How Much Should You Wash Your Hair?
Tuesday March 25, 2008
I get this question a lot: How much should you wash your hair. The answer: it depends entirely on your hair type.
If you have dry and/or curly hair, you lucky lady, you don't have to wash your hair every day and quite frankly, you shouldn't (it's very likely you know this already). A basic rule of thumb for you is to shampoo twice a week with moisturizing shampoo and conditioner. If you have normal hair (and I know of no one who thinks they have normal hair), you can wash your hair up to five times a week or as needed. You might find you need to wash hair more times in summer when you're more active (unless you're a skiing fanatic, in which case I say just wear a hat). As for those of us with oily hair (me, me!), contrary to wisdom you may have read in Seventeen magazine in your youth, you can wash hair daily. Skipping a few days is not going to magically turn your limp locks into full body wonder. Unless you soak up the oils with baby powder or a dry shampoo, your hair will resemble the inside of a deep fat fryer.
If you have dry and/or curly hair, you lucky lady, you don't have to wash your hair every day and quite frankly, you shouldn't (it's very likely you know this already). A basic rule of thumb for you is to shampoo twice a week with moisturizing shampoo and conditioner. If you have normal hair (and I know of no one who thinks they have normal hair), you can wash your hair up to five times a week or as needed. You might find you need to wash hair more times in summer when you're more active (unless you're a skiing fanatic, in which case I say just wear a hat). As for those of us with oily hair (me, me!), contrary to wisdom you may have read in Seventeen magazine in your youth, you can wash hair daily. Skipping a few days is not going to magically turn your limp locks into full body wonder. Unless you soak up the oils with baby powder or a dry shampoo, your hair will resemble the inside of a deep fat fryer.
Comments
I posted a comment about what color to dye my hair but i still need help do i go auburn???????
I’m somewhere between normal and oily with slightly dry ends, but my fine-ish hair tends to go limp easily. I like to wash only every other day on occasion and think hair like mine would benefit from the dry shampoo you mentioned. Do you recommend a certain brand?
Like you, I have an oil slick about 20 hours after my last shampooing. I have learned a great new trick (maybe from this site) of putting the conditioner on first ends only and immediately shampooing the roots. For me I do this first thing in the shower then take care of everything else (washing shaving, etc.) and rinse off everything at the same time. Not only is this great for my hair it is saving time/water in the shower! Thanks for the helpfull information. For those wanting to try a dry option, corn starch works well as does a product I bought at Sally that is a comb that has a pad with dry shampoo built in. Worked for a few hours for me, so it would probably work great for someone who’s oil production doesn’t rival Saudi Arabia.
What if you have a dry scalp but oily hair? Thanks!
Kate’s tip sounds good, as if it might work for me. I will give that one a try.
Please don’t assume all of your readers are Caucasian. How often should we African-American ladies with relaxers wash our hair?
Your hair is not the problem. Did you ever think that all the sprays like Lysol, dust & wax etc. that are sprayed in the air all day everyday, everywhere you go, just might be the cause of the greasy feeling in your hair. Now when I use Pledge to dust my house, I cover my hair. Constant chemicals Sprayed in hospitals, all stores etc…………….
Thanks, Kate - I’ll try that trick tomorrow morning.
Cleaning products in the air isn’t the problem in my house; we rarely ever spray things in our home because my youngest has allergies.
Hi Rebecca,
My favorite dry shampoo is Bumble and Bumble. They make powders for blonde, brunette and red hair. Bumble makes the best dry shampoo of all I’ve tried, including Ojon, a beauty editor fave.
If you have lighter hair, you can cheat with baby powder.
Julyne
I have oily hair at my roots. I wash my hair every day except some Sundays I don’t. I also only condition from the earlobes down (my hair is nearly to my waist) because it gets too oily otherwise. Lastly, I try to switch up types of shampoo every other bottle or so because it seems to help me.
Hope that all helps someone! lol Thanks!
~Erin
Once a week is the ideal length of time, unless it is really oily. But I found that after 7 days, my head starts to itch so I know it is dirty.
I have oily hair, so I need to wash it everyday for it to look and feel clean. I also need to color my roots. Does washing it everyday effect how long my color last??
Thanks. Nadia
Several of you have mentioned a great shampooing trick for oily hair (I’ve mentioned it before on this site): Apply shampoo only to the roots and moisturizer to the bottom 2/3rds of hair, rinse everything off at once.
Also, to answer Nadia’s question: if you color hair, it’s best to use a salon shampoo formulated for colored hair. Pricey shampoo tends to be less harsh than cheaper drugstore brands. Redken is affordable and makes good products for colored hair.
well i wash my hair everyday but the thing is is that it looks reallly oliy but it isnt though.
I wash my hair twice or thrice A DAY. Will that destroy my hair or..? I hope not lol. I just couldn’t stand the sweat.
I think the thing to do is wash your hair when YOU feel it looks dirty or FEELS dirty!!