據一份2008年由英國明泰爾市場調查公司開展的調查報道，一半的成人感到洗髮水和護髮素的種類繁多，讓人眼花繚亂。潘婷作為洗髮水類中的龍頭老大，旗下就有14種以不同功效為主題的系列，總共113種產品。不難看出洗髮水的貨架上擠滿了不同洗髮水產品，讓人不知從何下手。但是這些洗髮水的成分到底是什麼，它們有什麼作用呢？我們就對寫在洗髮水瓶子後面的成分細細分門別類吧。
There’s no shame in admitting that your hair affects your mood. According to a Dove Hair Care survey, one out of every four women has avoided an activity due to unruly hair and 88 percent say good hair boosts their confidence. So for many women, a trip to the shampoo aisle is a much more serious purchase than stocking up on toothpaste and Q-tips.承認吧，三千煩惱絲影響着你的情緒。這沒什麼可難為情的。據一份多芬頭髮護理調查顯示，每四位女***中就有一位曾因為一頭亂蓬蓬的頭髮而缺席一項活動。百分之八十八的女***説，一頭秀髮能讓她們自信滿滿。因此對於很多女***，在貨架上挑選洗髮水比起購買牙膏和棉籤來可是一件嚴肅的大事。
A 2008 study from market research firm Mintel reported that half of adults find the variety of shampoos and conditioners overwhelming. When Pantene, the shampoo category leader, offers 113 products in 14 different benefit-themed lines, it’s easy to see how the shelves have become so crowded—and confusing.據一份2008年由英國明泰爾市場調查公司開展的調查報道，一半的成人感到洗髮水和護髮素的種類繁多，讓人眼花繚亂。潘婷作為洗髮水類中的龍頭老大，旗下就有14種以不同功效為主題的系列，總共113種產品。不難看出洗髮水的貨架上擠滿了不同洗髮水產品，讓人不知從何下手。
The good news? The majority of those options boil down to different packaging. “All shampoo is essentially a cleanser,” says Paula Begoun, author of Beautypedia “Only the first five or six ingredients impact the formula’s effectiveness.” And if you do a quick survey of a few shampoo ingredients labels, you’ll quickly see how the top 10 list looks nearly the same on all of them.這是一個好消息嗎？在這些種類繁多的產品中，大部分歸根到底不過是包裝不同。Beautyped網站的撰稿人寶拉·貝崗説道：“所有的洗髮產品基本上都是一種清潔劑。只有前5到6種成分影響到洗髮水配方的效果。”如果快速瀏覽一些洗髮水標籤上的成分，你很快就會發現所有標籤上寫的前十種成分看起來幾乎都差不多。
But what are those ingredients, and what do they do? We broke down the ingredients on the back of the bottle.但是這些成分到底是什麼，它們有什麼作用呢？我們就對寫在洗髮水瓶子後面的成分細細分門別類吧。
1. Water. Up to 80 percent of shampoo is this basic element. Without enough of it, the lathering liquid wouldn’t pour from the bottle.1.水。這種基本成分在一瓶洗髮水中高達百分之八十。如果沒有足夠的水，這些氣泡的液體就無法從瓶子裏倒出來了。
2. Surfactant. Basically a detergent, this additive does the bulk of the work. Surfates clean by surrounding dirt and oil so water can rinse them away. Ingredients like ammonium lauryl sulfate and ammonium laureth sulfate tend to be easier on sensitive scalps than sodium lauryl sulfate. Rumors that these chemicals can cause cancer are unfounded. While surfactants are irritating, shampoos don't contain high-enough levels to cause any real damage. Surfactants aren’t a problem unless you have sensitive skin or insist on regularly pouring gallons of the stuff in your eyes. And the cleansers shouldn’t be harmful to your hair. The shampoos sold today contain conditioners that compensate for the stripping qualities of surfactants, so you can wash daily without worry.2.表面活***劑。基本上就是一種清潔劑。這個添加劑起的作用最大。它把周圍的污垢和油脂溶解。然後清水就能將它們沖洗乾淨。像十二烷基硫酸銨和十二酯硫酸銨這樣的成分比十二烷基硫酸鈉更容易被敏感頭皮接受。有傳聞説這些化學成分能致癌，完全是無稽之談。雖然表面活***劑有刺激***，但是洗髮水裏成分濃度不高，不會造成任何實際傷害。除非你是敏感***膚質或者你堅持定期將洗髮水幾加侖地往眼睛裏倒，表面活***劑就不會帶來什麼問題。現在銷售的洗髮水中都含有護髮素，這就能彌補表面活***劑的剝離特***。所以你可以放心地每天洗頭
