■The Basics of Shampoos and Rinses
The differences between natural and synthetic shampoos
Washing hair with synthetic shampoos can chap the hands, exfoliate the horny layer, and compromise the natural ability of the skin to retain moisture. Human skin consists of an outermost layer, or the horny layer, and epidermal layers just beneath. In normal skin, the surface of the horny layer is protected by a thin film formed from sebum from the sebaceous glands and moisture from the sweat glands. This film helps to prevent the evaporation of moisture from the horny layer, and to protect the skin from various agents and irritants in the environment. The horny layer itself consists of about 10 to 20 percent moisture. The functions of the sebum film in controlling evaporation and retaining moisture help to keep the skin smooth. Synthetic shampoos interfere with these functions by washing away the sebum film. If you shampoo a dog quickly, the loss of sebum will only be minor. But if you soak your hands in a soapy liquid for a long time, soluble amino acids crucial to the moisture retention of the horny layer will start to dissolve. Eventually, the moisture maintenance function of the skin will decline. Fortunately the sebaceous glands are resilient, and will normally excrete enough sebum to restore the original condition of the skin in just a few hours. Yet during those hours of recovery, various bacteria may lodge themselves to unprotected skin. This can cause eczema, eruptions, and other dermatological complaints.
=== Percentage of sebum removal ===
| Washing hands | ||
|---|---|---|
| Soaking for 1 minute | Soaking for 15 minutes | |
| Water | 25.3% | 41.9% |
| Natural shampoo | 50.1% | 68.7% |
| Synthetic shampoo | 64.0% | 87.9% |
— A natural shampoo isn’t acidic or neutral, but weakly alkaline. A 100 percent natural shampoo will never be neutral or acidic, no matter how weakly.
— People might think that a weak alkaline irritates the skin. This is totally wrong.
— A shampoo and rinse should never be mixed together in one bottle. They must be kept separate.
— Natural shampoos and rinses never affect the skin. You can use them even on dogs with sensitive or delicate skin.
— Natural shampoos lather better than synthetic shampoos.
— Natural shampoos are easy to rinse. Any natural shampoo with a moisture content of more than 40 percent should be dissolved in water.
— Dog groomers use natural rinse and synthetic rinse for different reasons. Synthetic rinse adheres to the dog’s coat, opening the cuticles and roughening the texture of the hair. A natural, weakly acidic rinse closes the cuticles and softens and beautifies the hair.
— We recommend our shampoo and rinse for dogs with the following conditions.
Dogs with allergies or dandruff. Dogs that scratch itchy skin or smell bad after washing.
Dogs whose skins redden after washing. Dogs with brittle hair or hair that lacks shine.
Dogs with excessive or unusual shedding.
There are two ways to distinguish between natural ingredients and non-natural ingredients in a shampoo. The first is to measure the pH level. If the shampoo you test is weakly acidic or neutral, it probably contains a synthetic surfactant. This means you have a synthetic shampoo. When a shampoo is formulated with a natural surfactant, it should be weakly alkaline. If it contains 100 percent natural materials, it will have a pH somewhere from 9.5 to 10. Never will it be weakly acidic or neutral.
Another way to tell a natural shampoo from a synthetic one is to mix in a little vinegar. A synthetic shampoo, which is weakly acidic or neutral, will show no reaction. But when a shampoo formulated with a natural surfactant is mixed with an acidic solution, the liquid will become turbid and oily.
If a dog drinks a synthetic shampoo, it can be dangerous. If the shampoo is relatively tasteless, a dog may drink too much and even die. There’s no such danger with a shampoo made only from natural materials. The dog will simply digest the oil and salt. In some cases, the animal may just vomit as a reaction to the bad taste.
A natural shampoo and natural rinse should never be mixed together in one bottle. Synthetic rinses use coatings and silicon.
Our Natural Shampoo and Rinse are perfumed with six different kinds of herbs. A freshly shampooed and conditioned coat will smell nice for about two weeks. Our products also give the coat a healthy shine. The surfactant-free formulas ensure that dirt won’t easily adhere to the hair. The grooming shops who buy our products regularly thank us for the wonderful results and the fine shiny coats on their animals. You can use our shampoos and rinses on dogs, cats, and other animals, even those with allergies or atopic dermatitis. If any of your pets have dandruff, the problem will go away after a few shampoos with our products.
Many people misunderstand what an amino acid actually is. When they see “amino acid” on the label of a bottle, they think of the essential amino acids necessary for a healthy body. But the amino acids in a shampoo are something different. Amino acid shampoos are actually synthetic and include nitrogen, the same substance responsible for the eutrophication problem in Lake Biwako and other lakes of the Kansai region. The betaine/amino acid additive used for the newer shampoo surfactants also contains nitrogen. These substances have sterilizing power, but are harmful to the skin and bodies of both humans and dogs.
Shampoo labels for pets should list all the ingredients contained. Synthetic surfactants include carcinogenic substances such as harsh chemicals and florescent dyes, as well as germicides and other substances that can cause diseases of the mucous membranes and skin. These substances are prohibited in products for humans. They can harm both the dogs being shampooed, and the dog groomers doing the shampooing. Worse, the hands and skin are not the only parts of the body vulnerable to harm. Fluorescent dyes are strictly avoided in products for humans, as they are highly carcinogenic and easily absorbed by the body. Yet some dog shampoos use blue fluorescent coloring to whiten the coats of white-haired dogs. Some groomers use shampoos of this type with their bare hands, day after day. Many of these groomers are younger women of child-bearing age. If they use these shampoos while pregnant, they may face an elevated risk of delivering babies with birth defects. Male groomers, meanwhile, may suffer declines in fertility due to the loss of viable sperm cells. Internal disease is another risk; one faced both by dogs, as well as humans.
Fluorescent dyes are often used for white-haired dogs, to turn their coats even whiter. Some groomers believe that the shampoos with these dyes will get their dogs even cleaner. This is totally wrong. Instead of removing dirt, a fluorescent dye will dye the dirt white and brighten the coat. These dyes are carcinogenic, and highly absorbable by the skin. Their use as food additives is forbidden everywhere in the world, and they are very dangerous when absorbed by the human body. Shampooing dogs with these shampoos is also dangerous, as dog skin absorbs them just as easily as human skin.
Many people believe that natural shampoos for dogs don’t lather as well as synthetic shampoos. This is also wrong. As a matter of fact, natural shampoos lather much better than synthetic ones. Why is it that so many people have this misunderstanding? Synthetic shampoos for humans usually include about 40 to 50 percent surfactant. But a synthetic shampoo for dogs contains only about 30 percent, as a higher concentration would be too harsh for a dog’s skin. With so little surfactant, the synthetic shampoos lather quite poorly. Some shampoo manufacturers tell shops that fewer bubbles mean less irritation for the skin. And the groomers who work in the shops naturally believe what the manufacturers say. Then the groomers tell their customers the same thing, so the customers go home with a misunderstanding about what makes a good shampoo. Our natural shampoos include only 18 percent surfactant, but they lather well and are easy to rinse after the final wash.
=== Properties and ingredients of natural shampoo and rinse ===
| natural shampoo | natural rinse | |
|---|---|---|
| Surfactant | RCOOK (18%) | none |
| Property | negative ion surfactant | |
| Ph | 9.5 (weakly alkaline) | 3 (weakly acidic) |
| Main ingredient | sunflower oil | jojoba oil |
| Perfume | none | 6 kinds of herbs: thyme, rosemary, sage, chamomile, eucalyptus, lavender |
| Decomposition of ingredients | 100% decomposition in one day | 100% decomposition in one day |