Shampoo, a ubiquitous hair care product, has a rich history and complex formulation. From its ancient origins in India to its modern, mass-produced forms, shampoo has undergone significant transformations. This article explores the etymology of the word "shampoo," its historical development, its chemical composition, and its various applications.
The word "shampoo" is borrowed from the English word "shampoo," which in turn comes from the Hindi word चाँपो (cā̃po).
In ancient India, herbs and their extracts were used as shampoos. Sapindus, also known as soapberries or soapnuts, is a tropical tree widespread in India. In ancient Indian texts, it is called ksuna (Sanskrit: क्षुण). Its fruit pulp contains saponins, which are natural surfactants. The extract of soapberries creates a lather, called phenaka (Sanskrit: फेनक) in Indian texts, leaving the hair soft, shiny, and manageable.
Mesopotamians also dealt with a wide range of skin diseases, as evidenced by texts from the Akkadian period.
Other cultures also employed natural substances for hair cleansing. Early shampoos used in Indonesia were made from the husk and straw (merang) of rice. The husks and straws were burned into ash, and the ashes (which have alkaline properties) were mixed with water to form a lather. This mixture was scrubbed into the hair and rinsed out, leaving the hair clean but very dry. Filipinos traditionally used gugo before commercial shampoos were sold in stores. The shampoo is obtained by soaking and rubbing the bark of the vine Gugo (Entada phaseoloides), producing a lather that effectively cleanses the scalp. Before quinoa can be eaten, the saponin must be washed out from the grain prior to cooking.
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Cleansing the hair and body massage (champu) during one's daily bath was an indulgence of early colonial traders in India. Sake Dean Mahomed, a Bengali traveler, surgeon, and entrepreneur, is credited with introducing the practice of shampoo or "shampooing" to Britain. In 1814, Mahomed and his Irish wife, Jane Daly, opened the first commercial "shampooing" vapour masseur bath in England, in Brighton. He described the treatment in a local paper as "The Indian Medicated Vapour Bath (type of Turkish bath), a cure to many diseases and giving full relief when everything fails; particularly Rheumatic and paralytic, gout, stiff joints, old sprains, lame legs, aches and pains in the joints". This medical work featured testimonies from his patients, as well as the details of the treatment that made him famous.
During the early stages of shampoo in Europe, English hair stylists boiled shaved soap in water and added herbs to give the hair shine and fragrance. Commercially made shampoo was available from the turn of the 20th century. In 1900, German perfumer and hair-stylist Josef Wilhelm Rausch developed the first liquid hair washing soap and named it "Champooing" in Emmishofen, Switzerland. Later, in 1919, J.W.
Originally, soap and shampoo were very similar products, both containing the same naturally derived surfactants, a type of detergent.
Shampoo is a hair care product, typically in the form of a viscous liquid, formulated to clean (scalp) hair. Less commonly, it is available in solid bar format. ("Dry shampoo" is a separate product.) Shampoo is used by applying it to wet hair, massaging the product into the hair, roots, and scalp, and then rinsing it out. Shampoo removes the unwanted build-up of sebum (natural oils) in the hair without stripping out so much as to make hair unmanageable.
Shampoo is generally made by combining a surfactant, most often sodium lauryl sulfate or sodium laureth sulfate, with a co-surfactant, most often cocamidopropyl betaine in water. Many shampoos are pearlescent. This effect is achieved by the addition of tiny flakes of suitable materials, e.g., glycol distearate, chemically derived from stearic acid, which may have either animal or vegetable origins. Glycol distearate is a wax. Sodium lauroamphoacetate is naturally derived from coconut oils and is used as a cleanser and counter-irritant. Polysorbate 20 (abbreviated as PEG(20)) is a mild glycol-based surfactant that is used to solubilize fragrance oils and essential oils, meaning it causes liquid to spread across and penetrate the surface of a solid. Citric acid is produced biochemically and is used as an antioxidant to preserve the oils in the product. While it is a severe eye-irritant, the sodium lauroamphoacetate counteracts that property. Citric acid is used to adjust the pH down to approximately 5.5. It is a fairly weak acid which makes the adjustment easier. Shampoos usually are at pH 5.5 because at slightly acidic pH, the scales on a hair follicle lie flat, making the hair feel smooth and look shiny. It also has a small amount of preservative action.
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In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) mandates that shampoo containers accurately list ingredients on the products container. The government further regulates what shampoo manufacturers can and cannot claim as any associated benefit. Shampoo producers often use these regulations to challenge marketing claims made by competitors, helping to enforce these regulations. While the claims may be substantiated, however, the testing methods and details of such claims are not as straightforward. For example, many products are purported to protect hair from damage due to ultraviolet radiation. While the ingredient responsible for this protection does block UV, it is not often present in a high enough concentration to be effective. The North American Hair Research Society has a program to certify functional claims based on third-party testing.
