Aussie Moist Shampoo is a retail hair care product from the Aussie company, from Procter and Gamble. The motto of the company, “Add some Roo to your ‘do” enhances its Australian image. It advertises having Australian aloe and sea kelp for added moisture for dry hair. Other than water and fragrance it has 23 ingredients.
Aloe
Aloe barbadensis leaf juice moisturizes and is used for wound healing and as an anti-irritant. It may bind the moisture to skin according to Skin Research and Technology. Aloe is included in many personal care products, especially those claiming natural ingredients.
Surfactants
Surfactants help other additives glide well over the skin. Surfactants included in Aussie Moist are ammonium laureth sulfate, ammonium lauryl sulfate and ammonium xylenesulfonate. Ammonium laureth sulfate and ammonium lauryl sulfate are both gentle and effective as cleansing agents as well and are coconut derivatives.
Coloring
Two dyes are added to the shampoo, Yellow 5 and Red 4. These are both safe for use according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Emollients
Emollients soften and smooth the surfaces they touch. Emollients used in Aussie Moist Shampoo are trimethylolpropane tricaprylate/tricaprate, simmondsia chinenses (jojoba) seed oil and hydrogenated polydecene. Hydrogenated polydecene conditions hair and provides fragrance. Jojoba seed oil, a plant oil, reduces and dissolves excess oil according to Pure Natural Jojoba.
Preservatives
Preservatives keep a compound fresh longer by resisting mold, fungi and bacteria growth. Sodium benzoate, sodium citrate, methylchloroisothiazolinone and methylisothiazolinone preserve Aussie Moist. Methylisothiazolinone can only be used in items that are washed off as it can be a skin irritant when left for too long on skin’s surface. Sodium citrate, while acting like an antioxidant and preservative, can also control the product’s pH levels. Methylchloroisothiazolinone is typically found in products that have methylisothiazolinone and like that additive must be in products that rinse off.
Binding Agents
Binding agents will hold the chemicals and additives together in the compound. Binding agents included in Aussie Moist Shampoo are sodium chloride and PEG 7M. Sodium chloride, or table salt, can also be used in exfoliating products to be a natural abrasive.
Lubricants
Lubricants help keep things slippery and able to glide. Lubricants in this formula include cetyl alcohol and dimethicone. Dimethicone is a type of silicone that is also used in scar therapies for skin healing.
Chelating Agents
Additives that bind metal ions in a product help in preservation. Citric acid and disodium EDTA are two that fit this description in this shampoo. Citric acid has a dual function of adding a citrus fragrance and disodium EDTA also protects fragrance, preventing it from turning rancid.
Miscellaneous
Four other ingredients in Aussie Moist Shampoo have varying functions. The Australian sea kelp extract (Ecklonia Radiata) moisturizes and smoothes the hair. Glycol distearate is a skin conditioner and it increases the thickness of a product. Polyquaternium-10 has the ability of reducing static in the hair leaving it smooth. Cocamide MEA is a thickener that has a dual purpose of increasing foam in a product. These four all have needed functions in a shampoo product.
About this Author
Tina Samuels has been a full-time freelance writer for more than 10 years (in health and gardening topics) and a writer for 20 years. She has one book, “A Georgia Native Plant Guide,” offered through Mercer University Press. She is happy to be a LIVESTRONG writer.
