The revised Food Pyramid developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recommends 2–4 servings of fruit per day, and antioxidant-rich blueberries help supply the human body with nutrients needed for optimum health. Yes to Blueberries Healthy Hair Repair Conditioner promises “super soft, healthy and shiny locks,” and this column will review the ingredient listing for claims substantiation and functionality.
The conditioning agents are behentrimonium chloride, stearyl dihydroxypropyldimonium oligosaccharides and guar hydroxypropyltrimonium chloride. The combination of these quaternium compounds produces soft, manageable hair and the sugar cane derived oligosaccharides also have moisturizing properties. The thickening agents are cetearyl alcohol and cetyl esters.
Glycerin is a humectant/moisturizer and may be the carrier for the botanical extracts due to its unusually low placement in the ingredient listing. The superfruit Vaccinium angustifolium (blueberry) fruit extract is listed high in the deck but still may be the 1% breaking point. Lupine amino acids are derived from a high protein grain legume and they penetrate the hair shaft to provide conditioning and strengthening effects. Helianthus annuus (sunflower), Trifolium pratense (clover) flower, Daucus carota sativa (carrot) seed and Ipomoea batatas (sweet potato) root extracts are all sources of essential fatty acids, vitamins and minerals. The “healing” properties of clover flower to “mend damaged locks” is questionable. Trimethylolpropane tricaprylate/tricaprate is a synthetic ester with a high refractive index (1.4521) to impart shine to the hair shaft.
The fragrance is 100% natural, so the essential oils could have been listed individually. The preservative system consists of phenoxyethanol, caprylyl glycol and sorbic acid.
