Warning About Pantene Shampoo and Conditioner for Women of Color

For me, I have used all kinds of shampoos and even went to the salon
and the recommended a nexxus brand claiming it would work. Before
then I was using pantene for women of color and it was working fine
for me Knowing the other shampoos I was using messed up my hair. The
Lady at the salon told me don't us pantene. After I used the whole
bottle of nexxus it messed my hair up soooo bad I went back to
pantene. It went to work and I saw the huge difference it made. I'm
Hispanic and black so I have a mix of both types of hair which is
really hard to deal with let alone finding the right shampoo to work
with it. Pantene is doing good for me too. I was thinking the person
that made this little article could have been allergic to some of the
products and maybe should figure out what it is that shes allergic to.

I am 24 years old and I just started using pantene for women of color
the anti-dandruff and the anti-breakage conditioner since march 2009.
My hair has grown a lot since then. I even go to a salon to get my
hair relaxed and my beautician even uses a different kind of shampoo
on me and it doesnt effect my hair. Not every shampoo works for
everyone. just bc you are a woman of color doesnt mean that this
shampoo is gonna work for you.

I have read your feedback about the Pantene product and I agree that
the product is not good. As a matter of fact, I think that for anyone,
with any type of non-stick straight hair, the Pantene product line
does a lot of damage to the hair. I don't what it is about the shampoo
and conditioners, it truly makes hair more dry and brittle.

I recall years ago, in the late 90's I tried Pantene and after one use
my dry hair turned to straw. Literally hours after I shampooed and
conditioned. No product benefits everyone, but I was truly surprised
that not only did it not help my already dry hair, but made it worse.
I haven't used it since until last week (September 10, 2009), when I
watched the commercial for their "new" Moisture Renewal and the claim
of how it's guaranteed to fix damaged hair. Well, I bought both the
shampoo and conditioner. I shampooed once, left the conditioner on for
about 5 minutes or so. I applied some Mousse and let it air dry. At
first it looked great and later in the day my hair puffed up and
looked like I had burned it with a chemical. I really thought maybe it
was the dry weather, although it has been dry for weeks and my hair
did not look this way before using Pantene.

So I didn't wash my hair the next day, but the following day I
shampooed again, and this time left the conditioner on longer thinking
it would do more good. Again, followed the same regimen of Mousse, air
dry. I did this in the evening before bed and when I woke the next
morning my hair was so "fried" looking, and when I wet it to style, it
made crunching sounds and the ends started breaking off. I went
outside and glanced in the car mirror because I was worried, and it
seemed like the product actually striped the color from my hair as my
dark hair looked reddish orange. I am not exaggerating, it looks like
I have burned my hair with relaxer or kept a perm solution on too
long.

I have put the two bottles back in the bag and taking them back to
Target. I will never, ever use any Pantene brand product. I don't care
what this company says to change my mind. I am not going to even
bother to call them. I don't want their coupon, I don't want to hear
them apologize, I don't want to explain this really bad experience.

I am sure there are plenty of people who's hair responds well to
Pantene, they have been around forever and have a huge selection of
products, but on thick, course hair, of any ethnicity, it does not
work well. I think it's made for people with already healthy hair that
is straight and long. That's what I think and that is based on my two
experiences several years apart. I didn't use or do anything different
the days prior, during or after using Pantene. I didn't put any
chemicals, or new styling product. I let my hair air dry, didn't over
comb it.

I think their is a problem in how it reacts to certain hair. Again, my
hair is short, thick and course. I do color it every 6 weeks or so and
have for years. I have used many brands of shampoo's and conditioners.
Some do great! Some don't. But none of them made my hair worse, and
break off like Pantene.

I am a Hispanic female and used to relax my hair every three months. I
have been using Pantene products since I was a kid in the late
eighties early nineties. I have recently stopped relaxing one year
ago. I started using Pantene for Women of Color just last month. Let
me tell you, it has done wonders for me and my daughters hair. It
literally made me feel like I have relaxed my hair. After blow drying
and combing our hair out---it made it feel healthy and natural. I also
flat ironed it and it felt GREAT!!! The way its supposed to feel just
as if you were at a salon. Pantene has been in our family for years
and I am sorry this happened to you. But, you do need to find what
works for you.

