Is Dry Shampoo Bad For Your Hair? [The Reality]

Keeping your hair clean sometimes can be a time-consuming task. That’s why you may ask yourself if dry shampoo is bad for your hair.

It is important to answer this question to maintain your hair clean but also keeping it healthy. Especially now that there are many brands and products to choose from.

The reality is that dry shampoo can be bad for your hair causing dandruff, thin your hair, cause hair loss or make your hair greasy if you use it incorrectly, other things like an allergic reactions can make you think that is bad for your hair.

It is important to apply it correctly and not to overdo it to avoid negative results.

In this article you will see what can cause dry shampoo to be bad for your hair.

Is Dry Shampoo Bad For Your Hair Health?

The simple answer is that dry shampoo is not bad for your hair by itself. However, it should be used correctly and you should be careful with it.

The reality is some ingredients are present in dry shampoos such as alcohol and some gases such as butane and propane. However, these gases vaporize quickly and studies in the Cosmetic Ingredient Review Panel say that they are safe to use.

These ingredients are often present in some shampoos too. Hearing that they are in dry shampoo could sound scary, however, the quantities used are very low and in less than 10 minutes the gas is vaporized.

On the other hand, alcohol is one of the ingredients that we must be careful about it. Because is one that could lead to dandruff, thin the hair and drying it.

All of the above ingredients can be used safely as long as it is done correctly and protected from dryness.

How Dry Shampoo Can Be Bad For Your Hair?

When you use it too much and apply it wrong can cause serious problems with your scalp.

Applying it too often or incorrectly can be related to:

1. make your hair greasy
2. cause dandruff
3. thin your hair
4. lead to hair loss

These are the main harmful effects that dry shampoo can cause. However, you should know that it is not all bad.

I’m going to tell you the details of how it can affect you so you can prevent all this from happening to you.

So if you decide to use it you can do it responsibly and get only the benefits of this product.

#1 Make Your Hair Greasy

I have heard from many people that using dry shampoo instead of getting cleaner hair the opposite happens.

I have heard, seen and even felt for myself how some dry shampoos can have this effect.

This happens because of 3 reasons

• The quality of the product is not cleansing enough: Some products are not of high quality and do not have a good formulation to be able to clean the grease and residue build-up from your hair and therefore you don’t feel it cleans you.
• Too many oils and lubricants: If the product has a lot of lubricants in its ingredients and you happen to have a lot of oil in your hair it is very likely that instead of cleaning it will make your hair greasier because oil plus oil will only create more oil in your hair.
• You get too close to the roots of your hair: When you don’t separate enough to apply the product you are likely to end up saturating your hair and scalp in the first 5cm of your head. You may feel the product build-up and wet that area or leave a thick powder on your hair.

#2 Cause Dandruff

Dandruff is a way for the scalp to tell us that something is wrong, and it manifests itself with white or yellow flakes that fly around. The alcohol that dry shampoo contains may cause dandruff because could change the pH of the scalp.

The scalp requires a specific environment to maintain proper and balanced functioning. When this balance is disturbed, dandruff can appear.

Most of the time, that unbalance is caused by overusing dry shampoo and not washing your hair properly.

The alcohol in the product is what absorbs the extra oils from the head. However, if used more than 3 times a week, your skin may dry out more than usual. Doing it will contribute to changing the natural ph of the scalp. That unbalance in the scalp could trigger dandruff.

Another way that dandruff is related to using dry shampoo is something called Malasesya fungi. That name is a fungus that 90% of adults have on their scalps.

Normally, it does not cause problems but when the natural balance of the scalp is changed it can trigger this fungus to start producing yeast. The yeast is what we see as white powder everywhere when dandruff appears.

You can be recovered from having Dandruff, and control its effects. You can get your hair back without discomfort with treatment.

The best thing is to prevent it from appearing, that’s why if you use dry shampoo with control and apply it well you will be safe from it.

#3 Thin Your Hair

Another way dry shampoo can be bad for your hair is by thinning your hair.

One of the mistakes that cause this is thinking that it will replace normal shampooing with water and shampoo. When lots of oils and residues build up on the scalp without being removed they start to create white build-up.

The build-up is hardened layers of these oils caking on top of each other. This can cause the follicle to become less and less oxygenated, it does not function well and begins to thin.

This can happen after long exposure to build-up or accumulation without removing these layers of residue.

