It is important to cleanse the hair periodically, because hair attracts dust and pollution, and their presence can dull and clump the hair. So, shampooing is an important step, both hygienically and aesthetically.

When hair is wet, it is at its weakest and most vulnerable. Unfortunately, many of today’s shampoos use a harsh surfactant system to over-cleanse or “strip” each hair fiber — not exactly what you want interacting with your already weakened hair.

Furthermore, the act of shampooing forces the fibers to abrade each other, which gets even worse during rinsing. So, not only have you lost the minor amount of lubrication provided by the shampoo’s suds, but you are scrubbing your hair to remove the foam.

The most important tips for shampooing are:

•Use the tips of your fingers to manipulate your hair
•Choose a mild shampoo like No Frizz Shampoo or Full Shampoo
•Only lather once
•Rinse thoroughly

That is why Living Proof developed only sulfate-free shampoos like the No Frizz Shampoo and Full Shampoo. Both shampoos gently cleanse hair, and as a result, your hair won’t feel dry or brittle, but healthy and strong.

PolyfluoroEster is patented and proprietary to Living Proof, so we’ve had the chance to observe all its benefits, some of which were wholly unexpected. These are the six incredible things this one tiny magic molecule can do:

1. Blocks humidity to protect and maintain a style and prevents frizz.
Humidity is the main culprit of frizz (read more about why it’s your hair’s worst enemy here) but PolyfluoroEster prevents humidity from penetrating the hair and wrecking havoc.

2. Prevents moisture flux in and out of hair weightlessly.
Humidity causes the water content of hair to increase rapidly which is why it feels bigger when it’s really humid. PolyfluoroEster, however, weightlessly adheres to the hair, allowing long-lasting moisture resistance.

3. Smoothes the cuticles to reduce the friction between hair fibers.
Friction between hair fibers causes static and the ‘poofiness’ you feel when it’s humid. PolyfluoroEster helps create a smooth, perfect layer that completely covers the hair and smoothes the cuticle.

4. Repels dirt and debris so you can actually go longer between shampoos.
Due to its low surface energy, No Frizz not only repels water, but it repels materials like dirt and debris. Unlike silicone, PolyfluoroEster helps create a non-greasy coating that doesn’t attract dirt and other particles, so you can go longer without washing your hair.

5. Works synergistically with other ingredients to improve performance.
One example of this is the usage of PolyfluoroEster in Full Root Lifting Spray. PolyfluroEster optimizes the polymer blend in the Root Lifting Spray, making the lift touchable and flexible without compromising its durability. It also helped reduce drag during styling which many other companies address with silicones.

6. Enhances color and vibrancy of hair.
The surprisingly low refractive index of the coating produces a unique, long-lasting shine and “pop” in the color of the hair. We’ve had lots of customers also tell us it enhances their highlights as well.

Crazy what such a small molecule can do, right? Have you noticed any of these benefits from using No Frizz or any of our other products featuring PolyfluoroEster?

Interestingly, these characteristics are genetically determined and related to national or racial origin. People of Asian descent have very round shaped hair. People of African descent have very flat shaped hair and people of European descent tend to have oval shaped hair.

In the past, we’ve also talked about how hair is a part of the body’s excretory system, so traces of what we’ve ingested or breathed can show up in our hair. Coupled with the information above, one strand of hair is a hotbed of information.

For forensic scientists, this is imperative in case they cannot extract DNA from a hair strand. Hair is technically dead so the only place you can find undamaged DNA would be the root of a plucked hair, since it’s the only ‘living’ part of the strand. By examining the hairs cross section, however, they can still deduct the hair type and ethnic origin of the hair’s owner. Who knows? That bit of information might be the last, and most important, piece of the puzzle.

Watch the full episode. See more NOVA.

So, what are sulfates? Sulfates are strong cleansing agents that have been used in all sorts of cleaning products and detergents, including shampoo. Those against sulfates believe it’s too harsh on hair, especially if you color it. Saint Louis notes:

In May, on the ‘Today’ show, Anthony Dickey, a hairstylist, suggested that traditional sulfate-rich shampoos can ‘give color a bad name’ and create frizz. ‘All shampoos should be sulfate free,’ he said.

‘Everything should be,’ Hoda Kotb, the co-host, replied.

At Web sites like naturallycurly.com, consumers fret that the harsh sulfates in shampoos, commonly listed on labels as sodium laureth sulfate and ammonium laureth sulfate, have left their finicky curls a dried-out, poufy mess.

Later on, Saint Louis writes how not everyone is jumping on the sulfate-free bandwagon. She quotes Perry Romanowski, a cosmetic chemist, as saying, “Any time you expose hair color to water, hair swells up and some color can leak out… the shampoo that you use is not really going to pull color out appreciably more than anything else.”

The blog, “The Beauty Brains,” goes into why sulfates are used in shampoos and they believe that while sulfates do no real harm, using sulfate free shampoos is a more gentle option for your hair:

A potential downside of using sulfates is that they can dry out your hair and skin. Sulfate free formulas can be milder because they don’t strip the natural oils out of your skin as much.

