or traditional cleansing methods to create a perfect storm for extreme hair loss to occur.” She assumes that, “the plaintiffs would have to prove that enough build up occurred leading to infectious folliculitis.”
Maryam Ali, who holds a Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin and a BA in Chemical Engineering from CalTech, said it was hard to conclusively state whether build up can cause excess sebum and clogged pores leading to hair loss. There is very limited evidence that excess sebum or conditioner could clog pores resulting in high levels of an enzyme (5-alpha reductase”> that is related to hair growth. She noted research from the National Center for Biotechnology Information that indicates “a fraction of the population” who is already “susceptible to androgenic alopecia” might experience hair loss from an increase in this enzyme. She summarizes her thoughts on the topic saying that without more concrete scientific research, any connections between clogged follicles and hair loss are hypotheses at best.
While it’s still hard to tell if and how WEN products could be causing hair loss, it will be interesting to see how this lawsuit and FDA investigation plays out.
What are your thoughts on the WEN class-action lawsuit? Let us know in the comments!
