Human Nature 100% Natural Clarifying Shampoo (Review)

I have sensitive scalp. The sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) or sodium laureth sulfate (SLES) in regular shampoo brands make my scalp red, flaky, and itchy.

I started using non-SLS/SLES shampoos upon advice of the stylist who did my keratin treatment. She said SLS/SLES will dramatically shorten the life of the keratin treatment. If I wanted to keep my hair smooth and straight, I needed to switch to a sulfate-free shampoo.

I bought my first sulfate-free shampoo in Healthy Options, particularly the Nature's Gate shampoo (imported from US). While effective in prolonging the permanent blow-dry effect, it's not super foamy. Even though it didn't foam much, I eventually got used to it.

My friend recommended I check out Human Nature, since I'm aiming to buy more Filipino-made products. Human Nature was borne from Gawad Kalinga, with a vision of creating an enterprise that is inclusive towards local communities. If you want to go local as well, Human Nature is a great starting point!

All of their shampoos are advertised as sulfate-free and made with natural ingredients. I zeroed in on the Human Nature 100% Natural Clarifying Shampoo, which was advertised as their foamiest shampoo yet!

Product Features:

• Today, the 200ml is Php 149.75 while the 495ml is Php 319.75
• Fruit acids eliminate product build-up
• Betaine and aloe vera soothe and moisturize the scalp
• 100% no harmful chemicals

Back of the bottle

Here's a snippet of the product description from the Human Nature website on SLS/SLES:

Did You Know? The lather you get from most shampoos is very likely created by chemical surfactants like sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) and sodium laureth sulfate (SLES) – which have been found to irritate the skin and pollute the environment. We instead use coco fatty acid sulfates – natural sulfates that give you rich lather equal to the foaminess of SLS/SLES but are non-toxic, fully biodegradable and proudly manufactured in the Philippines!

Before we move on, I want to share more on coco fatty acid sulfates (CFAS), from other sources. The more you know, the better.

• Naturally Curly.com Forum - "Yes it's (CFAS) a sulfate. It's just a complete derived version as opposed to a chemically purified one. Like refined table sugar, versus raw sugar."
• Blessmybag.com Comments - "Coco Fatty Acid Sulfate or CFAS is similar to sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) ONLY in terms of its molecular structure. What differentiates CFAS from SLS and renders CFAS safe is its manufacturing process."
• Chemical of the Day - "So sodium coco sulfate actually is a blend of sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium caprylic sulfate, sodium capric sulfate, sodium oleic sulfate, sodium stearyl sulfate etc, and instead of naming them all out with all of the fatty acids from the coconut oil, they just call it sodium coco sulfate." It would carry the same risks of skin irritation, eye irritation, stripping hair of natural oils and forming nitrosamines in the presence of triethanolamine as SLS does."

So how does the price compare with other shampoos?

Compared to other supermarket brands, Human Nature 100% Natural Clarifying Shampoo is more expensive. For the 200ml bottle, it's .7488/ml while for the 495ml, it's .6460/ml. Upon checking Lazada.com.ph for other shampoos:

• Palmolive Naturals Anti-Dandruff 180ml (Php 96.50) - .5361/ml
• Pantene Total Damage Care Shampoo 340ml (Php 200)  - .5882/ml
• Sunsilk Damage Reconstruction 180ml (Php 94.50) - .5250/ml
• Tresemme Shampoo Split Repair 340ml (Php 230) - .6765/ml

Unfortunately, not all of these brands are made in the Philippines.

Compared to other products in the natural or sulfate-free category, it's very reasonable. I checked out a couple of options from Healthy Options the other day. The closest one in terms of price is Nature's Gate (made in US).

• Andalou Shampoo Sunflower 340ml/11.5oz (Php 395) - 1.1618/ml
• Avalon Shampoo Peppermint 325ml/11oz (Php 359) - 1.1046/ml
• Jason Moisturizing Aloe Vera 475ml/16oz (Php 395) - .8316/ml
• Nature's Gate Shampoo Jojoba + Lotus Sacre 530ml/18oz (Php 259) - .4887/ml
• Nature's Gate Shampoo Sulfate Free Color Protecting 354ml/12oz (Php 295) - .8333/ml

However, I can't tell if the more expensive imported shampoos are really better in terms of quality because I haven't tried them yet.

If you're looking into getting a discount on the Human Nature products, get a membership in the Human Nature website (click on the "Be A Social Entrepreneur" ). The discount is at least 15% if you plan to spend at least Php 800 per month.

Using the Shampoo

Human Nature 100% Natural Clarifying Shampoo on my palm

The liquid is clear with the usual shampoo consistency. It smells nice, like fruity zesty apples. When I lather it on my hair, it gets foamy but not as foamy as regular shampoo. It needs to be mixed with a bit of water to become really foamy.

Right after using at first wash, my hair feels squeaky-clean. Sometimes, too clean... which is why I only use it every 2 days.  I alternate it with the Human Nature Moisturizing Conditioner in Vanilla (Day 1 shampoo, day 2 conditioner, day 3 shampoo). When I feel like my hair and scalp has too much oil and product build-up (after skipping a day), that's when I use it again. My scalp doesn't dry up or turn red and itch after a few days of use.

However, whenever I get the Brazilian blow-dry or Keratin Treatment, the blow-dry effect slightly diminishes slightly every time I use this shampoo. It's most likely due to the coco fatty sulfate. If you've just gotten the keratin treatment, stick to sulfate-free shampoos. I can't help it though, I still use this shampoo even when I get the keratin treatment. I'm just glad the effect diminishes only slightly.

Final Words

I love this shampoo! I've been using this consistently for 2 years already. My scalp hasn't been red and itchy. I've recommended it to everyone who told me that their scalp turns red and itchy or that they've got dry hair. For those who've already tried it, they've only had good things to say.

If you've used Human Nature shampoos, let me know what you think!