Citric Acid for Hair?

So admit it we have all tried it right, wanting your hair colour A little lighter in the Summer by adding some pure lemon juice in our hair.





This is how I like to use my Lemon!

Pure Lemon juice (Citric Acid ) will dry out your hair as it opens up the hair cuticle and can leach any minerals out of your hair leading to breakage stripping out moisture and changing your natural hair colour . This works by the acid in the lemons and the UV rays and acid oxidation.

But Citric Acid isn't all bad it does have some purpose too. Citric acid is used in shampoos to bring the pH levels down in shampoo and helps remove soap scum . This helps to the hair follicles lay flat giving your hair a smooth and shiny appearance. Citric acid also hinders bacterial growth in your favorite shampoo.

• So the pH levels of Lemon and your hair and shampoo and water are;

• pH levels are as follows 7 being neutral. Any number before 7 is Alkaline and any number before 7 is an Acid.

• Shampoo pH of 5.5


• Lemon (Citric acid) pH of 2


• Hair and skin as a pH level between 4.5 and 5.5


• Water pH level of  7

Mixing lemon juice in water will bring the pH balance down but this depends on how much water to lemon juice is used.

So to conclude should you use Lemon in your hair as a rinse? This is up to you but I would water it down a lot. Citric acid is used in shampoos and will give the the same results / similar results as a Lemon or Vinegar rinse helping the cuticles lie flat. But the shampoos have been tried and tested. As for putting on pure Lemon juice to lighten hair is a risk I would not want to take.