Hell Bent for Lather!

So, yesterday's post about Pantene got some of my readers a-buzzing. I think many of us have heard that shampoos do not need to lather in order to work. We've heard that they lather means that the shampoo contains harsh detergents that are bad for our hair. Despite this warning, many of us (myself included) like the full head of lather we get when we use products like Pantene.

Well...in order to debunk the myth that Pantene contains nasty detergents and to address the "lather" issue, a P&G Scientist for Pantene, Teca Gillespie, says that “shampoos are mild and specifically made for your hair, while detergents are made at a much higher concentration to clean clothes with stains.” Shampoo that lathers does not contain detergent, as lathering qualities are “added into the shampoo for the consumer experience, because consumers are expecting that the lather is there…but it doesn’t really have a function,” says Teca.

Further, Pantene recently conducted a series of technical and consumer blind tests against top salon brands and the results were just recently announced: 70% of the women tested agreed – their salon brand didn’t beat Pantene. (See? The Pantene Effect is a real thing!)

Below is the entire press release from Pantene about their recent testing. All I can say is this: Hello, my name is Lydia and I am a Pantene-aholic. Like I said earlier, Pantene products are a good buy and they make my hair look, feel, and smell good. I'm sticking with them!

PANTENE PRO-V PUT TO THE TEST
New Results Prove Women Can Now Save and Splurge

Pantene is proud to continually provide women with superior hair care products anchored in cutting-edge science that deliver outstanding health and beauty benefits.

To showcase the products’ advanced technologies and breakthrough ingredients, Pantene recently conducted a series of technical and blind tests designed to evaluate product performance against top salon brands. The tests show that Pantene delivers results that leading salon brands can’t beat!

Even in a tight economy women don’t have to compromise when it comes to their beauty routine. With Pantene, women can experience beautiful, healthy hair without breaking the bank.

Technical Tests
Technical tests were conducted to benchmark technical performance of Pantene versus leading salon brands.

• Top salon brands, as determined by the Kline report, were tested against new and improved Pantene shampoo and conditioner systems in a series of technical tests
  
• Each test utilized state-of-the-art technology and equipment to generate the most up-to-date and innovative data
  
• Results prove that no salon brand can beat the overall performance of Pantene products
  

Blind Tests
To further dimensionalize Pantene’s superior performance, a blind test was conducted with 3,600 salon brand users across the country. The participants used unmarked bottles of Pantene shampoo and conditioner systems specific to their hair needs for two weeks. They were then asked a series of questions about the quality and performance of the blinded Pantene products as compared to their usual salon brands.

• The results were clear, thousands of women preferred Pantene to their current salon brand
  
• 70% of the women tested agreed—Their Salon Brand Didn’t Beat Pantene
  
• When the participants were using the blinded Pantene Pro-V Brunette Expressions, 66% of these leading salon brand users would consider switching to it from their salon brand
  
• When the participants were using the blinded Pantene Pro-V Smooth system, 77% of these leading salon brand users said they preferred it for giving them smooth hair and 70% noticed the smooth hair benefit in the first week
  
• When participants were using the blinded Pantene Pro-V Beautiful Lengths system, 73% of these leading salon brand users preferred it for healthy-looking hair to their current salon brand and 64% noticed healthy-looking hair benefits in the first week
  

New & Improved Products Tested

• New Pantene Pro-V Conditioners contain terminal amino silicones for more targeted and effective silicone deposition resulting in increased conditioning benefits such as cuticle smoothing, added shine and protection against damage
  
• New Pantene Pro-V Expressions Shampoos utilize liquid crystal technology for vibrant color
  
• New Pantene Pro-V Nature Fusion Shampoos contain Cassia, a naturally derived performance ingredient that helps transform hair to make it softer, shinier and stronger