What exactly is Hard Water?
Hard water, is the type of water that contains minerals such as Calcium and Magnesium ions. The minerals come into water when it flows over stones/rocks that erode and assimilate into it on contact with it. Hard water typically contains a concentration of molecules such as CaCO3 (Calcium Carbonate), of 120+ppm [1].
Does it really cause hairfall &/or hair-damage?
The answer is nuanced. Some research papers [2] report as follows : "Our study designed to study the hair under the usual circumstances showed that there was no statistical difference in the tensile strength and elasticity between the hairs treated with hard water and distilled water, however in the presence of higher salt content or if the hair is exposed to hard water for longer periods, the findings may be altered."
while some blogs such as the science-y hairblog report as follows :
"Hard water minerals bond to hair in the same way that conditioner does. It also finds its way beneath the surface layers. The more damaged the hair (heat, highlighting, permanent color, relaxer, permanent wave, brushing, sunlight, mechanical damage), the more minerals will bond to it." [3]
That said there's significant anecdotal evidence of people reporting worse hair on moving to areas with hard water with social media sites such as reddit teeming with post after post on hard water issues. This is also true for bangalore specific subreddits, where this is a commonly cited issue.
What's a possible solution to hard-water buildup in hair?
A possible solution is a shampoo made with chelating agents. Chelating agents are molecules that bind to the minerals, and pull these away from your hair. At Locàle, we're engineering a chelating agent centered hard water shampoo specifically for Bangalore.
The question of the specific issue of hard water in bangalore, is what we'll cover in the next blog, stay tuned!
[1] This categorization is provided by the United States Geological Survey, cited in the 2013 paper titled "Effects of Hard Water on Hair" & may vary.
[2] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3927171/#ref3
[2] https://science-yhairblog.blogspot.com/2016/03/hard-water-and-your-hair.html