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Do combined shampoos and conditioners work?

No, no no! I would never recommend a combined shampoo/conditioner, because they're simply not effective in cleaning the hair. What you're doing when you lather up with a normal shampoo is you're lifting dirt and grime from the follicles. When you rinse that lather, you're rinsing the dirt away. And it's only after you've cleaned your hair properly that it's ready to be conditioned.

Combined shampoo/conditioners might make your hair feel conditioned, but that's deceptive. The chemical that gives it that feel is actually building a waxy coating over the follicles that will eventually make them look dull.

That's not to say that I don't wholly endorse conditioning shampoos - which, despite a similar name, are completely different from combined shampoo/conditioners. These products contain more moisturising agents, aren't as deep cleaning as some other shampoos, and can be very beneficial for dry hair. However, no matter how moisturising the product is, you'll still need to use a good conditioner afterwards.

Why not chat to other iVIllagers about hair on the Hair Care message board. Take a look at some of the LIVE discussions happening now on the board:

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