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Dangerous Shampoo & Conditioner Chemicals: What Brands to Avoid and Our Must Use List
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Finding a Shampoo Free of Chemicals Can Be Difficult, but It Is Possible

Everything we use on our bodies has a potential impact on our health, including our shampoo and conditioner. Have you ever considered that there may be dangerous shampoo chemicals inside your shower? And are the chemicals inside your personal hygiene products safe to use? You’ve trusted Mamavation to look into topics like 10 homemade shampoo recipes for DIYers, 10 homemade lotion recipes for DIYers, and which Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) personal care brands are safe, join us as we explore shampoos and conditioners and the ingredients they contain. Understanding you use these hair products regularly, you’d assume that they wouldn’t be allowed to contain harmful chemicals, right? Well sadly, this is not the case as we reveal on our post on the Illuminati of the Cosmetic Industry—the Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR).

photo of beautiful woman showering washing hair with splashing water

We’re here to bring you the facts about your favorite shampoos and conditioners. Though they’re made out of really common ingredients, common doesn’t always mean safe (neither does “natural” products for that matter). Most are made with strong chemical formulas which can be harsh to your skin and to the environment. 

Hair care products like shampoo and conditioner are highly engineered. They’ve been designed to lather up and leave your hair “squeaky clean”, but that’s not even that good for you! Dangerous shampoo chemicals will leave your hair stripped of natural oils causing dry hair, which is why we need conditioner to re-moisturize it without leaving it oily. Build up of these chemicals can also clog and reduce the size of hair follicles, leading to hair loss and damage, especially to sensitive skin. 

Achieving the desired cleaning effects, being shelf stable, and not using any harmful ingredients is a big ask for brands looking to make safer options, but it is possible. Even many “natural shampoos” and organic shampoos are not 100% pure. In this post, we’ll review harmful chemicals to avoid in your beauty products and the worst and best shampoo and conditioner brands for healthy, natural hair.

Disclosure: This post was written by MADE SAFE. MADE SAFE is the first non-toxic certification in the country that screens products across store aisles for chemicals known to harm human health and ecosystems. They’re experts on common toxic chemicals in products and safer options. The product recommendations, however, are from an investigation by Mamavation alone. We have included MADE SAFE certified products as the highest ranking because we trust what they are doing, but have also included other brands that are not certified with Made Safe. We’ve worked with some of the brands we’ve mentioned in this post, like Beautycounter, Dr. Bronner’s, Now Solutions, etc., but to ensure this list is useful to you, we have also included brands we have not worked with. This post contains affiliate links.

photo of generic looking bottles with dangerous shampoo chemicals

Dangerous Chemicals in Shampoo

Surfactants: This is what makes your shampoo lather up with suds. We usually associate soap suds with cleaner hair, but that’s not necessarily the case. Sudsing doesn’t really occur much in nature, so it’s often the result of a chemical reaction or agent. While these chemicals aren’t toxic to humans, they can cause serious irritation and can be really harmful to aquatic life. Given the quantity of shampoo going down the drain every time we wash our hair, we’d prefer to avoid irritation and create a safer environment by choosing better products.

Preservatives: Ever noticed the expiration date on your shampoo? Nope, neither have we. That’s because shampoos are full of preservatives to keep them shelf-stable. They’ll last for a really long time without separating out or going “off”. These preservatives prevent the growth of yeast, mold, bacteria, etc., but because they’re literally designed to kill things, preservatives are tricky and can have a range of toxicity problems for both humans and the environment.

Fragrance: This is definitely something to look out for. The term “fragrance” can act as a backdoor for all kinds of chemicals to sneak into your products. It’s often applied as an over-arching term for up to 100 ingredients, many of which are toxic to human health. To name a couple of these toxic offenders, phthalates are linked to reproductive and developmental damage, and synthetic fragrances are known to build up in our bodies and linked to hormone disruption.

photo of woman sitting in a white bubbly bathtub

Conditioner

Like shampoo, conditioner suffers from many of the same problems when it comes to surfactants, preservatives, and fragrance, but it has one more problematic ingredient category, emulsifiers.  

