What is Hair Clarifying and Why is There So Much Confusion About It?

WHAT IS HAIR CLARIFYING?

Hair Clarifying means removal of metals and other buildup from human hair.

WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF METALS IN HAIR?

Contamination of hair by metals is unavoidable. Well water, used by many communities around the country and around the world, is enriched with all kinds of metals. Some metals, like copper and iron, can leach from pipes into water, especially where water supplies are chlorinated periodically. Swimmers encounter a constant source of copper in the form of certain algaecides added frequently to swimming pools. Many of the swimmers develop a greenish tint as copper accumulates in their hair. Several cosmetic hair products also contain, by design, certain amounts of metals, such as magnesium, iron or copper to perform specific functions. Products which fall into this category include hair conditioners containing magnesium sulfate, anti-dandruff shampoos containing zincpyrithione, and hair colors containing lead acetate, henna, or other plant extracts.

WHAT IS THE GREEN HAIR SYNDROME?

The green hair syndrome is a term used by the medical community to describe the greenish tint observed in the blond hair of young swimmers. It has been determined that this discoloration results from the accumulation of copper from swimming pools in the lightly-colored hair of individuals. It is not due to chlorine as some people erroneously think, although chlorine intensifies the process. This greenish tint is independent of hair type or color. Black or brown hair binds as much copper as light blonde hair although the greenish color obviously is not readily visible.

The depth of the greenish tint is proportional to the amount of copper bound onto the hair. A hint of green can be noticed on light blond hair at copper levels as low as 300 ppm. Copper content of hair from people with green hair fluctuates through a wide range, and values of 1500 to 17500 ppm have been frequently reported by different investigators.

HOW DOES METALLIC BUILD-UP IN THE HAIR AFFECT SALON SERVICES?

Metal build-up can lead to several undesirable and sometimes adverse effects. When build-up levels significantly exceed the normal ranges (10-50 ppm), discoloration of the hair becomes visible. Iron casts a typical rusty look to the hair, lead gives it a black tone, and copper deposits a greenish tint while calcium and magnesium deposits are colorless. Copper, lead and iron, can interfere with chemical treatments such as hair coloring, bleaching, permanent waving and hair relaxing. Iron- and / or copper-contaminated hair may experience uneven and unpredictable color deposit. In the case of permanent hair color, copper or iron cause the oxidation dyes to deposit mostly on the surface of the hair which would result in color washout. They also cause the developer to break down very quickly and generate a heat reaction which can be noticed by foils warming up considerably. Copper and iron can also interfere with permanent waving, by affecting the perm solution. Both metals can prematurely oxidize the reducing agent, and speed up the breakdown of the peroxide of the re-bonding step, hence reducing the efficacy of the perm.

Metal build-up can also result in serious breakaway heat reactions which are frequently experienced by the majority of salon operators in the form of warm foils during coloring, bleaching, highlighting or relaxing of hair. The temperature under these circumstances may rise to the boiling point in as little as five minutes.

WHY THERE IS SO MUCH CONFUSION ABOUT HAIR CLARIFIERS?

Hair is a strong binder of copper and iron. Binding is so strong that once these metals are captured by the hair, they are hard to wash off. As a result, there is a gradual build-up which only intensifies with time. The extent to which metals in general bind to hair depends on several factors such as hair porosity, length of the fiber, and levels as well as duration of exposure.

Because of this fact, the greatest majority of professional products which fall into the "cleansing", "clarifying", "purifying" or "de-mineralizing" categories do not do a complete job in removing these stubborn metals from contaminated hair. As a result, hairdressers lost faith in clarifiers because even with repeated use of different brands, problems with hair color, perms and other chemical services never went away. However a new patented hair clarifying technology has been introduced by L’Avant Garde to the professional market. This technology, known as “Get Pure”, provides the only fully effective, mild and safe solution to the hair build-upproblem, whether metallic or otherwise. “Get Pure” is available at Coastline Enterprise. Call 978-463-7900.

Dr. Said holds a doctorate in Molecular Biology from the University of Southern California. He’s been employed by some of the haircoloring industy’s most prestigious companies and is the founder and president of L’Avant Garde, Inc., a company thriving on innovative technologies in the field of haircare. Dr. Said is the holder of several patents and the author of many scientific articles relating to human physiology and the molecular structure of hair.
Visit his Website at lavantgarde.com.