Episode 362 - Hair Care Hacks: Frizz Control, Safe Dandruff Solutions, and Finding Perfect Product Dupes

Perry Romanowski (0:00)

Hi, I'm Perry, and you're listening to The Beauty Brains. Hello, and welcome to The Beauty Brains, a show where real cosmetic chemists answer your beauty product questions and give you an insider's look at the cosmetic industry. This is episode 362 I'm your host, Perry Romanowski, and with me today is Valerie George. Hello, Valerie.

Valerie George (0:30)

Hi, Perry.

Perry Romanowski (0:31)

Hey, Valerie, we got a big show today, and it's very hairy, because we got a lot of hair questions. So on today's show, we are going to find out about what should you look for in hair care products to prevent frizz on humid days? What anti-dandruff ingredients are okay for colored hair? How do you find a suitable dupe for an expensive conditioner? Can a product repel water on hair? And do heat protectants really inhibit the ability to crimp your hair? But first, some chit chat. We're going to New York next week, aren't we?

Valerie George (1:05)

Live from New York, The Beauty Brains, Valerie and Perry.

Perry Romanowski (1:09)

Yeah, that ought to be fun. There's an annual trade show there called Suppliers Day, and we're going to be in there. Actually, and I'm teaching a course there out there on Tuesday, so I'll be out there Tuesday through, or actually, I'm out there. I'm leaving Saturday, but nice. I'll do a show on show on Tuesday and Wednesday and then head home on Thursday. How about you?

Valerie George (1:31)

I will actually be working at a booth. I'm going to put my salesperson hat on because there is a company that needs some technical support for the show.

The show is basically set up so that chemists can walk the floor, stop by an ingredient supplier, and ask technical questions about a product, or a product meaning an ingredient or a prototype. And the company that I will be working for that day needed technical support because it is such a big show. And so they said, Valerie, you know our portfolio in and out. Can you please come help us because we think you're going to be amazing with your salesperson hat on. And I said, you know what, sounds fun.

Perry Romanowski (2:11)

It does sound fun. So yeah, I look forward to seeing you and all of our industry friends that we see out there. So if you're going to be out there in New York, feel free to say hello.

Valerie George (2:23)

Yes, please stop by and say hi.

Perry Romanowski (2:25)

Speaking of hi, what's that squeaking going on in the background there?

Valerie George (2:29)

Oh my gosh, Perry, we have so much construction going on in the lab. And just this past week, I started hearing this scratching noise all over the building. And it is a tree that must be falling into the building. I don't know, it is springtime. We've had a ton of rain in Texas. So I have to walk over to the building next door and say, Mr, this giant tree has got to go. Please cut part of it down immediately. Not the whole thing, just some of the limbs that are rubbing into my building.

Perry Romanowski (3:00)

Remember, a few years ago, I talked about that mulberry tree in my neighbor's thing, and they were all over my yard?

Valerie George (3:07)

Yeah.

Perry Romanowski (3:08)

Well, they cut down the mulberry tree.

Valerie George (3:10)

Nice.

Perry Romanowski (3:11)

That's all gone. Yeah, so that's fun.

Now I can have a garden and everything. It's nice.

Valerie George (3:17)

Good for you.

Perry Romanowski (3:18)

But you know what I won't be doing is growing stuff in my garden to put in cosmetics.

Valerie George (3:22)

That seems like a terrible idea, if I have to be honest.

Perry Romanowski (3:26)

It does, as does buying products from the internet. So why don't we head over to the news and talk about it?

Valerie George (3:37)

Oh, goodness. Well, this is very sad because a woman has passed away after using a hemorrhoid cream laced with lead.

Perry Romanowski (3:49)

Wait, how did she get lead laced at her local grocery store or something?

Valerie George (3:55)

No, she actually was browsing Facebook. The woman was Vietnamese. And on Facebook, she saw that there was this hemorrhoid cream from Vietnam. So she purchased it and a relative shipped it to her from Vietnam to the United States in a personal package. After using the ointment, the woman experienced lead poisoning symptoms and passed away. And upon inspection, health officials found that the product had about 4% lead, which typically lead is only found in parts per million, parts per billion, and it's totally safe. 4% is, wow, that has to be an intentional addition.