Natural hair conditioning: a green approach

The expectations regarding environmental compatibility, sustainability, origins and safety of products are well known within the industry. If we combine this with quality assurance requirements such as traceability and consistency, while also ensuring compliance with international regulations and legislation, whether this actually refers to ingredients or to finished products, developing new personal care formulations in our modern times is by all accounts no mean feat. All this has stimulated in recent years a mounting quest for alternatives to synthetic or mineral ingredients which can be responsibly extracted, derived or manufactured from natural sources. This trend is not simply market or ‘marketing’ driven but is based on research showing the superior compatibility, safety and performance of selected materials of natural origin such as fatty acids and derivatives, vegetable unsaponifiables and triglycerides, natural waxes, plant extracts, etc. When used in cosmetic application, such ingredients have greater affinity with skin and hair than most synthetic counterparts and are capable of superior integration with their metabolism. They can therefore better contribute to conditioning, replenishing and protecting both skin and hair while respecting the natural conditions required for maintaining them in a healthy state. Additionally more and more consumers follow the global green trend and are aware of the impact the products they buy have on their personal wellbeing and on the environment. However, although they increasingly want personal care products based on alternative ingredients that are as green as possible, they are not willing to sacrifice product performance or convenience going forward. The demand for vegetable based ingredients is nowhere else as pressing or as important as in the field of hair care formulations where the search for alternatives to well-known conditioning ingredients such as silicones, quaternised compounds and synthetic polymers is a major issue. Such alternatives should satisfy criteria of natural origin, sustainability and efficacy while avoiding recognised problems caused by the traditional conditioning agents mentioned above such as long-term build up, limited or no biodegradability and poor integration with the substrate. Leading the research for effective and reliable alternatives to synthetic ingredients based on decades of experience in oleochemicals and particularly in the development, manufacture and application of natural ingredients such as natural waxes, vegetable oils, natural butters, fatty acid esters and derivatives, Natura-tec is currently producing several vegetable based alternatives to synthetic conditioning and protecting ingredients, two of which have particular interest in hair care products.

Silicone-free natural hair care

Natura-tec Plantsil, an ester complex from olive origin, is a unique sensorial agent designed to be used as a vegetable based alternative to silicone. It mimics perfectly the feel of silicones thanks to its balanced formulation of natural derived ingredients. It is a highly stable, almost odourless transparent fluid oil. It imparts a light and soft touch and leaves a dry after feel on skin and hair with an appealing elegant touch. The sensorial profile of this ingredient is very close to silicones. It provides a silky touch and smoothness to skin and hair without oily residue. Furthermore, thanks to its excellent penetration and fast spreading properties, it can mimic perfectly the volatile feel of cyclomethicone (Fig. 1). A cosmetic emollient of universal use, the olive ester complex restores suppleness and elasticity to skin and hair. It is rapidly absorbed, leaving a soft sensation with a unique powdery finish. It imparts a long lasting silky feel giving a velvety touch in skin and hair care applications. Most interestingly, in shampoo formulations it has been shown that Natura-tec Plantsil’s behaviour on hair is very similar to actual silicone. Laboratory evaluations confirm the compatibility with common surfactants and co-surfactants and it is recommended as an ideal conditioning agent to replace silicones in hair care products (Fig. 2).