Should I Change Shampoos on a Regular Basis?
Top Insights From This Guide
- You don't need to swap shampoos regularly; they don't lose effectiveness.
- Use a clarifying shampoo occasionally to remove conditioner and styling build up.
- Swap formulas when your body or habits change, such as pregnancy, age, colouring or swimming.
- Pick a matching formula: clarifying for chlorine, moisturising or colour care for highlights.
Many old wives' tales are still circulating regarding beauty. These 'tips' made it out of the kitchens and salons we grew up in and persisted into the Internet Age, circulating like wildfire no matter how hard people try to extinguish them.
Tales presented as facts online wind up being believed simply due to the sheer number of people who read them. One myth with SOME basis in truth is the advice to switch shampoos regularly.
Should I switch up shampoos regularly?
The answer is complicated, but the short answer is 'no'. There’s no reason to change shampoos regularly if you’re buying a new shampoo every month or so.
Contrary to popular belief, your scalp and hair can't analyse products well enough to get used to them. Shampoos don’t just stop working one day because you’ve been using them for too long.
However, there is some kernel of truth to this old adage about changing shampoos. Because certain ingredients can build up on your hair, it does help to use a clarifying shampoo once in a while. However, this build-up is more likely to come from your conditioner and styling products than your shampoo alone.
Change When Your Body Does
On a macro level, your body chemistry and processes change as you age, as do your hair habits:
- A younger person who's producing a ton of oil and has virgin hair may need a clarifying shampoo such as Pureology Purify Shampoo.
- Experimentation with colouring and straightening calls for a protective shampoo such as MorrocanOil Moisture Repair Shampoo.
- As hair ages and starts to lose its original pigment, texture, and density, a nourishing shampoo such as Evo Ritual Salvation Shampoo fits the bill.
Choose Shampoos That Suit Your Specific Daily Needs
Shampoo requirements come down to internal and external factors, not your hair's mysterious resistance to the formula itself. Simply adjust your haircare routine to suit changes in your body and your habits.
Take up swimming? Reach for a clarifying shampoo to rid your hair of all of that chlorine. Get some new highlights? Get a moisturising, colour-protectant, or toning shampoo. Embracing your natural hair texture? You'll probably want a new shampoo formula.
By the way, this flexible approach applies to your skincare and makeup as well.
You usually 'wear' your lifestyle in the health of your skin, hair, and nails. Stress, malnutrition, illness, pregnancy—these all show up in physical attributes. Adjusting your personal care routine to suit your current lifestyle is more beneficial than pushing through with the same products you’ve always used.
Luckily, you can count on Adore Beauty to guide you through every phase of your beauty needs. Check out our shampoo selection to find the perfect product for any stage of your life.