3. Foaming agents. Ingredients like cocamide or cocamidopropyl betaine provide the satisfying suds that complete the hair-washing experience. Lather, however, is purely aesthetic. “Lather doesn’t have anything to do with how well a shampoo works,” says Ni’Kita Wilson, a cosmetics chemist for Cosmetech Laboratories. “Manufacturers put lathering agents in shampoos because it’s what consumers expect.”3.發泡劑。如椰子酰胺和椰油酰胺丙基甜菜鹼這樣的成分能夠帶來豐富泡沫。這些泡沫圓滿了整個洗頭髮的體驗過程。然而，泡沫僅僅是審美上的需要。一位Cosmetech研究所的化粧品化學家尼·基塔·威爾遜説道，“泡沫和洗髮水的功效完全沒有關係。製造商在洗髮水中加入發泡劑，不過是為了滿足顧客的期望
4. An acidic ingredient. Items like sodium citrate or citric acid on your shampoo label are added to keep shampoo at the right pH level. The acidic pH interacts with the hair's slightly negative charge to help the cuticle, the outer layer of the hair, maintain a smooth, flat surface.4．一種酸***成分。你的洗髮水標籤寫着的如檸檬酸鈉或者檸檬酸成分。加入這些成分是為了使洗髮水保持合適的PH值。酸***PH值和頭髮上的微量的負電荷相互作用，以此來幫助毛小皮，即頭髮表面的一層，保持表面光滑平整。
5. Silicones like dimethicone, or anything ending in 'one.' These are polymers that deposit a lightweight coating on the hair. They help create smoothness and add shine.5．硅樹脂，如二甲基硅油，或者任何以“one”拼寫結尾的物質。這些聚合物在頭髮上形成一層輕薄的保護膜。它們有助頭髮順滑，增加發質光澤。6. Polyquaternium. Much like a fabric softener, it helps make hair more manageable by depositing a fatty conditioner and fighting static. It also thickens the shampoo formula so it’s easier to pour.6. 聚季銨鹽。 和織物柔順劑很相似，它能形成一層脂肪狀的護髮素，趕走靜電，讓頭髮更易打理。它也增稠洗髮水配方，這就更容易倒出來。
7. Panthenol, fatty alcohols, and nut oils. These common additives moisturize and lock in hydration.7. 泛酰醇，脂肪醇和堅果油。這些常見的添加劑能增加並鎖住水分。8. Midazolidinyl urea, iodopropynyl, isothiazolinone, and sodium benzoate. “Unless you want your shampoo to grow legs and walk away, you need preservatives,” Wilson says. Since many of the other ingredients are made from organic materials, they can grow mold and bacteria. These additives keep your shampoo from turning into a science project.8. 尿素醛，碘代丙炔基氨基甲酸丁，異噻唑啉酮和苯酸鈉。“如果你不想讓你的洗髮水長腿跑掉，你就需要防腐劑。”威爾遜説道。由於很多其他成分是由有機材料製成，它們會發黴，滋生細菌。這些防腐劑就能防止讓你的洗髮水變成一個科學實驗。
“Most often, the ingredients lower down on the list aren’t present in high-enough concentrations to have any impact on the shampoo’s performance,” Begoun says. Natural extracts and other additives that manufacturers brag about on the label don’t do much for your hair, but they might make the experience more enjoyable by adding a little color or fragrance to the process. Of course, judging by the number of women (and men) sniffing shampoo in the personal-care aisle of the drugstore, fragrance is a big part of the shampoo equation. To wit: the phenomenon that was Gee, Your Hair Smells Terrific.“多數情況下，排名靠後的成分由於沒有足夠的濃度，不會對洗髮水的功效產生影響。”貝崗説道。製造商在標籤上大力吹噓的天然提取物和其他添加劑對你的頭髮並沒什麼用處。但是通過在過程