Zunilda
Flushing, NY

Two months ago I bought Pantene Curly Conditioner and smooth
shampoo... not the product for women of color. My hair was always so
thick that stylists would comment on it. Over two weeks my hair
strands started to feel thinner and pulled out easily. Then it just
began falling out. It took me too long to figure out that the only
change I made was to buy Pantene products.

I threw the bottles out, not even bothering to recycle. I don't want
to put whatever scary stuff is in those bottles into the water system.

THIS IS SO WEIRD.I WENT ON VACATION LAST WEEK AND I FORGOT TO PACK MY
GOOD SHAMPOO AND CONDITIONER.I WENT OUT AND GOT PANTENE PRODUCTS
BECAUSE I ORDER MY REGULAR HAI CARE PRODUCTS ONLINE.I WASHED MY HAIR
AND IT KNOTTED UP SO BAD I COULDNT GET A BRUSH THRU IT.IM WHITE SO IT
AFFECTED MY HAIR THE SAME AS IT DID WOMEN OF COLOR.I DONT KNOW WHATS
IN THIS PRODUCT BUT I WANT TO FIND OUT.MY NIECE ALSO USED THE PANTENE
AND HER HAIR DID THE SAME THING.MY HAIR STARTED COMING OUT SOME BUT IT
WAS BREAKING OFF MORE THAN FALLING OUT.IF ANYONE HAS INFO ABOUT WHAT I
CAN DO PLEASE LET ME KNOW.

I am so sorry to hear about your experience with using pantene hair
care products. It definitely worked for me and has saved me money in
that I don't go to the hair salon to have my hair done unless I need a
retouch. I've found that when I use the Pantene hair conditioner for
women of color, it softens the new growth which means I can wait an
extra few weeks before getting my retouch. I only wish I came across
this product during the years when I've been trying to save money. I
love this product.

I've been using pantene for two months now, not only on my hair but my
childern and clients hair. The results have been great my
hair,children, and clients hair is growing longer thicker and a shine
that i have never experienced. Every bodies hair can't take certain
products, I had a bad experince with african pride produts and I would
not recommend that produt to anyone. you have to find what works for
you.

I had purchased the Pantene Shampoo for Women of Color for my 4 year
old since she is mixed and most childrens shampoos do not condition
enough. After using it I always noticed there was quite a bit of hair
in the tub after bathing her. I always thought that the hair left in
the tub was from using rubber bands in her hair and it just made the
hair brittle. Recently while in the shower I grabbed my daughters
shampoo on accident instead of mine and from the moment I put it on my
head there was issues. It burned and itched really bad so I rinsed my
hair thoroughly and finished my shower. Well when I got out of the
shower my head was still burning and my roommate covinced to get back
in and rinse it some more. When I got back into the shower my hair
started falling out in clumps and my scalp felt like it was on fire. I
got out of the shower and went to the ER and was told it was a
chemical burn. By this point I had some small blisters and such on my
scalp and over 3/4 of my hair was gone. The hair that hadn't fallen
out was severly damaged and matted/fused together at the scalp. I was
left with no choice but to shave my head the rest of the way.

The next day I contacted pantene by email and their response was to
send me a refund check for the amount I paid for the shampoo and they
would forward my email to their health and safety department. So I
went from having hair a couple inches past my shoulders to being bald
and they didn't even care. We aren't even going into the emotional
trama. I was hysterical for the first 24 hours and then the days that
followed I would burst into tears everytime I looked in a mirror. I
have told everyone I know about this situation and doing my best to
get my story out there so no one else has to go through an experience
like this.

I'm sorry this happened to you. My mom and I have been using Pantene
Women of Color products since last summer, and we love it. It has been
great for our hair. We wash/condition once a week with Pantene, and
every other week we go to the salon.

