I stumbled across Jyoan’s review on this shampoo so the next time I was at a Carrefour hypermarket, I looked it up. The reason I picked it up eventually was because it said it helped with an itchy scalp.
I was still on Tsubaki shampoo and conditioner at this point, so yes, my scalp was super itchy! At just RM18.90/500ml I ran for the cashier with this in my grasp.
Did it help an itchy scalp? By the Gods, YES!
The shampoo has a lovely cool feel on the skin so once I lathered up and applied it to my hair, I leave it on for a few minutes and you can feel the cool minty tingling. Very nice. It killed the itchies in just 1 wash. Whew!
Downside : Get it in your eyes and you will be howling like a banshee! In fact, get it on your face and you’d feel the rivulets of cool mint rolling down your skin. Have fast reflexes and close your eyes or suffer the consequence :P
There is a nice fresh minty scent which is pleasing and it pours out very easily from its flip top bottle, which is great for the shower. This Malaysian made product claims to be natural and there is no Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) or Parabens. Very good.
So this shampoo is kind to the skin, and cleans hair a treat. It does leave my hair feeling a little dry (I don’t have oily hair) so I do follow up with a conditioner.
What’s the catch?
It dries the skin on my hands. Its not major. Nothing as bad as what happens when I use The Body Shop body products. But it still happens. I noticed this after 3-4 straight days of shampooing my hair and using the BioValley Tea Tree Shower Cream (will tell you about this another time) at the same time. Used separately the effect is less.
The ingredient list is surprisingly long for something that’s natural.
So, lovely as it is, affordable as it is, I may not repurchase because of this problem of it drying out the skin on my hands. Pity really. I thought I’d found something inexpensive that works.
Pros: Affordable, Cleans hair well, No SLS or Parabens, Lovely minty smell and cool feel on the skin and scalp
Cons: If you get this in your eyes, you will cry! Dried out the skin on my hands
I do not have oily hair so I do not know if it works for oily hair as claimed. If I use this too often my hair starts feeling very dry. So I use this on every alternate day or 3 times a week – only because I have it and I really like the cool minty feel on my scalp. The scent does not linger. Pity.
Oh and one more thing. Its been more than a month since I purchased this and the minty tingling feel on my scalp seems to have diminished with time. It was much more cooling when I first started using it, but now it doesn’t feel as nice anymore. Did I get used to it, or is it just a flaw?
Have you tried this one? Its pretty elusive – I think its found mostly at the supermarkets although I also spotted it at Guardian Pharmacy at KLCC.
Paris B
BioValley Alpine Mint and Herbal Shampoo retails at RM18.90/500ml at elusive places like Carrefour hypermarkets. I have spotted it at selected Guardian pharmacies too.
Hi Paris, I was curious about this but settled for Clear’s Anti-Itch shampoo instead. The first wash was like WOAH minty and also fixed the itch immediately. When I used it the second time, the WOAH feeling wasn’t there. Guardian sells the BioValley stuff now as well.
Is that the one with the tv ad where C. Ronaldo’s hair turns to ice? I get so “geli” seeing that :P
Hahah no, that one is the men’s Clear. This one is the generic white bottle, with the green theme (for anti-itch). Good thing about this is that it doesn’t dry your hands out (but you’ll have your SLS and parabens)
ah!!! ok ok I always associated Clear with men’s shampoo – power of advertising! :P
I think they’re just adding ingredients that are less commonly known, but are no better than SLS/parabens and not at all natural.
For example, ammonium lauryl sulfate is in fact harsher than sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate.
You could be right! I’m not familiar with all these chemical terms, but I did wonder what ammonium lauryl sulfate was and what it was doing in there. I’ve personally never had much problems with SLS :P
well, looking at it, it does contain surfactants (ALS, pareth-12, etc) and preservatives (methylchloroisothiazolinone, etc) and plenty of other chemicals which are common for shampoos….
now this got me interested. my itchy scalp has been quite irritating too.
You might like the cool minty feel :D
Super LOL at the geli Ronaldo hair thing. But i’m sure the ad was super succesful with the ladies if not the men, if only for the part where he closes his eyes and pretends to wash his hair. sigh. HAHAHA!
oh me never gets itchy scalp, no no problem! I use the Guardian’s organic rice shampoo, actually for an own brand it’s pretty good.
Ya its geli :P And I’m sure some men went into ecstacies over the ad too. Personally, he doesn’t do it for me – I think he might feel at home in the water than on the football pitch :P
ARGH! i cant believe u said the men gocrazy too part! ewww!
Oh, i only like him when he smiles. otherwise he’s very normal looking. just like Steven Strait. absolutely gorgeous when he smiles but the moment he stops it’s meh from every angle. hmm.
But its trueee… :P And nope smile or not still don’t like :P
What Liping said : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ammonium_lauryl_sulfate
i’m not liking the look of those other ingredients either… how to call this “natural”, there’s artificial fragrance added in there..
That explains the horrible peel on my hands. I’d rather use a regular synthetic product than something that claims to be natural and isn’t – bleh. Still that nice tingling feel on the scalp was nice while it lasted :)
ahhh… the minty shampoo sounded so good until I read the side effects. grrr…
Ya I won’t repurchase and the search for shampoo goes on
Hi Paris, not sure if this is available where you are but I highly recommend Paul Mitchell Tea Tree Special Shampoo. I have been using this and it always provides a nice tingle to my scalp. It also doesn’t give me any of the “cons” you’ve listed for BioValley.
Hmm… I’ve never really paid attention as to whether we have Paul Mitchell but I’ll be sure to keep an eye out for it :) Thanks for the rec!
oh, i did use this but for the dry dandruff one
anyway, the minty cooling thing is good but for the itchy and dandruff does not work very well.and it dries my hair too.
not going to repurchase
hi.. ;) im also using ths shampoo.. last time i bought at TESCO shah alam, but now after almost 2 month they still didnt restock ths item.. where else can i find ths range of product? tq.. ;)
My oh my… I’ve been looking for this shampoo high and dry. Anyone know where I can buy this? This is probably the best shampoo I’ve used. I have extremely oily hair and scalp and this one effectively cleans my scalp and leaves it tingling. I did not notice any side effects like drying of the hands etc. So anyone knows which supermarket, pharmacy sells this?