Beauty Glossary - Sodium Laureth Sulfate
October 5, 2006 by Christina Jones
Filed under Beauty, Skin Care
I have written here a few times about shampoos - and the fact that I am not that impressed with a thick, rich lather - this is because I know that the thick rich lather just means that the shampoo is chock full of something called Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES). Look at your shampoo bottle now - go ahead. Get your spectacles out, the writing is tiny. 
Yes, its that ingredient just after Water, meaning that besides water, Sodium Laureth Sulfate is the next most prominent ingredient in your shampoo. Is that bad? Nah. Is it necessary to have SLS in your shampoo? Nope. Only if you judge your shampoo by the great (or not so great) amount of lather it works up into.
SLES is a salt compound, that is used as a detergent in products like shampoos, bath and shower gels and toothpastes. Because it is a salt, it also has the properties of salt, in that it will attract moisture, possibly causing your hair and scalp to become a little more dry with use. SLES is also a rather harsh detergent - there are milder ones that can be used (but that don’t create the volume of foam like SLES). This harshness can possibly affect you more if you have skin problems like eczema or psoriasis. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it really doesn’t have much use other than creating a showy foam in your hair and on your teeth. Much ado has been made over the years about SLS being a carcinogen, but those charges have been determined to be false. SLS is nothing more than a cheap foamer. I don’t mind seeing it in drugstore shampoos, but if I am going to spend good money on a shampoo (say, over the $10 pricepoint), I don’t want to be buying a bottle of water and cheap Sodium Laureth Sulfate.
Some other names for SLES are:
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS), Sodium Diethylene Glycol Lauryl Ether Sulfate, Alkyl Ether Sulfate, Sodium Dodecyl Polyoxyethylene Sulfate, Sodium Lauryl Ethoxysulfate and Sodium Polyoxyethylene Lauryl Sulfate. Ammonium Laureth Sulfate is an almost indistinguishable molecule, having only slightly different properties.
Can you recommend some shampoos that have a low SLS or none at all. Would appreciate it.
Hi, I saw your post about sodium lauryl sulpahate and wanted to add to it.
Sodium lauryl sulphate is indeed a foaming agent and is the least expensive in it’s family. There are alternatives. Sodium lauryth sulphate is a milder form of sodium lauryl sulphate. The difference is the size of the molecule. Laurel is smaller and can partially penetrate the hairshaft. Ideally you only want to clean the surface of your hairshaft. Sodium laureth sulphate is a larger molecule therefor will not penetrate as deep. That being said, Sodium Myreth sulphate is an even milder form of cleanser and also more expensive. There are a few times when you would want to use a lauryl sulphate. For example…getting chlorine out of your hair. There are many “sulphate free” products available but a cleanser is still a cleanser. It’s just the new catch phrase in the hair industry.
And just to add a little more info…conditioners are quite the opposite. You want the smaller molecules that will penetrate the hair shaft and keep moisture balanced. Look for hydrogenized proteins.
Love your site!
heey
i just wanted to say that thanks to all your info im doing a speech on sodium lurel sulphate
thanks
Just wanted to say that sulfates do have their place, and that SLES and SLS are two different compounds (SLS is harsher, SLES is mildest; ammonium lauryl and laureth sulfates are harsher than the sodium ones, but better in hard water situations).
Only a small number of people actually have an allergic reaction to sulfates. The majority of people who can’t use sulfates are curliheads, because they do take out a bit of the moisture on one’s head. But sulfates, as I said before, have their place–most of us use silicone-based styling products and conditioners, and the sulfates prevent those from building up on our hair and drying it out.
Pretty much any shampoo, expensive or not, has sulfates, unless it specifically says it is a sulfate-free shampoo. And sulfate-free doesn’t automatically mean that it’s gentler than a traditional shampoo.
Thank you so much for this information! Recently, I had cystic rash on the right side of my jawline. I thought it was PMS but, a week or two later I got a pimple on the jawline on the left side of my face! I also just recently broke out on my forehead (near my hairline). I am firmly convinced this has to do with SLS as the shampoo I am using has a high concentration of it. I am going to try a new shampoo and see how it goes!