Ever since I was a little girl, I was a body care connoisseur; I spent my allowance on skin care, hair care and makeup products. For the past few years, I have made it a mission to be more conscience of the products I use on my skin as well as the food and vitamins I consume, which meant swapping for natural options. For me, body care and facial skin care products were an easy switch from conventional to natural, but the switch I found challenging was hair care–I rather enjoyed the foaming experience when washing my hair!

I have dry, curly hair with which I have a love/hate relationship. I love that I can shower, wash, comb, scrunch and run out the door some mornings. But other times, it’s not that easy and I need the right products in order for my hair to cooperate. There are so many products on the market and you can spend a lot of money trying to find the ones that work best for your hair type (trust me, I know). I have done that research by testing a ton of natural products, so here’s what I’ve learned.

Tips on what to expect when switching from conventional to natural hair care products:

1. Conventional shampoos lather, but this will not always be the experience with natural shampoos because most try to avoid using sodium lauryl sulfate and sodium laureth sulfate. We have been conditioned to think that lathering means clean, but just because natural shampoos do not lather does not mean they are not cleaning your hair and scalp. A lot of shampoos use natural cleansing agents such as coconut oil to remove build-up and dirt from your scalp and hair.

2. Natural shampoos and conditioners use oils, minerals and herbal extracts, which can scare people with thin and oily hair. But these great ingredients will help seal in moisture and spur growth, and this is true for any hair type!.

3. You cannot try a natural shampoo just once. Try to use the entire bottle to really experience the benefits of natural hair care products. Your scalp needs time to reproduce the natural oils that some conventional products strip away. Trust me–a few bad hair days are worth the results and benefits of using natural products.

Everyone’s hair is different, so below are some excellent natural products that are great for different hair types:

Dry hair and curly hair

Desert Essence has a great coconut line that cleanses dry or damaged hair. Organic jojoba oil moisturizes hair and scalp so hair looks and feels healthier. Organic olive oil leaves hair soft and silky without weighing it down.

Coloured hair

Tints of Nature produces outstanding results while protecting and caring for your hair and scalp as naturally and gently as possible. Contains organic aloe vera, comfrey extract and roman chamomile to sooth, calm and heal. Does not contain ammonia or parabens. Maintains the hair’s natural moisture and protein balance. 100% grey coverage.

Enhanced shine

We all want healthy, shiny hair and Andalou Naturals provides. The Brilliant Shine collection contains citrus, which clarifies, brightens and invigorates while sunflower conditions, minimizing split ends and frizz and enhancing colour, body and shine. They also have a 10-in-One Benefit Balm that does it all—from styling and damage repair to increased shine—a huge time/money saver.

Clarifying products

Giovanni products contain no parabens, sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate, animal by-products or artificial colors. They are known for their Tea Tree Shampoo and Conditioner, which alleviate dry, flaking scalp with organic tea tree botanicals.

Fine hair/volumizing

Limp hair beware! Try Kiss My Face Big Body Shampoo and Big Body Conditioner. This formula for fine hair is packed with body building vitamins, antioxidants and fortifying extracts. The shampoo is consistently rated highly by our customers–check out the reviews on the product pages!

Vanessa McHugh, Category Manager at Well.ca