BUT, one time we bought Pantene products from a new Beauty store in
town, and the bottles looked really old and dusty, we brought it home
any way because we were out of them. When we opened them, it just
didn't look/smell right, so we returned it the next day. I'm pretty
sure if we had used it, the same thing that happened to you would have
happened to us.

Now, we only get our Pantene products from stores we can trust
(usually CVS or stop&shop) to take old bottles off the shelves and
put on the newest ones. Pantene Women of Color has always worked great
for us, and I can't speak for my mom, but I will continue to use them,
I especially like the anti-dandruff shampoo and the intense
moisturizer shampoo & conditioner products. also, make sure to
follow the instructions as on the bottle and not a minute longer.

I have been using Pantene for women of color for the past 6 months and
o have nothing but good results from it. I am not saying what happened
to you is not tragic, which it is, my personal experience has been a
good one. I wish you all the best of luck in resolving this issue that
Proctor and Gamble SHOULD be responsible for.


Signed,

Annie
Ocala, Florida

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! For taking the time to write this
warning to others. I am SO sorry for your experience!. There was
probably some mishap in the production of the product, which can
happen b/c we are all human, but for Pantene to take no responsibility
for the damage their product caused is OUTRAGEOUS & INEXCUSABLE. I was
actually searching for products by Pantene that I can use for my hair,
but now due to their complete lack of customer concer, especially for
such an appalling situation, I will NEVER use their products again.
THANK YOU & BEST OF LUCK!

Alicia, MASS

Wow, this is a real issue, I can testify to this issue of hair
thinning/falling out and knotting up. My hair too was very thick and
long, now, it is very thin and fragile. I have a small black mark on
my forehead from the shampoo dripping, this is no conincidence.I want
something done about this; as a women of color, I treasure my hair. In
so many ways, my hair defines me, my mood, and my culture. More
testing should have been completed before putting this product on the
market. At first, the product seemed to be nice for my hair. Is there
anything that is going to be done about this drastiv and major hair
loss? I challenge the makers of Pantene to respond, own up for once,
don't ignore our feelings or our concerns, and heartaches. If you do
so, it will show that you don't stand by your product, don't care
about the women of color who purchsed your product and lastly, it will
verify that you are in the business to traumatize women of color by
not accepting responsibility for your actions. Please respond as you
would want someone to so for you.

Sorry about your experience if it's true, BUT.... I love Pantene's
women of color product. They're all very good products and the best
if you ask me. The conditioner leaves my hair very soft and
manageable. Pantene is GREAT!!!!! Maybe it was just the bottles you
purchased.

Earline

Your feedback was probably forwarded to the development department, if
it wasn't it should have been. You speaking directly to someone in a
laboratory is in my opinion unlikely-

Truth is without several complaints; the company will probably not put
resources into investigating your horrible experience. I was actually
shocked when I read your article because I love Pantene for Women of
color, so much so, that I have been having it shipped to me from the
USA. The product that ruined my hair was a L'Oreal Shampoo that is
still sitting bellow my bathroom sink full except for the tablespoon I
used that day.

Get a life! Your issue sounds like it has nothing to do with the
actual product. Or maybe you used a product or relaxer 2 to 3 weeks
prior and the Pantene aggrevated the situation. I've been using
Pantene for over a year and I have some of the most fragile relaxed
hair there is and I have never had an issue with my hair being so
tangled that it took 10 hours to detangle. Burn Marks, Come on! Stop
being a drama queen. I can understand having an allergic reaction to a
shampoo or conditioner because I have had plenty of those. Do you
really expect anyone to believe this nonsense story. If you had such a
bad experience with the products in the past, why be stupid enough to
use them again.

You should be ashamed, not Proctor & Gamble. I wouldn't be surprised
if you worked for the competitiion. This sounds like the type of
nonsense they would write.

