To Poo or Not to Poo

So I was reading about this No Poo thing, where people are giving up shampoo. There are several reasons to do it, the first and probably most compelling for me is the news of cancer causing agents in kids shampoos (click for a list.) Here's the thing, I wash Ella's hair at the beginning of the bath and then she is steeped in slightly soapy water with pores wide open, while she plays mermaid until her toes get pruny and the water goes cold. So it's probably not good to soak a kid in cancer causing chemicals. Sure I could go ahead and try to find a shampoo that doesn't contain toxins but a) I'm not a chemist and b) I no longer trust any large company to tell the truth.

So besides all that, there's the plastic which I am trying to give up, and the cost of hair products as well as the argument that un-shampooed hair is sleeker and shinier after 6 weeks, especially if you have coarse kinky hair (which I do.) I've been reading about it and some people use baking soda instead of shampoo and vinegar instead of cream rinse. But there is this 6 week period where your body is re- adjusting it's natural oils and your hair metabolises to the new routine and you just walk around looking greasy and I'm not sure how it works at all if you work out and get all sweaty twice a week like I do. I mean I don't mind living a little hippier but I don't want to smell like a hippy, that is where I draw the line.

So I am hoping to try this out, but I think I'm going to try it when I have a block of six weeks where my hair is long enough to just put in a tight shiny little bun for a month and a half (perhaps this summer.) I also need to keep reminding myself that no shampoo does not mean I don't wash my hair, it just means I will be using a gentler method. I promise if I decide to go for it, I will document in detail every agonizing day and the hopefully shiny results.