Cosmetic companies have developed shampoos specifically for those who have dandruff. These contain fungicides such as ketoconazole, zinc pyrithione and selenium disulfide, which reduce loose dander by killing fungi like Malassezia furfur. Alternatives to medicated shampoos are available for people who wish to avoid synthetic fungicides. Many companies have also developed color-protection shampoos suitable for colored hair; some of these shampoos contain gentle cleansers according to their manufacturers.
Shampoo for infants and young children is formulated so that it is less irritating and usually less prone to produce a stinging or burning sensation if it were to get into the eyes. For example, Johnson's Baby Shampoo advertises under the premise of "No More Tears". Use of surfactants which, alone or in combination, are less irritating than those used in other shampoos (e.g. The distinction in 4 above does not completely surmount the controversy over the use of shampoo ingredients to mitigate eye sting produced by other ingredients, or the use of the products so formulated. The considerations in 3 and 4 frequently result in a much greater multiplicity of surfactants being used in individual baby shampoos than in other shampoos, and the detergency or foaming of such products may be compromised thereby.
Shampoo intended for animals may contain insecticides or other medications for treatment of skin conditions or parasite infestations such as fleas or mange. These must never be used on humans. While some human shampoos may be harmful when used on animals, any human haircare products that contain active ingredients or drugs (such as zinc in anti-dandruff shampoos) are potentially toxic when ingested by animals. Special care must be taken not to use those products on pets.
Shampoos that are especially designed to be used on pets, commonly dogs and cats, are normally intended to do more than just clean the pet's coat or skin. The main ingredients contained by pet shampoos can be grouped in insecticidals, antiseborrheic, antibacterials, antifungals, emollients, emulsifiers and humectants. Generally, insecticidal pet shampoos contain pyrethrin, pyrethroids (such as permethrin and which may not be used on cats) and carbaryl. Antifungal shampoos are used on pets with yeast or ringworm infections. Bacterial infections in pets are sometimes treated with antibacterial shampoos. Antipruritic shampoos are intended to provide relief of itching due to conditions such as atopy and other allergies. These usually contain colloidal oatmeal, hydrocortisone, Aloe vera, pramoxine hydrochloride, menthol, diphenhydramine, sulfur or salicylic acid. Antiseborrheic shampoos are those especially designed for pets with scales or those with excessive oily coats. These shampoos are made of sulfur, salicylic acid, refined tar (which cannot be used on cats), selenium sulfide (cannot be used on cats) and benzoyl peroxide. All these are meant to treat or prevent seborrhea oleosa, which is a condition characterized by excess oils. Emollient shampoos are efficient in adding oils to the skin and relieving the symptoms of a dry and itchy skin. They usually contain oils such as almond, corn, cottonseed, coconut, olive, peanut, Persia, safflower, sesame, lanolin, mineral or paraffin oil. The emollient shampoos are typically used with emulsifiers as they help distributing the emollients.
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Although some of the pet shampoos are highly effective, some others may be less effective for some condition than another. Yet, although natural pet shampoos exist, it has been brought to attention that some of these might cause irritation to the skin of the pet. Natural ingredients that might be potential allergens for some pets include eucalyptus, lemon or orange extracts and tea tree oil. On the contrary, oatmeal appears to be one of the most widely skin-tolerated ingredients that is found in pet shampoos. Pet shampoos which include fragrances, deodorants or colors may harm the skin of the pet by causing inflammations or irritation.
Invented in 1987 by Lush co-founder, Mo Constantine and cosmetic chemist, Stan Krystal, solid shampoos or shampoo bars can either be soap-based or use other plant-based surfactants, such as sodium cocoyl isethionate or sodium coco-sulfate combined with oils and waxes. Soap-based shampoo bars are high in pH (alkaline) compared to human hair and scalps, which are slightly acidic.
Stiff, non-pourable clear gels to be squeezed from a tube were once popular forms of shampoo, and can be produced by increasing a shampoo's viscosity. Shampoos in the form of pastes or creams were formerly marketed in jars or tubes. The contents were wet but not completely dissolved.
Closely associated with environmentalism, the "no poo" movement consists of people rejecting the societal norm of frequent shampoo use. Some adherents of the no poo movement use baking soda or vinegar to wash their hair, while others use diluted honey. Further methods include the use of raw eggs (potentially mixed with salt water), rye flour, or chickpea flour dissolved in water.
In the 1970s, ads featuring Farrah Fawcett and Christie Brinkley asserted that it was unhealthy not to shampoo several times a week. This mindset is reinforced by the greasy feeling of the scalp after a day or two of not shampooing. Using shampoo every day removes sebum, the oil produced by the scalp. This causes the sebaceous glands to produce oil at a higher rate, to compensate for what is lost during shampooing.
These endocrine disruptors are everywhere: plastics, shampoos, cosmetics, cushions, pesticides, canned foods and A.T.M. receipts.
