Protecting your hair while still swimming in chemically treated pools.

Q: My question is regarding chlorine in pools. I swim a lot as my main form of exercise. I soak my hair before my swim to prevent excessive absorption, and rinse it off afterwards, but I am curious if this counts as continual chemical treatment, as described on the FAQ page . Also, if you do recommend that I use your product, which line would best fit with my penchant for the lap pool?

A:

Try to avoid swimming in pools treated with chemicals. (There are some pools out there that use salt and/or UV light to keep the water from being overrun with bacteria instead of using the conventional toxic pool chemicals.) To protect one's body and hair from toxic chemicals attacking the hair and skin and to help to prevent some chemicals from penetrating the body, we have often suggested the following:

1. Wear a bathing cap when swimming – there are some natural rubber ones out there.

2. Apply some of our Moisture Cream (a product a little bit down on this Fragrance Free Facial Care Line page) or, better still, one of our Body Cremes with organic beeswax to the hair before swimming to help repel the water laced with chemicals. After swimming, to remove any chemical residues, cleanse the hair (and body) using the Body Wash and vinegar rinse method (as described in number five of our Hair Wash instructions article – link on the hair care page of our web site), then repeat the process and/or use the Pure Earth Hair Wash as the second cleansing step.

3. Apply one of our Body Cremes with organic beeswax to the face and body – use all over as a gentle preventative barrier – before swimming to help repel the water laced with chemicals. This has the added benefit of being moisturizing for the skin.

Hair Wash stored in cold temperatures?

Q: Hi! I was wondering if my Hair Wash would be negatively impacted by being stored in cold temperatures. It was accidentally left in a car for a few days (and it's winter). Please let me know!

A: 

No worries! Our Hair Wash is a very stable product and unlike some of our other, more delicate, products, the cold will not be a problem for the Hair Wash at all.

Why doesn't the Terressentials Hair Wash come in a wide mouthed jar?

Q: Why doesn't Terressentials Hair Wash come in a wide-mouthed jar that I can stick my fingers in and scoop the mud out of? It can be hard to get out of the bottles.

A:

Unfortunately, for such a large quantity of a water-based product to be packed in a jar that would require that fingers be repeatedly inserted into the product over several weeks to dispense it demands significant additions of chemical preservatives to maintain that product's stability. As we are a certified organic company, the use of such chemical preservatives is not in alignment with our organic mission or our natural philosophy and, importantly, the use of chemical preservatives in organic products is forbidden by the federal USDA National Organic Program regulations. Also, we are a very small company and packaging options that are available to us in the smaller quantities that we can afford to purchase are limited. After 20 years of business, we have found that the best bottle for the Hair Wash is the one we currently use. However, rest assured, as we do believe in constant improvement, we are always searching for and open to new and improved packaging ideas.

For now, here are a few tips that we can share with you for successful dispensing of the Hair Wash are:

1. Store your Hair Wash bottle upside down (with cap closed, of course!).

2. When the product gets low in the bottle, gently tap the bottle (cap down and closed) against a tabletop a few times to move the Hair Wash from the bottom of the bottle towards the cap.

How will I know when my hair is fully detoxed? How long will this take?

Q: How will I know when my hair is detoxed? How long will this take?

A: 

The time it takes to complete the detox period varies greatly from person to person. For some, it could be as little as a week, but for others who have very damaged hair from the use of synthetic chemical products, the process could take much longer. During the detox, your hair may feel very funny. It is normal for it to feel sticky, dry, limp, static-y, heavy, and/or greasy. With a little patience, however, your hair should start to feel like it did when you were a kid - soft, manageable, natural. For tips on speeding up the detox process, see number 5 of our Hair Wash Instructions.

I used to use chemical relaxers in my hair. Will your Hair Wash work for me?

Q: I used to use chemical relaxers in my hair. Will your Hair Wash work for me?

A: 

Yes, given your desire to transition to completely natural hair cleansing, you could certainly use our hair wash, however, we're certain that your hair has sustained permanent damage from the relaxers, the coloring, and from the surfactant-based shampoos that you have used in the past. It is important to note that unless you have had ALL of the old, damaged hair cut off, your detox period will be longer than the average person with less chemically-treated hair. For best results, you should closely follow all of our instructions and recommendations as detailed in our Hair Wash Instructions, especially the information outlined in numbers 5 and 6.

Will the Hair Wash strip chemical dyes out of my hair?

Q: Will your Hair Wash strip chemical dyes out of my hair?

A:

We cannot provide you with a definitive response as we are not manufacturers of chemical dyes or chemical products. We cannot predict the stability of chemical dyes. We can say, however, that for the past 16 years, many people have reported to us that they regularly use our Hair Wash  on their dyed/bleached hair with excellent results.

We do not recommend the use of chemical hair dyes for a number of reasons: chemical hair dyes are toxic for the environment when they are manufactured in industrial chemical factories, unhealthy for you (and the salon workers) when they are used, pollute our waterways/drinking water, and are toxic to wildlife when such volumes of chemicals are washed down the drain into our waterways.

True, pure botanical henna powder hair coloring (often blended with indigo, walnut shells, beet powder, etc) when blended with water, black tea, or lemon juice, provides a wide range of completely natural and lovely shades of reds, coppers, browns, burgundies, mahogany, to black. It is also considerably less expensive at $10-$14 per box compared to $100+ visits to the salon. As an added bonus, when henna paste is rinsed from the hair and the used vegetable matter goes down the drain into our waterways, the henna compost provides FOOD for wildlife and microorganisms!

To learn more about totally natural botanical henna hair coloring see: http://www.te-helpmyhair.blogspot.com/search/label/hair%20dye

How can I reduce static in my hair?

Q: I love your hair wash, but I've noticed that my hair has more static since I started my detox. How can I reduce static in my hair?

A:

The majority of synthetic detergents are designed to have anti-static properties, so when you stop using detergent shampoos, you may experience some static electricity in the first few weeks. This will gradually disappear as you continue to use the mud wash.

Our advice:

1. Switch to wooden combs and brushes with natural or wooden bristles.
2. Avoid static-causing situations such as blow-drying your hair and wearing clothing made with synthetic fibers (petrochemical plastics such as nylon, polyester, acrylic, etc)
3. After washing your hair, rinse with a mixture of 1 part organic apple cider vinegar to 2 parts water.

More details may be found here: www.terressentials.com/hairhelp.html