Where does Living Proof stand? Both our No Frizz Shampoo and Full Shampoo are sulfate-free because at Living Proof we believe that beautiful hair starts with properly cared for hair. Both formulas were developed to cleanse thoroughly yet gently to avoid the stripping that occurs with some sulfate-based shampoos.

This innovative combination of our sulfate-free surfactant system with our gentle, nourishing formulas deliver healthy, beautiful hair without sacrificing that rich lather! To learn more, read about No Frizz Shampoo or Full Shampoo in our blog.

Like shingles on a roof, the cuticles overlap each other. Unlike a roof, though, there are actually seven layers of cuticle cells surrounding the hair fiber.

Try this: run two opposed fingers down the length of your hair starting at the scalp. Notice how smoothly your fingers travel along the shaft.

Now try to run your fingers from the tip of your hair toward the root. Feel the roughness? That’s because you’re moving literally against the grain, and feeling the microscopic edges of those seven layers of cuticles.

Teasing the hair, a styling procedure that “back combs” the hair, also goes against this grain, and when it was a popular styling fad, caused enormous damage by ripping off layers of protective cuticle.

The picture above shows a typical strand of hair. A lot more than meets the eye! (If you want to see the difference between a healthy hair strand and a damaged hair strand, check out these Scanning Electron Microscope images here!)

Imagine buying a new cotton shirt. You wear it every day, go out into the sun, brush lint from it – and then wash it a few hundred times. No shirt ever made could survive that regimen. Yet that is exactly what happens to your hair in just one year.

For the most part hair retains its structural integrity, its color, and its strength. We have the cuticle layer to thank for that and it is critically important that it is cared for and preserved. Once the last cuticle layer is worn away, the cortex of the hair is defenseless against the environment. This is a split end and without the cuticle the fiber can unravel like a lose zipper.

So while your hair is a lot more durable than you might expect, if you want to keep it looking its best, proper hair care is key. Use a gentle, sulfate-free shampoo and conditioner (like our No Frizz Shampoo and Conditioner and our upcoming Full Shampoo and Conditioner!) and make sure to use a product before styling. After all, healthy hair is shiny hair and who doesn’t want shiny hair?

If you’ve read about Living Proof in the past, chances are you’ve come across the name of our proprietary No Frizz molecule, PolyfluoroEster. While the name may sound scary, the molecule itself is quite remarkable.

Our scientists began by examining the causes of frizz and then determined how to prevent it from even forming. Their conclusions were twofold:

1. Prevent humidity from penetrating: Create an exquisitely thin, smooth layer that perfectly coats and shields the hair.
2. Reduce friction between fibers: Produce a surface on the hair with as low of a surface energy as possible.

They wanted to solve these two problems from a physics standpoint, so they steered clear of traditional anti-frizz technology. After exhaustive research and experimentation, PolyfluoroEster was born!

PolyfluoroEster is a smaller molecule than the traditional materials used to control frizzy hair, namely silicone. Due to its chemical nature, the formulation adheres tightly to the hair, which allows for long-lasting moisture resistance and rebalancing of the hair fiber’s interaction with the atmosphere, even after extreme humidity. In fact, repeat use after shampoo seems to improve the hair’s own ability to resist humidity change, and our product seems to keep working better.

No Frizz also had some benefits we didn’t anticipate (but our scientists seem happy to take credit for). Due to its low surface energy, it repels most other materials like dirt. As a final benefit, the surprisingly low refractive index of the coating produces a unique, long-lasting shine and “pop” in the color of the hair.

Not bad for such a tiny molecule, right?

Darker hair shows a greater difference in the contrast between light areas and dark areas. Thus, black or dark brown hair will generally appear more lustrous than lighter brown or blonde hair.

Notice that in many advertisements for hair products, a brunette or black-haired person is usually shown. This is because a big part of our perception of luster comes from contrast (the difference between the light areas and the dark areas). Since this contrast is more noticeable on darker hair, dark hair usually looks shinier than light-colored hair.

Shampoos and conditioners prep the surface of the hair for styling by cleansing away dirt and oil. Conditioners leave your hair feeling healthy, soft and smooth.

Most volumizing shampoos typically contain a harsh surfactant system to over-cleanse or “strip” each hair fiber. This causes the outer layer of the hair shaft, the cuticle, to lift up – thereby creating texture along the surface. End result? Your hair feels (and probably looks) like straw.

In order to mask this dry feel, a lot of volumizing conditioners contain materials that coat the hair surface, such as silicones. These ingredients make your shower experience fantastic, but by the end of the day your hair will likely end up with back where it started – flat on your head!

That’s why we’re so excited to bring you Full Shampoo and Conditioner this Fall! Our scientists invented a shampoo and conditioner system that provides the optimal care for flat hair and perfectly preps it for styling, especially with Full Thickening Cream!

Full Shampoo cleanses the hair gently with a sulfate-free, non-stripping surfactant blend. Full Conditioner contains a light blend of conditioning ingredients that won’t weigh your hair down but provide excellent detangling. Just what flat, lifeless hair needs. The result? Hair perfectly prepped for styling– or on its own,  hair that’s clean and healthy, with movement, body, bounce and shine.