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Cheap and easy hair detox

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January 29, 2010
	Jo Wehage : Head Operations Ego

Wintertime isn’t a happy time for my hair. As a dish-water blonde the roots of my hair get dull and darker and the texture of my hair feels coarser in the shower. I try to dry my hair less and use leave-in conditioners, but it doesn’t seem to do a tremendous amount to help the situation. Then I stumbled on a natural hair rinse, using apple cider vinegar (ACV). Sure enough, after one treatment in the shower my hair felt cleaner, smoother and for the first time in a long time I stepped out of the shower without a need for conditioner.

If you could use more shine, bounce and have the need to remove build-up from your hair consider an apple cider vinegar rinse. The acetic acid in the vinegar will remove the build-up caused by all those styling products and pollution. It works like magic to smooth the cuticles leaving you with more silky and tangle-free hair.

ACV will also balance your hair’s pH level, kill bacteria and is known as an effective cure for dandruff. Vinegar is said to have a tonic action that promotes blood circulation in the small capillaries that irrigate the skin.

It’s easy:
Step 1: Add 1 Tbsp of apple cider to 1 cup of water (cool to lukewarm).
Step 2: Shampoo as usual
Step 3: Pour or spray mixture on hair (careful to avoid eyes)

There are numerous remedies for an ACV hair rinse. Some recommend you leave the rinse on, some opt to rinse it out with cool water. Either way you will likely smell the vinegar once you’re out of the shower, but not to worry, the smell evaporates once your hair is dry.

The general consensus is that the best results come with application of the ACV rinse 1-2x a week.

Note for color-treated hair
I’ve seen posts from women who have left ACV on for a longer period (mostly to treat dandruff) noticed some alteration in their color, especially when exposed to direct sunlight after treatment. If your locks have a color treatment you may want to do a strand test on a small section of hair to make sure the color stays locked in place.

Vinegar type
I’ve also seen posts from women who used white vinegar for a rinse with pleasant results, but the most votes were for ACV, so that’s what I tried. I went for the real-deal Apple Cider Vinegar “with mother” from Bragg’s which is the less-processed version. You’ll know it when you see it as it’s more cloudy and leaves a scum-like residue on the bottom. 

So, give those locks some detox and let us know how it goes.

This post is proudly submitted for the Body Detox category of our 12 Weeks of Wellness