HAIR CARE
More manageable, less damaged hair with Crodafos CES
Many African women relax their hair so that it’s easier to manage. Traditional relaxers are damaging, so Croda South Africa has developed a safer, effective relaxer system using Crodafos CES.
C
roda South Africa recently conducted consumer focus
them. These bonds are found within cystine molecules, the key
group research and interviewed, amongst others, a group
amino acid within the principle protein of hair – keratin. Strong
of more than 30 African women with relaxed hair. When we
actives in relaxers are known to break and reform bonds within
asked why they relaxed their hair, their feedback centred
the hair, causing damage to the scalp and hair fibres.
mostly around manageability, including the need to comb, style and maintain a neat, longer, more practical hairstyle. Relaxers on the market will give consumers longer, more manageable
DO AWAY WITH DAMAGE Croda’s Centre of Excellence in Johannesburg, South Africa,
hair, but not without damaging the hair fibres and scalp. The chemical
is doing extensive research on African hair with one area
reactions that take place during relaxing cause breakage, altering and
of focus being relaxers. ‘We wanted to produce a relaxer
reforming of different bonds within the hair. As a relaxer diffuses into hair
formulation that will give straight, longer, easier to comb and
fibres, it readily disrupts hydrogen bonds and salt bridges. Disulphide
more manageable hair, without causing damage to the hair
bonds, which covalently link two adjacent polypeptide chains, are very
fibres. Crodafos CES is our solution to reduced hair cuticle
strong bonds and typically require a strong chemical reaction to break
damage,’ explains Christien Gordon, technical manager at Croda South Africa. Figure 1: Virgin African hair tresses ranging from curl type VI to VII
Table 1: Crodafos CES Base Relaxer
Part A
Part B
Part C
Relaxer A
14
| QUARTER 1 2018 | P C Africa
Ingredient/INCI Name
Functionality
% w/w
Crodafos CES (Cetearyl Alcohol (and) Dicetyl Phosphate (and) Ceteth-10 Phosphate)
Hair relaxing emulsifier base
5
Crodacol C90 (Cetyl Alcohol)
Viscosity builder
5
Petroleum Jelly (Petrolatum)
Occlusive
18
Mineral Oil (Paraffinum Liquidum)
Occlusive
13
Water Deionised (Aqua)
-
48.9
Propylene Glycol
Humectant
2
Water Deionised (Aqua)
-
6
Sodium Hydroxide
Hair straightening active
2.1