“Money doesn’t grow on trees” is a phrase all of our mothers once told us, but self-care, such as hair care, has a special exemption to this rule. If you can spend a little extra money on an expensive, premium kids shampoo and conditioner, you will find that the pros outweigh the cons by a lot. Expensive kids hair care brands have better formula, ingredients, and overall performance compared to a cheap drugstore brands that sells their hair care products at a much lower cost but offer no results.

Ingredients
Kids shampoo ingredients can make or break its overall performance. When using a drugstore shampoo and conditioner, the formula may contain filler ingredients, which is completely different than chemicals in cosmetics, such as parabens, sulfates, and more harmful ingredients. Fillers are essentially cosmetic candy. They might not be as harmful as parabens, but like real candy, they’re not exactly good for you either. They offer no real value, and fillers allow hair care companies to save money while doing your hair no favors.

Expensive shampoos and conditioners should never have filler ingredients. If you want to make sure they don’t, look for fillers such as any solvents like phthalates, emulsifiers and/or foaming agents like diethanolamine (DEA), and consistency-boosters like xanthan gum, sodium hydroxide, and more. Expensive shampoos and conditioners usually have carefully created a shampoo formula, using great ingredients, that help fight your hair problems.

Formulation
The formulation of kids shampoo and conditioner is just as important as the ingredients it contains, from the creaminess down to its molecule. Speaking of which, molecules can really make a difference in the performance of the formula. The smaller the molecule, the deeper it’ll penetrate into the hair, so your hair can get the most out of the product, keeping you clean and fresh longer than drugstore brands. Another major key to the formula is its consistency. According to Risa Barash, founder and CEO of Fairy Tales Hair Care, the performance of the shampoo and conditioner can depend on the percentage of water to “solid” contents to create a balanced formula. “If a formula is too watery, the water content is higher and the content of ‘solids’ is lower. These solids are there to perform a specific function whether it be to moisturize, cleanse, shine, hold, etc. There is a balance,” Risa said. “Cheap shampoo formulas are able to achieve certain price points by having a higher water content and perform at a lower level.”

Expensive shampoo and conditioner will have a slight thicker formula but not too thick or watery. They usually achieve a perfect mix of the two in order to give your hair the results you’re looking for. To make sure your kids shampoo and conditioner isn’t too watery, check the ingredients list on the back and see how many other “solid” contents they used to thicken the formula up.

To find these ingredients and formulation in a kids shampoo and conditioner, check out Fairy Tales Hair Care’s hair care products.


Risa Barash, Founder & Owner & the entire Fairy Tales Hair Care Family