You are the one who need to get a life! Just because you use this
product and it workd for you does not mean it did not do excatly what
these women say it done to them. You are not an expert on anybody's
hair except your own..maybe! You have no idea as to what may have
occured when these women use this product . Your remark only shows how
inconsiderate you are of others... You would have to be the stupidest
individual on this earth to make and actually post the statemetn above
regarding these women expereince with this product ..You dont know..
they may have easily gotten a bad batch for all any of us know... this
is why the company should be held responsibe! And it is very possible
that something in their ingredients may have been too much or too
little and cause the adverse affect! you dont know just as I dont. but
what I do know is that I dont beleive these women would get on this
forum about their damage hair jutt to be looked upon as Drama Queen"
seems to me you are the Drama Queen!
Any 10 year old understands the fact that what works for one
individual may not neccessarilly work for others. And to be honest
Pantene ,Proctor and Gambel shoud be responsible for the awful
experience these women have edured using thier product. If any big
company like Proctor and Gambe or any other are not repsosnibel for
what they put out on the market for the consumers to use who in the
hell is... especially when it affects them in an manner that causes
them harm..may it be emotionally , physicall or otherwise. All
companies should be held Resposnible for any and all advers affects. I
have never used this "Pantene for women of color, but I have been
thinking about using it but since I have read these complaint adn the
poor service they got form teh company I know I want be using this
period! Actually they better be glad it was them instead fo me
becasuse I dont lie down to be stomped on.. i'll spend every dime i
got and i would go aftter them with everything I have! But they will
pay!~

First of all, it's not about being a Drama Queen and it's true that
some hair either doesn't respond well, or reacts negatively to
products, including Pantene. Clearly they are pleasing a lot of people
as they have a huge product line. But, I also think that some of the
postings here are exaggerated and or, the people using have either
underlying problems with their hair or they had a chemical recently
put on and the shampoo was too harsh, the combination had adverse
results.

I do not believe that as bad a product as I think Pantene is, that is
made someone's hair fall out and they went bald. Whether or not they
admit it, there is something else going on, or yes, with any product,
there is always that one situation that is extreme.

I am beginning to think that one or more ingredients in Pantene are
too harsh for certain types of hair, or hair that a chemical is, or
has been applied. It almost has a detergent type of reaction which if
so would explain the breakage and dryness.

The thing is, even if you burned your hair with a relaxer, you would
not go bald in a couple of days. So to state that you go bald from
shampooing is dumb. Yes, your hair can break off, and if you have
kinky, course, thick hair and yank it when it's not in good condition,
it's going to come out.

I think that people who exaggerate whether on purpose to make their
point, or out of emotion and just want to blame it actually dilutes
the feedback left because then company's such as Pantene will just
read these and think everyone is a nut.

Thank you so very much for putting this information out there I am
also a woman of color and I was doing some research on Pantane for
woman of color now I am glad I did and did not just go out and buy it.
I have never used any of their products and because of you and the
pain you had to go through I never will and I too will put the word
out not to use it
again thanks for the warning.

Marie
Milwaukee WI

I've been using Pantene for women of color for six months. I love
their products it has never given me any problems, it makes my hair
soft and gives my hair shine. Pantene has stop my hair from shedding.
My hair is long and healthy and I thank Pantene for that.I would
recommend pantene for all women of color. I'm very picky when it comes
to my hair and don't use just any type of products on it. I love
Pantene Products.

I am sorry to hear about your misfortune with Pantene, because I use
the products and find it to be very good. Yes, there is some tangling
of the hair, after shampooing But by using a extra wide tooth comb and
properly knowing how to comb out your hair I really didn't have a
problem. I check with my beautician and she went through the steps on
how I should wash and conditions my hair. She even compliments me when
I go every 6 weeks for my perm touch-up. I now use the breakage
defense and it is fabulous. I learn to pray before I do any and
everything and the Lord grants me favor.
Be Bless
carlinda@aol.com

My name is Cynthia. I was very sorry to hear what happen to you hair.
I am also a woman of color and I also used the Pantene products for
women of color. I too had complaints about the products that I used
from Pantene. The harsh ingredients that the products contain left my
scab very dry and sore. I no long use any product with harsh
chemicals. I started using a different product and I have had very
good results. I would love to share with you the name of the
products. You can email me at cybrown551@verizon.net.