6 Best Shampoos for Keratin Treated Hair – Reviews, Aftercare, and How To Do DIY Keratin Treatment

Keratin treatment smoothens and shines your hair, making it silky smooth, and frizz-free. However, to maintain the style and make the results last longer, you should be careful when choosing the right shampoos, conditioners, and other hair products. 

Keratin treatment makes your hair fragile and prone to damage and breakage; thus, when it comes to shampoo or styling product choices, you can’t pick one as usual. We have made in-depth research and made reviews for the best shampoos for Keratin treated hair.

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1. WOW Activated Charcoal and Keratin Shampoo

2. WOW Shampoo and Conditioner Set

The conditioner is a recipe of Virgin coconut and avocado oil to repair damaged hair and it is infused with Keratin and Vitamins B5 and E. The combo is sulfate and paraben-free which makes it safe to use for Keratin treated hair.

3. ArtNaturals Organic Moroccan Argan Oil Shampoo and Conditioner Set

The shampoo is a restorative formula that repairs damaged hair and restores hair’s natural moisture. The smell and scent are fresh and clean and leaves your hair smooth and shiny.

4. Bingo’s Natural Argan Oil Shampoo and Conditioner set

It also promotes healthy hair growth, volumizing, and moisturizing. Both the shampoo and conditioner are sulfate-free and suitable for any hair type. The shampoo gently cleans your scalp from overtime product residue and buildup and leaves your hair smooth, strong, and shiny.

5. Natural Riches Argan Oil Shampoo and Conditioner Set

6. Organix Brazilian Keratin Therapy Shampoo

We also recommend these keratin-infused, salt and sulfate-free shampoos to use on keratin-treated hair. They are gentle and repairing formula for keratin-treated and chemically proceed hair. All of them are tried and tested by thousands of happy customers out there.

How To Put Your Hands On The Best Shampoo For Keratin Treated Hair

Keratin treatment is a smoothing treatment that makes your hair shiny, soft and frizz-free. It cuts styling time in the morning as it makes your hair more manageable. The treatment lasts for two to four months depending on the hairstyling and shampooing products you use after the treatment. Most shampoos use chemicals that dissolve and wash off the keratin from your hair. Here are ways to identify the correct and best shampoos for your keratin-treated hair.

1. Look for salt and sulfate-free shampoos

The best way to care for your keratin-treated hair is to use sulfate and salt-free shampoos. Sulfate dries up the natural oils of your hair and scalp, while salt dissolves and wash off the keratin coating from your hair. Sulfate is added to shampoos to create white foam and a clean feeling, however, every time, you wash with a sulfate based shampoo, you are washing away a significant amount of Keratin from your hair.

2.  Go for Keratin-infused shampoos

Keratin-infused shampoos infuse keratin proteins to inner layers of hair and restore hair’s natural keratin levels.  Our hair by itself contains some amount of keratin that strengthens and protects the cortex from damage. For keratin-treated hair, the shampoos will enhance the treatment so that it looks fresh and last longer. They also help protect the hair from chemical damage.

3. Avoid Clarifying Shampoos

Clarifying shampoos are deep cleansers of residues and product build-ups. They work at high PH levels to deeply clean your hair and scalp. Using clarifying shampoos for keratin treated hair dissolves the keratin coating from your hair and makes it fade away fast. Gentle formula shampoos with low PH levels should be the ones you should go for. However, you should defiantly use clarifying shampoos before applying keratin treatments.

How to care for Keratin Treated Hair

Keratin is a protein that is naturally found in our hair. However, hair styling products and chemicals wash it away leaving the hair dry, frizzy, and unmanageable. A keratin treatment infuses keratin to the hair strands making it smooth, shiny, and manageable.

Keratin treatment requires aftercare procedures to make the results last longer. Here is how you care for keratin-treated hair.

1. Do not wash your hair immediately after the treatment

Depending on the type of keratin you apply to your hair, you should give 2 to 3 days window before washing your hair. Washing your hair immediately after keratin treatment will wash off the keratin from your hair. Avoid swimming and sweating as well.

