Using shampoo and conditioner is something that is in a lot of peoples daily routines, it is portrayed as something you need to use to have healthy hair and a clean scalp although this really isn't the case.
From my experience shampoos along with conditioners are a complete scam, you see adds constantly on TV saying how these two things are so important and so good for you, however that just isn't the case.
Naturally the scalp produces oils to keep the head clean and keep your hair strong, when you wash your hair regularly with shampoo it washes away these natural oils which makes your body produce more to keep up with you washing it out. This means that your body produces to much oil to keep up with the rate it is being washed out at.
So from using shampoo and conditioner it makes you need to use it whereas if you don't use it you don't need it. Shampoo and conditioners also have huge amounts of chemicals in them that are considered safe if not ingested and if washed of your body but if a chemical has to be thoroughly washed of your skin and not ingested then surely it isn't very safe at all.
Buying these products is also bad for the environment as they are synthetic along with coming in plastic bottles, this causes even more of a drag on our already depleting natural resources, all for a product that is not needed at all. It will also save you money which is never a bad thing.
What about natural shampoo?
Natural shampoo is definitely a lot better than the alternative as it doesn't contain the harmful products and is generally more environmentally friendly, however it is usually pretty expensive. Though the main factor of why I say don't buy natural shampoo or conditioner is because it is not needed, the same as non-natural there really is just no need for it as a product.
People also talk about just using completely natural ingredients to make their own hair washes however again it just isn't necessary, water on its own does the job just fine.
Expectations
Often people think that if they stop using shampoo their hair will be greasy, smelly, dry and unhealthy. Which can be the case but only for a short amount of time, when you stop using these products there will be a few month period where your hair will be slightly more greasy/dry and it might smell but only if you are to put your nose into your hair, it won't be something you can smell normally and if you wash your hair just with water daily these drawbacks should be minimal.
Reality
After this short amount of time your hair and scalp will be completely fine, there will be no smell, your hair won't be greasy and it won't be dry. I can say this with conviction as I personally haven't used shampoo or conditioner for over two years and my hair feels nicer than ever, it doesn't smell bad or look unhealthy and it grows out thicker than before.
I personally stopped using any product in my hair because I have bad reactions to chemicals in a large majority of them and it just cost too much to buy natural products. I was thinking to myself what can I do with my hair and I just thought people that live in tribes or more remotely don't use any products in their hair and on TV shows they look fine, so I just stopped using products with no regrets. Then about 6 months in I looked up to see what other people have to say on the topic and realized I made the right decision.
So save yourself the pennies and do something for the planet, every little helps.