Hair repair ingredients: what really works

Hair repair ingredient #1: Hydrolysed proteins

Without a doubt, hydrolysed proteins are one of the best hair repair ingredients. They are used in cosmetic formulas in an amino acid or peptide form so they are water soluble, yet highly substantive to the skin and hair. Since your hair is a protein, hydrolysed proteins, even when provided in a wash off product, will ‘cling’ readily to the damaged portion of the hair to restore its strength and shine.

How hydrolysed proteins fill ‘gaps’ in the hair cuticle to restore smoothness, softness and protect against trans-epidermal water loss.

Hydrolysed proteins, even when a very low molecular weight material, cannot penetrate beyond the outer cuticle of the hair. However, by being incorporated as a part of the outer matrix of the hair, their use can provide immediate improvement to the strength, combability and shine of even the most damaged hair types. Hydrolysed proteins, being water soluble, as best suited to water based formulas such as hair repair shampoo, conditioner, serums and cremes.

You can source all types of hydrolysed proteins including plant based, vegan-friendly and even silk based products - speak with your suppliers about the materials they have on offer as hydrolysed proteins are the #1 ingredient to enable the best hair repair results in your hair care formulas.

Learn more about proteins, peptides and collagen in this video, and watch this video to learn how to make a split-end repair serum.
 

Hair repair ingredient #2: Polyquaterniums

Polyquaternium materials would be present on your hair care labels with INCI names such as polyquaternium-7 or polyquaternium-9 (amongst others). Polyquaternium materials are best used in wash off hair care so that they can help smooth and condition the hair without weighing it down. Polyquaternium materials are polymers with a cationic charge; but interestingly they are suited to both cationic and anionic environments. (To understand the difference, and when each is need, read our blog: Cationic vs anionic ingredients: what should be used in your cosmetic formulas). They are also highly substantive to the hair, which means they’ll cling to it readily, even when the rest of the product can be washed out, and still provide enough residual conditioning charge to help improve the hairs combability and condition.

Also review the supplier’s information about the polyquaternium material you want to use in your formula, because they are available in various concentrations. If you use too much, a residue can be left on the hair which can attract negatively charged dust and dirt, and make the hair the feel heavy and lank. To have a great hair repair formula, use polyquaterniums just like Goldilocks would have: not too much, not too little, make sure you prepare samples and test them carefully to get the input just right!
 

Hair repair ingredient #3: Oils and silicones

Now this class of ingredients deserves a special discussion, because the input totally depends on what type of hair you are trying to condition and repair.

Before we can review the inputs of oils and silicones that should be used in hair care and repair formulas, let’s cover a few basics.

First, as Cosmetic Chemists, we usually refer to oils as lipids; this class of cosmetic ingredients includes plant oils, mineral oils, plant butters, esters, silicones and even waxes. However, for the purposes of this blog, when I say oil or lipid, please think more of plant oils and butters, mineral oils, esters and silicones - particularly those materials with a lighter skin feel (for example, lets rule out cosmetic ingredients such as castor oil and vaseline as they don’t get used in hair care products because they are extremely heavy and greasy even in small inputs).

Next, let’s be clear: silicones do not coat the hair and are not as bad you as you may have heard. Watch this video which debunks all the silicone myths out there, because they can actually be a great addition to hair care formulas.

The final thing we need to discuss, before looking at the specific oil input needs of different hair types and hair formulas, is to differentiate between non-volatile and volatile materials. Non-volatile oils and lipids are the vast majority of oils, esters or silicones you may have encountered with skincare formulations. This means that at room and body temperature, they won’t evaporate; but will instead remain on the hair or skin when applied. A volatile cosmetic ingredient, on the other hand, will evaporate from the hair when exposed to temperatures of typical rooms or the body. Volatile oils and lipids cannot be added to even mildly hot formulas; they must be added below 40°C - or even better - in a cold processed formula. Any warmer than this and they will simply evaporate during processing. So, you won’t usually find these in a wash off formula, because water temperatures would exceed this. Volatile lipids and esters are ideal in leave on hair cremes and oils because they act as a weightless carrier that can deliver the non-volatile oils and lipids to the hair, leaving on a small amount of material on the hair that can be applied and spread easily, and almost weightlessly, once they evaporate. Cyclomethicone and some newer developed plant-based ester materials have this volatility, so search them out with your suppliers because they are especially important in leave on hair care and repair formulas.

Now, let’s talk about the specific ‘oil’ needs of a hair repair formula, because they are probably vastly different to what the marketing stories on packaging would have you believe.

In hair care formulas for hair types 1 and 2, (fine, straight to wavy hair), non-volatile oil or lipid content should be at most, 3%w/w of the formula. Yes, you read that correctly - both wash out conditioner formulas and leave-in hair cremes should be a maximum of 3%w/w non-volatile lipids. There rest of the shampoo, conditioner or hair repair serum/crème should be water soluble and wash out ingredients. Any more than this, and the hair will be heavy and dull after rinsing.

In hair oil formulas for hair types 1 and 2, the non-volatile oil or lipid content should be around 10%w/w. The rest of the hair ‘oil’ should be volatile silicones or esters, so as not to weigh the hair down and leave it feeling greasy after being applied.
 
In hair care formulas for hair types 3 and 4 (from Caucasian and Hispanic curly through to African/Caribbean curls and kinky hair types), the non-volatile oil or lipid content for conditioning formulas could range from 5-7%w/w. As you can see, this is a relatively small proportion compared to the product stories on conditioner formulas where the oils chosen for the formula are the majority of the marketing story.
 
In hair cream or oil formulas for hair types 3 there would typically be 10-20%w/w non-volatile lipids or oils; and for hair types 4 this would typically be 20-30%w/w. Any more than this and the hair would be left feeling oily.  

Watch these videos for more hair repair and treatment products for curly hair and hair oils:

• How to formulate natural hair oils
• How to formulate hair serums and oils
• Hair colour protection oil
• Curly hair crème

Final tips for the best hair repair range…

Just remember that hair repair formulas are only one part of the total hair care system. Make sure you formulate with these materials where appropriate as part of the shampoo and conditioning steps, and always formulate specifically to the hair type needs of your consumer for the best results. Read this blog to learn more about different hair types by ethnicity, and also more about the products for hair types 1 to 4.

Happy formulating!