Why BRUNS chooses to avoid silicones – for you, your hair, and our shared planet
When we founded BRUNS, we had a clear vision: to create hair care that not only delivers beautiful outward results, but also nourishes deeply and respects both people and the environment. With decades of experience in the hairdressing profession and more than ten years as product developers, we have learned how certain ingredients negatively affect both hair health and the environment. One such ingredient is silicones.
What are silicones and why are they used?
Silicones are synthetic substances often used in traditional hair care products to give the hair a smooth, shiny finish. They work by forming a thin film around each hair strand, creating an immediate feeling of softness and shine. But this effect is only temporary. Over time, silicones can create more problems than they solve.
The problem with silicones
We saw it often in the salon. Hair that felt heavy, flat, and hard to style. Many times, it was due to a buildup of silicones and other coatings. They prevent moisture and nutrients from penetrating the hair shaft. The hair becomes dry, brittle, and loses its natural shine.
It doesn't stop at the lengths. When the coatings also build up around the scalp, an unbalanced environment is created. Many people experience an oily, irritated, and reactive scalp, while the lengths feel dry and lifeless.
Rinsing silicones out is also difficult. When the hair feels dull and lackluster, it's easy to reach for more products that also contain silicones, in the hope of getting the shine back. This is exactly what the traditional hair care industry often plays on: when the products that promised shine instead make the hair flat and lifeless, they tempt you with even more products that are meant to solve the problem they created.. But in reality, only more layers are built up, and the hair, as well as the scalp, gradually loses its natural health and vitality.
Coatings can come from more than just hair care products. Exhaust fumes, hard water, and metals – especially in old wells – can also build up coatings that make hair difficult to style.
Environmental impact
Silicones used in hair care products are often difficult for nature to break down. When we wash our hair, they end up in wastewater and can spread further to lakes and oceans. There, they risk remaining for a long time and disrupting the delicate balance of ecosystems.
Many of these silicones also have the ability to accumulate in plants and animals, a process known as bioaccumulation. This means they can become part of the food chain and affect both wildlife and the environment over time.
Want to avoid silicones yourself? Take a look at the ingredients list. If something ends in cone, conol, or siloxane, it's a silicone.
Our solution: natural hair care with real results
At BRUNS, we instead use natural ingredients such as aloe vera, plant-based oils, and proteins that genuinely care for the hair. They provide shine, moisture, and strength without creating harmful buildup.
(Today we also use natural alternatives to silicones that have been shown to deliver incredible results. We will write more about this in an upcoming blog post.)
To give the hair a chance to start fresh, we have developed our Detox Shampoo N°04. It dissolves old buildup and restores the hair's natural vitality and shine. When you then follow up with our hair mask, you get intense moisture and nourishment that seals in the results. Together, you get hair that not only looks healthy, but actually is healthy.
For us, hair care is about real results, sustainability, and care. Not quick fixes that only create more problems.
Read more about the impact of silicones at the Swedish Chemicals Agency and ECHA: