If you wash your hair with shampoo every time you shower, pretty much daily, you're not alone, even if part of you suspects the ritual is a little excessive. People don't actually need to rely on such frequent shampoo use to remove dirt from their hair.
Still, for a lot of people, that sensation of a freshly scrubbed scalp feels essential to feeling clean, and for a long time there seemed to be no harm in using a bit more shampoo than necessary.
Then, seemingly out of nowhere, people online and in daily life started warning that daily shampooing was bad for hair and scalp, with some going so far as to link it to a risk of baldness.
That kind of warning can be unsettling, especially if hair has always been one of the few things about a body that's never caused any grief. But before panicking and overhauling a decades-long routine, it's worth asking whether the evidence actually holds up.
The sources behind this kind of advice are worth scrutinizing: friends, family, coworkers, hairdressers, barbers, shampoo manufacturers, and random people on the internet. All well-intentioned, but none of them are actual experts on hair and scalp biology.
Even hairdressers and hair product developers defer to licensed dermatologists, the professionals who know the most about the biology of hair and the skin on our heads. And dermatologists tend to have a more measured take.
Dr. Sandy Skotnicki, dermatologist and author of "Beyond Soap," said, "Hair is so idiosyncratic, and many people wash it daily with seemingly no issues. If you are washing it and have no symptoms, there is an argument to continue."
Echoing this sentiment, dermatologist Erum Ilyas explained that daily showering, soap and shampoo use are harmless for the "average person." People should only be concerned if they experience dryness, irritation or inflammation.
Anyone dealing with those issues should consider visiting a dermatologist, who can most likely recommend a medication, regimen or product that helps, possibly including reducing how often hair is washed or which products are used.
Even without symptoms, there are still reasons to scale back shampoo use: fewer bottles means more savings and less material likely to end up in a landfill, and shorter showers conserve water.
What's perhaps more important than frequency, though, is the type of shampoo used. Ilyas said it's possible that shampoos with sulfates are too strong for daily use. After sulfates wash down the drain, they can negatively impact local aquatic ecosystems.
Because of that environmental impact, a sulfate-free option like Public Goods shampoo is worth considering regardless of how often anyone washes.
The takeaway isn't to be stubborn or ignore every suggestion that comes up. It's that when it comes to health, medical professionals know best, and their advice, tailored to the individual, is worth more than general wisdom floating around a social circle or the internet.
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