How often should you wash your hair?

You wake up, jump in the shower, and lather up your hair. That’s your morning routine and has been for as long as you can remember. But it turns out you may be doing more harm than good by shampooing your precious locks daily. So how often should you wash your hair?

It seems like a simple question, but there’s no one-size-fits-all answer. Many of us are overdoing it, causing hair loss or breakage. Others are underdoing it, leading to flakes and oil build-up, says dermatologist, Dr Amy McMichael. “Generally, the hair and scalp should be washed at least weekly to every other week,” she says. But as with all rules, there are some exceptions.

Read on to find out just how often you should be hitting the (shampoo) bottle, based on your hair type, and you’ll have clean, healthy-looking hair in no time.

Shampoos typically contain several ingredients to help remove oil, dirt, dead skin cells and other impurities, explains dermatologist, Dr Janiene Luke.

“Common cleansing agents, such as surfactants, bind these impurities and create a structure that can be easily rinsed away with water,” she explains. Common surfactants in shampoo include sodium laureth sulfate, ammonium laureth sulfate, sodium lauryl sulfate, and ammonium lauryl sulfate.

Water, for one. Without adequate water, the shampoo wouldn’t be able to pour out of the bottle. Foaming or lathering agents like cocamide or cocamidopropyl betaine give your shampoo that satisfying sudsy factor. Shampoo also contains silicones like simethicone, which smooth and shine your hair. Other ingredients, like panthenol, fatty alcohols and nut oils, are added to lock in moisture and hydration. Polyquaternium may be added as a thickening agent. And finally, there are the preservatives. These are added to make sure your shampoo has a decent shelf life.

Ready to suds up? Your lifestyle will help determine how often you should wash your hair. “Those who exercise or perspire profusely for any reason may wash their hair more frequently,” says Dr McMichael.

Your hair’s oil level will also play a role. If you have extremely oily hair, washing daily can keep your strands from looking greasy, says Dr McMichael. On the flip side, “for those who have particularly dry hair shafts, washing infrequently may be helpful,” she says. (Your hair shaft is the part of your hair that can be seen above your scalp.)

The texture of your hair makes a difference in how oily your hair gets each day. The oilier your hair, the more often you need to wash it.

So the first step is determining what type of hair you have. This is based on the amount of curl in your hair. It may be straight (no curl), wavy, curly or even super curly, or coily. The curl factor comes down to the shape of your hair follicles. If they are oval or asymmetrical, your hair will be curlier.

Still not sure what your hair type is? Ask your stylist next time you get a trim.

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This type of hair tends to be drier because the sebum, or oil, does not travel as far down the hair shaft of a curly hair compared to a straight hair. So how often should you wash your hair if it’s curly or textured? At least weekly or every two weeks, Dr McMichael says. The idea that everyone should suds up daily is just a hair myth.

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You may need to wash multiple times a week for the most effective hair styling, Dr McMichael says. That’s because straight and fine hair tends to get oily faster than other hair textures. Wash infrequently – one of the biggest fine hair mistakes – and your locks might look greasy.

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To prolong your style, you might avoid washing your hair for up to four to eight weeks. “This is too long to wait between washes, and a way to wash the scalp should be instituted even if it means the hairstyle is a bit mussed,” Dr McMichael says.

She offers this tip for regular hair-washing: “Wash the scalp primarily and allow the shampoo to just run through the hair shafts to minimise further drying of the hair shafts.”

Like those with curly hair, people with really long hair may experience dry ends since the sebum may not travel the entire length of the hair shaft, says Dr Luke. “Shampooing is related to cleansing the scalp, so the length of the hair does not affect how often it should be washed,” she says. Instead, go by whether your hair is oily or dry.

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If you have a condition like scalp psoriasis or seborrheic dermatitis (aka dandruff), you may need to wash your scalp with medicated shampoo several times per week, Dr McMichael says. “I typically recommend concentrating shampoos on the scalp itself – especially [for] those who use medicated shampoos, because some can be drying or strip the hair – and then follow up by using a good conditioner for the rest of the hair.”

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