Sensitive skin, reacting to shampoo... any good ones out there?

[Indadhanu]

Is it normal to have an allergic reaction to shampoo after you've been using it for a while? I used my shampoo, the kind I have been using since Christmas last year (but had a small break trying to control some dandruff thanks to the cold dry winter), and within a few days the skin all around my hair line has come up with a horrible bumpy rash thats look like lots of little pimples, but is really itchy and sore. (Sorry if this is TMI). And also all though my scalp, which is really annoying.

Pharmacist just said to not use that brand ( duh!)... this isn't a new thing... I used to have horrible reactions to shampoo, and never really found one I could use except an all natural Tea-Tree one, which, to be honest, never took my fancy as I'm not a fan of smelling Tea-Tree all day.

So I'm just wondering... are there any other sensitive skinned people who know of some shampoos that are really good? Any all natural ones? Or is the Tea-Tree one the way to go? I'll use that one if I have to...just wondering if there are nice smelling ones that are good for my skin too.

P.S. I always seem to react to Pamolive and Pantene...

[Claire]

I steer clear of anything with SFS - sodium laureth sulphate. My scalp always reacts badly to it.

[krisp]

Try Jurlique, it's a lovely organic shampoo with no nasties like propylene glycol or SLS in it. You can get from DJ's, Myer or some pharmacies.

[macymoo]

HI there,

There is a brand of sulphate free toiletries I use on my kids called Tiny Tribe and they have a natural shampoo with no sulphates, colours or synthetic perfumes. It's great on the kids hair and I also use it on mine as it doesn't dry out the scalp - very skin friendly. You can get in from most health food shops,
Hope this helps Home

[Bathsheba]

My DH has a very sensitive scalp too. We use MooGoo shampoo. It's so mild that technically you can drink it (but they say it tastes bad LOL) Check out their web site it's very informative. Quite a few BB members have tried it now (I found out about it here in BB last year and haven't needed anything else). Oh and it smells divine! And it lathers properly but doesn't contain SFSs.

[Phteven]

There is a shampoo you can buy in chemists called Natural Instinct. It's in a blue and white bottle. Unlike alot of products that markety them selves as natural and charge a fortune whilst being full of chemicals you can actually read the ingredients list and understand everything that is in it.
They make baby stuff too.

[kitten2b]

I use the Alchemy brand from the chemist and it it very gentle.

[Yael]

I have severe eczema, and have to follow a pretty strict routine of products i can use.

At the advise of all my determologists, it is important not to use one with a high pH. That excludes every single shampoo you can buy from a supermarket.

The ones i use are either Ego by QV, or i recently found a cheaper one, Oatmeal shampoo & cond by Alpha Kerri. Both of these brands are avaliable from basically every chemist, and even some Pricelines etc.

Changing this has def. improved my eczema all over my body, as it rinses down your back etc and you touch it with your hands, besides the scalp contact.

[Bathsheba]

That's such a good point Yael. When you choose a shampoo/conditioner it's not just being used on your hair, it touches nearly all your body as it rinses (if you wash in the shower). So you might not think that all the chemicals are doing your hair (a dead cell) any harm but you have to consider your body. The chemical that coats the hair to "protect" it can be the same chemical that clogs the pores on your back Pantene is the worst for this apparently (causing pimples).

[Erin_25]

I have had bad eczema since I was a bubs & tried many things. I find for me the Neutrogena (sp?) T-Gel that can be bought in the Chemist & have found in some supermarkets works great. Clears my scalp up in a couple days. It's a shampoo for eczema & you can get a cond too.