Emulsifiers: Emulsifiers combine oil and water to stop them from separating in your conditioner. They also soften your hair giving you that soft, flowy feeling. But though these emulsifiers, such as siloxanes, are effective, they don’t break down in the environment. This is definitely bad news for aquatic life!

Ingredients to Avoid*:

*These ingredients are listed on the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics Red List, which is part of the MADE SAFE screening process for personal care products.

Made Safe diagram of toxic shampoo chemicals including fragrance, sodium laureth sulfate, DMDM Hydantoin, and Parabens

The following list of bad, better, and best products for your health are provided to you by Mamavation. We used Made Safe’s list of ingredients to avoid in order to create it. Most of the shampoo brands mentioned here are not multi-level marketing (MLM) brands. If you are looking for a list of multi-level marketing brands, check out our post, Best MLM Companies: Which Ones Should You Choose? Ingredient Investigation.

Shampoos & Conditioners that are Bad for Your Health

These are all products that contain dangerous shampoo chemicals and ingredients that are to be avoided as far as possible, like carcinogens and endocrine disrupters in “fragrance” and at least two other ingredients hazardous to your health.

  • American Crew
  • Andre Walker
  • Bed Head
  • Biolage
  • Brazilian Keratin
  • Clear
  • Carol’s Daughter
  • Fekkai
  • Garnier Fructis
  • Garnier Whole Blends
  • Infusium 23
  • It’s A 10
  • John Frieda
  • Johnson’s Original Baby Wash
  • Up & Up (Copycat of Johnson’s & Johnson’s) Baby Wash
  • Keratin Protein
  • Loreal Everpure
  • Loreal Original
  • Mane ‘N Tail
  • Mixed Chicks
  • Nexxus
  • Redken
  • Rusk
  • Suave
  • Tresemme
  • Equate

photo of woman with a bath towel wrapped around her hair

Shampoos & Conditioners that are Better for Your Health 

These products contain some dangerous shampoo chemicals like sodium laureth sulfate and “fragrance”, but they’re not quite as bad as those listed above.

  • Aussie 
  • Aveeno
  • Axe 
  • Cetaphil 
  • Clairol hair food 
  • Dove men+care 
  • Essence Ultime
  • Galvin & Galvin London
  • Head & shoulders
  • Equate (head & shoulders copycat) 
  • Herbal Essences 
  • Jhirmack distinctions
  • Mustela Bebe 
  • Old Spice
  • Pantene pro-v 
  • Pert 
  • Prell 
  • Ricitos de Oro 
  • Renpure s
  • Selsun 
  • Equate
  • Soapbox 
  • Suave 
  • VO5 
  • White Rain Kids 3 in 1

photo of woman reading ingredient label on shampoo bottle

Shampoos & Conditioners that are Best for Your Health

These sulfate-free shampoo brands also do not contain phthalates or parabens. They may contain preservatives, but not ones I’m concerned about. If you are looking for shampoo free of chemicals, you should feel comfortable using just about any of the products on this list. Most rely on natural ingredients like essential oils, coconut oil, argan oil, tea tree oil, shea butter, aloe vera, to provide cleansing and moisture to various hair types. In addition to being free of harsh chemicals, most of these brands are also cruelty-free and/or eco-friendly and made from organic ingredients.

Mamavation approved brand logo

 

*Brands with products certified and independently screened by MADE SAFE. This means they have independently verified that products are made with ingredients not known to harm human health and ecosystems.

Made Safe graphic, Made With Safe Ingredients

MADE SAFE Certified Hair Care Products

Hairprint: All Hairprint products are certified MADE SAFE. We particularly like their Chelating Shampoo, which is formulated to remove the buildup and dangerous shampoo chemicals left by conventional hair care products and hard water. Before you switch your routine or try and go au natural, you need to chelate your hair. Even just hard water will leave residue on your hair so it’s a good idea to remove the build up from time to time.

Alaffia: Alaffia’s Authentic African Black Soap is a shampoo option that actually does create suds. It’s creamy and leaves hair with a healthy feel. African Black Soap is known as a detoxifier with healing properties, but it’s also strong, so daily use isn’t recommended for skin and scalp.

