Consumer Reports Relaxer results

[Donda]

Hey all,

I went to the Library and found the September 1999 Consumer Reports article on Relaxers. Here is some of what the article said:

They tested the relaxers on hair sample that had not been relaxed or had any other chemical process done to them:

“To assess the hair damage we took before-and-after measurements of the hair’s strength. With the help of a consulting beautician and a trained sensory panel, we also assessed how well the products straightened the tresses used in our test and how the hair felt.”

They mentioned in regard Lye and No-Lye:

“ Some users of no-lye relaxers may assume that these products are gentler on the hair than relaxers that contain lye (sodium hydroxide) as their active ingredient. The no-lye products we tested use as their primary ingredient lithium hydroxide, a combination of guanidine carbonate and calcium hydroxide, or all three. But our tests revealed that several of the no-lye relaxers caused more hair damage than Revlon Realistic Extra Conditioning which is a lye.”

They said although ph does play a factor,:

“Still we found that you can’t judge a product solely by its ph. A product’s formulation can also make a difference. The over-the-counter Revlon Realistic Extra Conditioning for example, has a ph of 13.2; it performed well in our hair-damage test. Revlon Realistic Crème Relaxer System, its professional brandmate, has a similar ph of 13.3 yet in that same, test it performed poorly.”

Also they said relaxers with a lower ph:

“they left the more tightly curled tresses quite a bit curlier than did the other products. They also left them feeling less soft and silky than other products did.”

Here is the final grid, example: damage= very good means it caused as little damage as possible:

Over the Counter
1.Bone Strait No-Lye
Damage= very good Feel= very good Straightness=5starts

2.Revlon Realistic Extra Conditioning
damage= good feel= excellent straightness= 5 stars

3.Gentle Treatment No-lye
damage= fair feel= excellent straightness= 5 stars

4.Soft & Beautiful No-Lye
damage= fair feel= excellent straightness = 5 stars

5.Curl Free Natural Curl
damage= very good feel= good straightness= 3 stars

6. Dark & Lovely No-Lye
damage= good feel= very good straightness= 5 stars

7.Crème of Nature No-Lye
damage= poor feel= excellent straightness= 5 stars

8.African Pride Miracle Deep Con No-Lye
damage= poor feel= excellent straightness= 5 stars

9.Alternatives No-Lye
damage= poor feel= excellent straightness= 5 stars

10. Optimum Care No-Lye
damage= poor feel= excellent straightness= 5 stars

Professional

1. Rusk Realistic Crème
damgae= very good feel= good straightness= 3 stars

2. Revlon Realistic Crème Relaxer System
damage= poor feel= excellent straightness= 5 stars

These were the only ones they tested so I don’t know anything about Affirm, Motions, and other popular brands.

 

[NapturalGlory]

that's funny... i'm thinking they would have to test on a VARIETY of hair types to give a fair review. for all i know they could have used a strong hair texture that was curly or wavy that is naturally closer to straight and less likely to get damaged. i think because relaxers are soooo popular with black women, the media can never really say anything too bad about them. it would get some sistas worked up. i say, experience is the best teacher.

 

[Supergirl]

pretty interesting

 

[UmSumayyah]

Oh poo. Now CR has me considering giving up my African Pride for Bone Strait.

 

[Donda]

[ QUOTE ]
NapturalGlory said:
that's funny... i'm thinking they would have to test on a VARIETY of hair types to give a fair review. for all i know they could have used a strong hair texture that was curly or wavy that is naturally closer to straight and less likely to get damaged. i think because relaxers are soooo popular with black women, the media can never really say anything too bad about them. it would get some sistas worked up. i say, experience is the best teacher.

[/ QUOTE ]

They tested the relaxers on both white and black hair and came back with the same results on each.

They said: " We purchased two different types of curly tresses, classified as "Caucasoid" and "Negroid" which has a tighter curl"

I'm assuming "Negroid" is refering to type 4 hair like mine. The hair used was virgin hair that was in excellent condition and had not been previously treated with dyes or other chemicals.

So I'm sure with our experience other factors are involved, such as how we take care of our hair and what process we've used before. But remember that the instructions where follwed to the letter in the test, make sure you do the same if you have a losser curl use a mild formulia and so on.

 

[renee_n_3000]

Great info, Donda. Thank you for posting it.

I'm glad the relaxer I use (Soft & Beautiful no-lye) got a 5 star rating, but I wonder about what they mean by "fair feel" instead of good or very good. I've been using that relaxer for over ten years and am happy with the way my hair feels, but I wonder if it could feel even better.

I notice that when people ask what kind of relaxers others use here at LHCF, hardly anyone mentions Soft & Beautiful.

I like it because it includes two packets of protector that you apply all over your hair before relaxing to prevent overprocessing, and the conditioner is supposed to be designed to remove calcium deposits.

 

[Donda]

Seeing I have an inch of new growth in 6 weeks, I went looking for Revlon Realistic Extra Conditiong Relaxer(on Consumer Reports list) and couldn't find it .

Then I notice that Revlon had a product called:Revlon Realistic Professional Normalizing Rinse. It says:

"is a remakably effective, acid balancing conditioning rinse the equalzes porosity in each and every strand after relaxing."

You use it after you relax and shampoo twice with your neutralizing shampoo. It has a PH Factor of 2.5!.

Then I saw Hawaiian Silky and remembered the reviews on the Forum and decided to try it. I noticed that the Sodium Hydroxide was further done on the list of ingrediants (meaning it had less Lye) then other relaxers. Plus it has Jojoba Oil, silk and Keritin protien in it.

My results are WONDERFUL!!! This is the best I've gotten my hair since I've begun to straighten it again.

Usually I have several hairs in my hand (sheeding) after I applied Motions, but I had NO HAIR in my hand during the relaxing, and rinsing process with Hawaiian Silky! Then after I shampooed twice, I applied the NORMALIZING RINSE for one minitue and rinsed. My hair felt as strong as you see in those Pantene Comercials and still not one hair Sheeded!!

So this is what I used:

1. Neutralizing Shampoo as a protextant on my already relaxed hair and to neutralize the relaxer.
2. Hawiian Silky Normal Strength Relaxer
3. Revlon Relaistic Professional Normalizing Rinse
4. Motions CPR conditioner

Ironicly I didn't use any of the relaxer on the Consumer Report list . But then again outside of the Revlon Realistic they where all no-lye and I like lye .