What Are the Best Shampoos for Natural Curly Hair?

Due to the curly nature of natural hair, it’s harder for the natural oils emitted from the scalp to travel down the hair shaft.

With this challenge, it becomes important to use natural and organic hair products that don’t strip natural hair.

6 Ingredients to Avoid in Shampoos

1. Alcohols

Just as it sounds, alcohols are very harsh and dry out the hair and scalp making it very hard to retain moisture.

If you see ingredients such as ethyl alcohol,  SD alcohol, etc, set it right back on the shelf and walk away.

2. Diethanolamine (DEA) & Triethanolamine (TEA)

These ingredients cause scalp irritation and aggravate scalp conditions such as dandruff. They are also known to cause allergic reactions.

3. Fragrance &  Parfum

This is usually a combination of many different types of chemicals, which may irritate the scalp and lead to conditions such as dandruff.

4. Parabens

This appears as methylparaben and propylparaben on ingredient lists. They irritate the scalp and causes itching and hormonal imbalance.

5. Polyethelyne Glycol (PEG)

This is used for thickening shampoos but it also strips hair of moisture.

6. Sulphates

This is the reason shampoos are able to lather up so much. Unfortunately, they also strip the hair completely of all moisture and oils. Sulphates are usually labeled as SLS, SLES or ALS.

Now that we got that out of the way, which shampoos are safe to use on natural hair then? I got you covered from my PJ days.

Additionally, as a recovered PJ, I’ve found staples that work well yet leave my hair so squeaky clean whenever I need to shampoo.

Top 20 Gentle Shampoos for Natural Hair

Alikay Naturals Black Soap Shampoo

Jane Carter Solution Hydrating Shampoo

DevaCurl No-Poo Decadence Cleanser

Briogeo Rosarco Reparative Shampoo

Eden BodyWorks Peppermint Shampoo

Giovanni Tea Tree Triple Treat Shampoo

Honey Baby Naturals Honeychild Shampoo

Green People Daily Aloe Shampoo

Elucence Moisture Benefits Shampoo

Renpure Organics Argan Oil Shampoo

Kinky Curly Come Clean Shampoo

Jessicurl Hair Cleansing Cream

Ouidad Superfruit Renewal Shampoo

Briogeo Be Gentle, Be Kind Green Tea Shampoo

NYC Curls The Curl Cleanser

Giovanni Smooth As Silk Moisture Shampoo

Davines Love Curl Enhancing Shampoo

U R Curly Soya Moisturizing Shampoo

Rene Furterer Karite Nourishing Shampoo

Yelani Moisture Blast Conditioning Shampoo

These shampoos have all the good things you want to be in your natural hair. Despite this, your hair may not like some or like some more than the others. That’s the beauty and versatility of natural hair. 

Do you have any shampoo recommendations you think should be on the list? Let me know in the comments section.

The next article will examine the best shampoos for clarifying hair without causing damage.

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Curly Abi

Abi delved into the world of hair care after suffering from a bout of severe hair loss. She is the founder of Healthy Natural Hair Products & Natural Oils for Hair and Health, as well as the writer of the Healthy Hair Care Series. She is also the creator of the The Self-Empowerment Network Portal. Read more…