True Botanicals: Nourishing Shampoo also delivers a MADE SAFE certified luxurious lather that moisturizes, and its companion Nourishing Conditioner is designed to protect hair and restore shine.

Pleni Naturals: For your little ones! Apple + Broccoli Hair and Body Wash is made with ingredients from fruits and veggies, like broccoli oil, olive oil, and apple amino acids.

MADE SAFE certified products have been screened by scientists for known carcinogens, endocrine disruptors, reproductive toxins, neurotoxins, behavioral toxins, flame retardants, heavy metals, high-risk pesticides, insecticides, toxic solvents, and harmful VOCs. Ingredients have been further examined by a chemist for bioaccumulation (builds up in human bodies), persistence (builds up in the environment), ecosystem harm, as well as for general and aquatic toxicity.

We hope this list will help you make informed decisions about chemical-free shampoos you can feel safe switching to. For more information on how to avoid hormone-disrupting chemicals in your personal care products, pick up a copy of Green Enough: Eat Better, Live Cleaner, Be Happier (All Without Driving Your Family Crazy!).

photo of woman in the shower with words overlay that says Dangerous Shampoo & Conditioner Chemicals: Which Brands to Avoid & Better Options

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Comments

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    Reply

  2. None of the chemicals are toxic. You’re all morons for actually thinking anything in you body washes or shampoos or even your water itself could possibly cause cancer due to contact. Find any peer reviewed studies that have backed up what you say about these products before you start saying things like this. You’re scaring an ignorant population.

    Reply

  5. After I discovered Maple Holistics I stopped buying shampoo that had chemicals because naturals shampoo felt much better on my hair.

    Reply

  7. I’m calling bs on this. By the look of her hair, I would rather stay with the sulfates. I would also like to see your scientific proof that they cause cancer. Your throwing misconceptions out there with no proof. There is no study that says they cause cancer. Even the water you drink and bathe with have chemicals. Chemicals are every where.

    Reply

    • Exactly. That’s why you should filter your water. My parents even use a filter for their shower water. There’s no proof that chemicals cause cancer, but it makes sense. I know it causes my mom to feel bad and that has been proven. She has an auto immune disorder so she can’t fight off the chemicals as well as other people can. She had so many toxins in her body and didn’t start feeling better until she got them out. It affects you more than you realize. That’s why it’s good to at least get some of the toxins out of your life.

      Reply

    • I agree with you! Plus its a bit hypocritical when you have sauve.on both the safe and unsafe list. Tgis is too earthy crunchy for me….I’ll stick to recycling and using my Biolage 🙂

      Reply

  8. I know this is an older thread, but a new start up called Public Goods makes some great stuff. Last time I checked EWG, they didn’t have a listing for them but hopefully they will soon. Order directly from Public Goods and become a member to save big bucks.

    Reply

  9. I have recently switched to Tree to Tub and LOVE it. All ingredients are rated a 2 or below on EWG. They are free from everything you don’t want and use organic ingredients plus they are free trade. As far as performance I would rate it right up there with the most expensive salon shampoos I have tried. Please don’t tell me this would be on your bad list! : )

    Reply

  11. I can recommend this site for finding out if a product contain dangerous ingredients. It highlights toxic chemicals in the content lists of products, so it’s actually very easy to use, you don’t have to look up products separately etc, And it’s free!

    Reply

  12. I really appreciate with your thought. I also think that It has definitely created me personally believe as well as I’m hoping to learn to read much more. Thanks for the sharing such a informative also helpful article.

    Reply

  13. I didn’t find any of the best shampoos for our health at Fred Meyers in Beaverton, Oregon. I settled for parables free Garnier Whole Blends Oat Delicacy with oak milk and rice cream extracts. Next time that I need shampoo and conditioner, I’ll check Target in Beaverton, Oregon for one of the best shampoo and conditioner for our health. If I can’t find the healthiest shampoo and conditioner locally, I request Eucerin or Hairprint.

    Reply

    • Sometimes the best things are online. If you want to skip Amazon, go direct to the company. I’m assuming you are trying to stay local?

      Reply

  14. How can Suave be on the good list and then ALSO on the bad list? I’ve used Suave, Biolage, It’s a 10 and John Frieda and NEVER experienced any negative symptoms. And I’m talking about using these products for years. This sounds very hypochondria-cal.