Good hygiene is always very important to keep the pores of the head healthy at all times.

Using dry shampoo incorrectly or neglecting to wash the hair with water and shampoo can cause the follicles to malfunction.

Poor cleansing habits can also cause the pores to become clogged and result in thinning hair.

Hair thinning is because it is losing the strength it once had and does not have enough nutrients to grow the same way it used to.

Usually, this happens with age because our body is changing and reducing the way it renews itself and the nutrients are not absorbed in the same way.

Some products such as gels, waxes and dry shampoo can contribute to this prematurely when not used correctly.

#4 Lead To Hair Loss

Another way dry shampoo can be bad for your hair is by leading to hair loss.

This I must say can happen when several conditions come together to make it happen. It’s not very common but if you don’t use it right, use it too often and don’t have good cleaning habits it can result in hair loss.

When you use dry shampoo it is usually because you want to clean your hair from the oils that accumulate in the first 5 cm of the head. It may be for practicality or because you have oilier than normal scalp skin.

It is precisely the excessive production of oils that can create clogged pores. However, a saturation of product residues can also be another cause.

When we use dry shampoo too often and do not remove it regularly or well enough is when it starts to accumulate creating the famous build-up.

The build-up is not only dry shampoo but all the residues that accumulate on the scalp. These residues can be anything from natural head oils, shampoo, hair dye, hairspray, waxes, gels, sunscreen, creams and even dry shampoo.

If you don’t remove those residues that are usually created daily, that’s when those layers of build-up harden little by little. When those layers stay on the scalp they clog the pores and that’s what causes hair to fall out.

When the pores get clogged is no oxygen and no circulation in them. That’s why hair falls out. You must have a shampoo that is strong enough to deep clean the residues to maintain the pores clean.

Also, my professional opinion is that about 4 times a year you should have a scalp detox to make sure you keep your pores clean and free of clogs.

Let’s see how doing some good habits can avoid what we’ve talked about above. You must comply with three essential things to avoid all the bad things.

How to avoid dry shampoo is bad for your hair?

The 3 ways to avoid dry shampoo being bad for your hair are:

• Apply it properly
• Have a proper cleansing routine
• Know how often to use dry shampoo.

If you consistently follow these 3 recommendations you won’t have any problems and you will be able to get the great benefits of dry shampoo.

Each product has benefits that can be enhanced as long as they are used wisely.

Apply it properly

Application is a key step to using any product well and especially with the dry shampoo you need to get it right.

Be sure to stand at least six inches away from the head to allow the spray to properly dust.

The right distance is what keeps you from saturating the roots and skin so you don’t develop long-term problems like dandruff or thinning.

You only need to apply 5-6 pressures for the whole head.

Only apply to the roots.
Separate your hair with a brush after application. This will help to remove residue so it looks clean.

Have a proper cleansing routine

Build-up and clogged pores are problems that are caused by insufficient cleansing habits. Don’t worry because some of the causes are not anyone’s fault, but simply the product you wash your hair with is not enough.

Wash your hair 3 times a week to keep your hair clean. You need to use a shampoo that is cleansing and also takes care not to dry out the ends.

Also, my professional opinion is that every 4 months you should do a scalp exfoliation to detoxify and remove all the residues. This way you won’t have built up or any build-up to cause problems because you will be keeping it clean regularly.

Always remember to leave 1 day between shampooing to allow the hair to dry internally.

Knowing how often to use dry shampoo

As a preventative measure, it is also very important to know when to use dry shampoo. It is important that you only use it a maximum of 3 times a week.

It can only be applied on dry hair, you must never apply it on wet hair.

There are some situations in which it is positive to use dry shampoo to prolong the effect of a hairstyle, to give volume or to clean natural oils from the hair.

Bottom Line

Now you know that dry shampoo can be bad for your hair if you don’t use it properly.

Remember to always use a good quality product because it will minimize any damage.

That’s because the ingredients in a good product will always be better and the technologies they contain help reduce those effects with other additives to balance and compensate the hair.

In addition, if you have a good washing routine and continuous protection you will not let your hair weaken thanks to that proper routine. With this, you will enjoy the benefits of a product like dry shampoo safely.

I hope this article has helped you to learn more about this product and solved your doubts. Don’t forget to check out the related articles for more information on each point. I think it can be of great help to you.

See you next time.