A head full of silky curls, a mop of frizzled hair or a simple laid back style... hair always takes the first place in any beauty regime. It is said that if your hair is perfect, you already look good any way ! The rest can be secondary sometimes... and the quest for eternal beautiful hair continues to dominate the beauty industry with hair care products lining every shelf space.

The leading winner in the hair care department is the shampoo, without a doubt ! Shampoo is a hair care product used for the removal of oils, dirt, skin particles, environmental pollution or other contaminant particles that gradually build up in hair. The goal is to remove the unwanted build-up without stripping out so much as to make hair unmanageable. Silken tresses flying in the wind or short silky bob's... shampoos are available for every cut, for every hair style... and they all claim to make your hair look gorgeous within minutes, rather 'salon' perfect hair !

The word shampoo in English usage dates back to 1762, with the meaning "to massage". The word was a loan from Anglo-Indian shampoo, in turn from Hindi 'champo', indicative of 'champna' meaning to press, knead the muscles, massage. The term and service was introduced by a Sake Dean Mahomed, who opened a shampooing bath known as Mahomed's Indian Vapour Baths in Brighton in 1759. His service was much appreciated and he received the high accolade of being appointed ?Shampooing Surgeon? to both George IV and William IV. During the early days of shampoo, English hair stylists boiled shaved soap in water and added herbs to give the hair shine and fragrance. The first known maker of shampoo is Kasey Hebert and the origin of shampoo is credited to him. He sold his first shampoo, 'Shaempoo' in the streets of his home, London. Originally, soap and shampoo were very similar products, with both containing surfactants, which is a type of detergent. Surfactants are usually classified into Anionic, Cationic, Noniconic, Amphoteric. Modern shampoo as it is known today was first introduced in the 1930s with 'Drene', the first synthetic shampoo.

In the USA, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) states that shampoo containers accurately list the ingredients. The government further regulates what shampoo manufacturers can and cannot claim as any associated benefit. There are also provisions as to what health products are stated in the shampoo as in vitamin based shampoos. The effectiveness of vitamins, amino acids and pro-vitamins in shampoos is largely debatable. Vitamins and amino acids are the building blocks of proteins and enzymes within the body. While vitamins may be able to penetrate cells through the skin, amino acids and proteins are too large to enter a cell outside the bloodstream, and they can have no effect on dead tissue. The case for vitamins is not as well understood as they would have a temporary cosmetic effect on the hair shaft.

People expect a lot from shampoos. Unfortunately, it is not easy to tell a good shampoo from a poor one. Cost, fragrance, and lots of foam is what most people look for in shampoo products. Lather and foam is of little importance , but they often get the most attention. Foaming occurs when surfactant molecules gather around air instead of oil, leading to millions of tiny bubbles. The air bubbles are use the surfactants in removing the dirt and oil. We have all seen shampoo advertisements showing beautiful people taking showers with their heads heaped high with mounds of lather. These images have taught the public to associate lather with cleansing ability. The truth is, lots of foamy lather only means too much shampoo is being used. Excess foam means waste. Sebum and other oils quickly destroy foam. Ideally, the head should have just enough lather to lubricate the scalp and hair. This will help your fingers massage the shampoo more effectively into the hair and give you the beautiful locks that you desire !

There is no denying that the shampoo business has come a long way with a variety of shampoos available in the market. From reducing hair fall, to bring on shine and gloss to hair, to treatments of colored or damaged hair and to cleaning out dandruff... the choice is limitless and endless. It is just your pick of the lot, depending upon your budget and type of hair to get that glossy head of hair, with the international 'salon' look that you have been craving for !