    Reply

    • We can include that brand when we do the update. In the meantime, would you like to link up the ingredients for me?

      Reply

  16. Why is Garnier Whole Blends on the bad list? I checked out all of the bad ingredients per your list and none were found. This seems to be a good choice. And also you do not mention Pantene on the bad list or Suave Professional which have been in the news recently for the chemicals in them. I used to use Pantene regularly until i found its link to alsheimers and neural damage due to a chemical you did not list as bad. I am skeptical of your lists. It seems your research is incomplete.

    Reply

    • I’m going to copy and paste my comment from up above because I think it is important to spread information aside from what the “market partners” want you to hear!
      Whether or not it’s safe as far as this list goes, Monat is definitely NOT safe for you or your hair. It has been strongly linked to hundreds of cases of hormonal issues, balding, sores on the scalp, and hair loss. Please do your research before you purchase!
      There are currently major lawsuits against the company.

      Reply

  20. You have Suave on the good list and you have Suave on the bad list. I think that a correction should be made to this as to clarify the readers.

    Reply

      • I second the both of you. I’ve used Suave and never had any problems. Showing it on the good list and bad list is inconsistent research. Suave Essentials has never done harm to anyone that I know.

        Reply

    • It’s not a mistake. It was on the Bad and the better list, but not the best. They had a formula that made the better list. Most of the products however, was in the bad section.

      Reply

  22. Appreciate it very much intended for publishing this kind of fascinating article on this matter. It has definitely created me personally believe as well as I’m hoping to learn to read much more.

    Reply

  23. What about these brands!?

    Bumble & Bumble
    AVEDA
    **Function of Beauty** – mostly interested in this one since they claim to be all natural ingredients and safe!

    Reply

    • I believe Aveda is “better” not best. Function of Beauty really pisses me off because it’s REALLY hard to figure out what is inside that bottle. And when brands do that…I start wondering why. They have a list of what is NOT in the bottle on the website but I can’t find what is inside the different formulations. Hm….I’d pass honestly. AS for Bumble & Bumble, they are another company that drives me nuts with a lack of transparency on their site. I can’t find an ingredients list for them. That’s typically not a good sign.

      Reply

  24. I’m wondering how Suave made the “bad” and “better” lists at the same time. Was this a misprint? I use Suave daily clarifying shampoo but will definitely discontinue if it’s on the “bad” list! Thanks!

    Reply

    • If you can find an ingredient list, I’ll let you know. I can’t find it on their website. That’s not a good sign.

      Reply

    • This is another brand with no ingredient disclosure on their site. They say “key ingredients” instead of telling us what’s in it. I can’t be sure, but that’s not a good sign.

      Reply

  30. I use and love Acure products. Clean ingredients without a big price tag. 100% Pure is another great brand for haircare as well as makeup! For the kids, Babo Botanicals is a favorite.

    Reply

  31. I use fragrence free products and can only find one, Free & Clear, by Pharmaceutical Specialties, Inc. How does it rate and are there any other fragrence free products out there

    Reply

      • I have contact dermatitis, allergic to 13 different chemical, the most prevalent is formaldehyde. Dermatologist gave me a list of products I can use that was free of toxins, only shampoo and conditioner I can use is free and clear. Expensive and is not very good, to put moisture in my hair. I use coconut oil twice a week

        Reply

  32. You mentioned Suave and Equate as being both both bad and better for your health. Which Ones? Also, what about Salon Selectures or Herbal Essences? Thank you.

    Reply

  35. You missed preservatives Methylisothiazalinone and the closely related Chlormethylisothiazalinone. These were deemed the “Allergens of the Year” by the Contact Dermatitis Association in 2014. It’s commonly found in shampoos and liquid soaps, even including Seventh Generation and Mrs Meyers.

    Reply

  36. Beautycounter is the best!!! I traded out my free & clear shampoo for Beautycounter, and I have never been happier! My hair now feels and smells great and I’m using safe products!

    Reply

  38. Bumble and Bumble have become very popular shampoos and conditioners used in salons. Have they been evaluated? Thank you!

    Reply

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