Sigh

[conuly]

My shampoo is no longer being produced and I need more shampoo.

It needs to be perfume light, and ideally I should be able to get shampoo, conditioner, and body wash that don't clash with each other. I generally find that products marketed as natural are more likely to have scents that aren't overwhelming and don't make my eyes itch, give me a sore throat, or trigger a headache - but there's no guarantee there.

And, of course, it needs to get my hair clean, ideally without drying it out.

Help?

Comments

[siliconshaman]

Search for bulldog brand. My daughter swears by their range of products (rather than at them) and she has a range of sensitivity issues.

[mtbc]

I tend to do okay with stuff aimed at babies but I can't say that I've noticed conditioner in that set.

[sonia]

I use Dessert Essence fragrance free and it works fine for my hair (thick, long, usually braided).

[ethelmay]

I use Shikai bulk shampoo and conditioner, which to me has a very slight and inoffensive smell that fades quickly. I also occasionally handwash some clothes with a bit of shampoo.

[peristaltor]

As a comparison, any chance you could share which brands you find too olfactory-enhanced?

[conuly]

That is a great question but unfortunately the answer is no! I don’t keep track, and it’s been ages since I bought a different one.

[shadowkat]

I was using OGA but switched to Native. There's also the shampoo soaps, but they tend to leave a residue. (I have to make sure they are gluten free and don't have a lot of additives and are perfume light as well - I can do citrus, lavender, and eucalyptus without too much issue.)

[conuly]

Gluten free, at least, isn't a worry I have. That must make it all harder :(

[archersangel]

i use sauve tropical coconut shampoo (i think the scent is light, others may disagree), which is described as nourishing.
they also have a tropical coconut conditioner to go along with it.

[gatheringrivers]

I found a local soap maker at a farm market.

I told her "I've got issues with $this, $that, and $thisotherthing" and she was able to make soap when leaving those out, and I specifically requested bars that would be good for washing my hair.

She could make unscented, but I requested vanilla, because I happen to like vanilla over anything "perfumed" or otherwise floral.

Caveat: My bio-hair gets really damn greasy. If yours does not, this *may not* be a good approach for you, I don't know.

[conuly]

God, I wish I knew what it is, specifically, I react to.

Persistent scent is a sensory thing, but the eyes and throat is not, and I don’t know what components cause that.

[gatheringrivers]

If you still have an old bottle, that at least gives you a starting point of what DOES work. :)

[cellio]

When my previous shampoo & conditioner got ridiculously expensive, I switched to Alberto VO5 (specifically Extra Body). I don't like heavy scent either; this isn't unscented, but whatever it is, it doesn't bother me. It's cheap, so if you try it and don't like it, you're not out much.

I use bar soap (Dove Sensitive) not body wash, so I can't help you there.

[glaurung]

My sensitivities are bad enough that I don't tolerate any scents in personal care products at all. In the past 10-ish years all the brands that I used to use have started adding essential oils/extracts to products that didn't used to have any scent at all.

I used to use Nature Clean products, but then they filled them with smelly extracts. Then after a long search, I switched to Magick Botanicals, but discovered that the company is run by scoundrels who short their customers by under filling their containers (a 450 ml bottle of lotion should weigh 450 grams plus a bit for the bottle, the last time I bought one, it only weighed 387 grams). Nowadays I use Unicure shampoo and conditioner (They claim the conditioner is also for skin).

Good luck finding something you can tolerate.

Currently I use Unicure hair products. Before that, Magick Botanicals, but then I realized that Magick was underfilling the containers by 100ml on each 450ml bottle.

[conuly]

Currently I use Unicure hair products. Before that, Magick Botanicals, but then I realized that Magick was underfilling the containers by 100ml on each 450ml bottle.

Jesus, that's blatant.

[glaurung]

Yeah, I was shocked when i discovered it. The reason I discovered it was that the straw pumps for drawing the lotion out of the bottle always had very short straws, leaving an inch of lotion in the bottom every time (forcing you to buy a new bottle sooner, if you didn't take steps to use the dregs). I was OCD enough to collect the dregs and use them, but I found myself wondering how much was going to waste for people who aren't like me. And in the process of weighing I happened to weigh a full bottle and realized that they were cheating their customers two ways.

Also, apologies for the repetitive final paragraph of my comment, I meant to delete that during an edit and somehow did not.

[conuly]

Better and better!

[brokenallbroken]

I use Pantene 10, both because the shampoo and conditioner are unscented and because Costco frequently has them on sale.

[cordjostler]

These situations suck. I tend to buy in quantity to at least give myself some runway. deodorant has been the worst. thank goodness costco has one of the rare scents that I can tolerate.

I use the aussie shampoo/conditioner. it does have a fragrance, but for some reason I can deal with it. I also use Trader Joes Formula No3, which is marketed as a shampoo/conditioner/bodywash, though I just use it as a bodywash. It has just a touch of scent that is maybe something like incense of some kind.. but I can't really smell it unless I think really hard about it. YMMV

[gwydion]

A friend of mine with extreme allergies suggests "Dr Brenner's unscented baby soap. The liquid version with more olive oil." They also suggest Vanicream.

We both send condolences. It can be really hard to find safe products.

[conuly]

I just don't like Dr Bronner's. The bottles have too much text on them and I'm always a little unsure if we should be worried about the word salad.

[gwydion]

Fair enough.

[watervole]

I used to suffer from regular problems skin peeling in my ears. I thought it was earwax build up, until the lady syrnging my ears said it was skin.

I wondered what was triggering it, and considered that shampoo might be a possible cause.

taking a deep breath, I began cutting out shampoo at a week long folk festival - where so many people were camping that no one would notice if I was looking a mess.

My hair got greasy, but not as badly as I'd expected. I carried on with the experiment...

After two months of not stripping all the natural oils in my hair and scalp, my body stopped over-producing them in an effort to replace them.

Over 30 years later, I still haven't gone back to using shampoo, and my hair isn't greasy. I wash it with water, and that's all.

[conuly]

That is a disturbing story.

[watervole]

I've been very cautious about using anything on my skin since that time.

I do sometimes use moisturiser, but one with pretty basic ingredients.