A) Introduction:
Everyone desires for silky, smooth, manageable and healthy hair. Hairs are damaged due to several factors such as environment, diet, harsh chemicals, hair treatments, pollution, etc. Hair conditioner is a hair care product that helps to improve hair texture, makes them healthy and manageable. Hair conditioner is a creamy product that helps to improve hair texture, replenish, hydrates them and make them appear softer. It helps to reduce the friction and makes easy to brush them.
A) Mechanism of Hairs Conditioners:
The outer layer of hair is called as cuticle which protects the hairs and is made of keratin. They are acidic in nature, when hairs are washed the hairs deprotonate and gives them a negative charge. The average person have between 1, 20,000 -1, 50,000 hair strands and the cuticle lies tightly against each other to maintain hairs in healthy condition. When the hairs become frizzy and damaged that means the cuticle layer is worn down and the overlapping cells are no longer lying together.
Hair conditioners contains cationic ingredients that are positively charged. The opposite charges of hairs and conditioner attracts each other and the conditioner forms an envelope on hair strands and makes the cuticle flakes bind together making the hairs smooth again.
A) Types of Hair Conditioner:
Hair conditioners are available in various forms and types for different hair types with different mechanism of actions. They have different functions for volumizing, treating damaged hairs, for colored hairs, etc. The different types of hair conditioners are mentioned below:
1) Rinse Off Conditioners – These types of conditioner are classic and we are familiar with. They are simple to use and are suitable for dry to normal and oily hairs. They are used after shampoo, applied on wet hairs for 1 or 2 minutes and washed off with water. They can be used twice or thrice a week after shampoo. They help to close the cuticles of hairs, restores moisture in the hairs and protects them from heat treatments and other damage causing factors.
2) Leave On Conditioners – These types of conditioners are also called as “leave-in conditioner” or “no rinse off conditioner”. Unlike traditional conditioner they are not rinsed off. They are light weighed, less viscous and contains surfactants for easy spreading and forms a thin film on hairs. They are applied on hairs after shampoo while setting our hairs. They are suitable for thin, curly or oily hairs. They helps to provide extra moisture to hairs and prevents tangling of hairs.
3) Deep Conditioners – As the name suggest they are designed to condition the hairs to the deep levels. They are suitable for excessively damaged and dry hairs. They contains emulsifiers, waxes, oils and nourishing ingredients that help to treat damaged hairs, provides moisture to hairs, nourishes them. They are suitable to use once a week or once a month depending upon type of hairs. They are applied onto hairs for about half an hour and is rinsed off with water.
A) Ingredients in Hair Conditioner:
Hair conditioners are composed of different ingredients with different functions. They are as given below-
Acidifiers - They are used to maintain the pH of conditioner at around 3.5. They are used to tighten the scaly hair strands as the hydrogen bonds between the keratin molecules are straightened.
Antistatic Agents - They are used to bind the hairs and reduce the static and fly away of hairs. For example Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Polyquaternium 10.
Glossers and lubricants – Glossers are used to provide shine to hair strands, they are light reflecting agents. For example Silicones such as dimethicone, Cyclopentasiloxane. Lubricants are used to smoothen the hair strands, for example fatty alcohols, Panthenol.
Oils – By using oils, dry hairs become softer. They have humectant properties. For example sweet almond oil, jojoba oil, etc.
Surfactants – Hair are composed of 97% protein called keratin. They contain negatively charged amino acids. Conditioners contains cationic surfactants that bind to keratin and hydrophobic films acts as new hair surface. Examples are Behentrimonium Chloride and Cetrimonium Chloride.
Reconstructors - They usually contain Hydrolyzed protein. They penetrate into the hair and strengthen its structure by polymer crosslinking.
Preservatives –They are used to protect the product from microbial contamination.
B) Benefits: There are many benefits of using hair conditioners. They are mentioned below-
They help to prevent the damage from heat treatments, pollutants, etc.
They help to get rid of frizzy, dry and tangled hairs.
Conditioners make the hairs smooth, silky and tangle free.
They provides moisture, nourishes and conditions the hairs.
Comments