2. Do not use hair clippers or ponytails for three days after the treatment

You shouldn’t clip, tie or use any hair styling products for the first three days after keratin treatment as it may leave dents in the hair; rather you should keep it flat and straight.

3. Watch out for your shampooing and conditioning products

The main aftercare you should take for your keratin-treated hair is avoiding regular sulfate-based shampoos as sulfate dissolves and washes away the keratin from the hair. Instead, you should use sulfate-free and keratin-infused shampoo and conditioner products to maintain the keratin and make the results last longer.  

4. Avoid hair styling products

After washing keratin-treated hair, blow-drying and simple straightening with a flat iron should be enough to give it the style you want. Don’t use sprays, gels, or other styling products as they could make your hair look dull and dirty.  

5. It is normal if your hair looks dull and waxy during the first couple of days after your treatment

The oils in your hair make the keratin to go deep into the hair cuticle during the first 3 to 4 days. It is normal if your hair looks dull, waxy, and perfectly straight during those days. If your hair gets wavy while you sleep, re-straighten the wavy sections with a flat iron.

Do not do keratin treatments if you have a special event after a day or two. It leaves your hair oily and greasy till you will be able to wash it after 3 days of treatment.

6. Avoid shampooing every single day and limit your swimming visits

Shampooing your hair every day will wash away the treatment and will make it last less. If you shampoo every other day or even lesser, the treatment will last up to 3 months. Limit your swimming visits as well since the chlorine washes away the keratin from your hair.

How To Do At Home DIY Keratin Treatment

Usually, Keratin treatment is done in a hair salon; however, you can still manage to do it at home and include it to your hair care routine. You might get sick of spending hours battling fizzy and curly hair. Frying it with a hot flat iron leaves you with half straight and half messy hair.

You can have soft straight hair, and save your time and energy doing your keratin treatment just right from the comfort of your home. DIY Keratin treatment might take 2 to 3 hours depending on the type and length of your hair. Make sure you are comfortable and have enough time to go through all the process. Keratin treatment is not recommended if you are pregnant.

1. Buy the right products

Keratin treatments aren’t the same. There is no one-size-fits-all treatment formula. Depending on your hair type, there are different keratin treatments available in the market.

• If your hair is extremely frizzy, Brazilian keratin suits you as it is perfect for eliminating frizz and smoothening the hair.

• If you have thin to moderate hair, you should buy soft keratin as it is a gentler formula and doesn’t damage your hair.

• If your hair is normally straight and becomes frizzy due to humidity, you should go for Keratin express which is a short term usage keratin formula.

A clarifying shampoo is included in the package for shampooing your hair before applying the treatment. It deeply cleans your scalp and hair from product residue and build-up. Please don’t use the clarifying shampoo after the treatment as it will wash off the keratin from your hair.

Many treatments are labeled containing the word ‘Keratin’, but all of them are not keratin treatments. To make sure that you have the right product, look for the ingredient list and the instructions. Most similar hair smoothing products are conditioning treatments. The one that provides detailed instructions on how you wash, dry, and straighten your hair is the right product to go for.

2. Wash with Clarifying shampoo before the treatment

Clarifying shampoos are deep cleansing shampoos formulated to eliminate overtime residue and product build-up from your hair and scalp. Wash your hair with a clarifying shampoo before your keratin treatment. Apply the shampoo to your hair and leave it for five minutes, massage it well, and rinse it with lots of water.  

3. Blow-dry your hair

Towel dry or blow-dry your hair with a lower heat setting. Depending on the directions on the product, you might deed to completely dry your hair or leave some moisture. Read the instruction manual carefully and do as it is stated.

4. Apply the keratin to your hair

Make sections of your hair and apply the keratin treatment evenly to all the sections. Start with small amounts and increase until the section is all coated. Leave the product on your hair for thirty minutes. Make sure to follow all the instructions on the product while applying the keratin to your hair.

5. Dry your hair

Blow dry your hair being the keratin still on it. Make sure you dry every section carefully.

6. Straighten your hair with a flat iron

The final step of the procedure is straightening your hair with a flat iron. Depending on your hair type and as it is stated on the instruction manual, set the temperature of the flat iron. Then, carefully straighten your hair clipping it into sections.