'No-Shampoo': Viral Hair Care Experiment Growing In Popularity Among Young Men

TikTok is no stranger to bizarre and dangerous viral trends. Now, a new viral trend is gaining traction on social media which involves teen boys and young men ditching shampoo as part of their hair care routines. Several men have been hopping on the trend and advocating for the benefits of going shampoo-free, using hashtags like #Noshampoo. 

The concept, as the name suggests, involves people cleaning their hair without using shampoo and opting for alternate ways or washing their hair with just water. Many believe that standard shampoos which have chemicals, strip their hair of natural oils, causing their hair to appear greasy and lack volume.

One of the most notable advocates of this no-shampoo movement is influencer Humza Islam Lam, who posted a video last year teaching his followers how to stop using shampoo. 

In the video, Mr Lam advocated for a method called ''Hair training'', which essentially means 'training' your hair and scalp to only need to be washed occasionally. He told The New York Post, ''I haven't experienced any hair loss and my hair feels thicker. I don't wash with shampoo, but I do rinse my hair with water every other day. I also use apple cider vinegar in my hair every week.''

''I use water and apple cider vinegar, others may use distilled Castile soap, baking soda, and many other alternative methods. Combining any of these with thorough massaging of the scalp gets rid of most daily dust and debris. The shampoo is not needed for the average person unless you're getting motor oil in your hair all the time,'' he added. 

Watch the video here:

Several TikTokers have claimed that not using shampoo has improved their hair. ''After I started doing no shampoo my hair became super wavy, it also got thicker, more textured and it started to smell a lot better,'' Kainoa Lam said in a TikTok video. 

However, many were not convinced and said skipping shampoo didn't do them any good. I have been doing it since the start of January, got dandruff, hair thinning, and frizzy + dry. My hair is not made for it apparently,'' another user said. 

Meanwhile, experts also weighed in on the trend and warned that skipping shampoo could cause dandruff, irritate the scalp, stunt hair growth, and worsen scalp problems.

A 2021 study published in the Skin Appendage Disorders journal found that people who wash their hair less face an increased risk of hair loss.