INTRODUCTION:

Hair, originating from the skin's ectoderm, is a crucial body component, serving as protective appendages and classified as an accessory structure of the integument, alongside sebaceous glands, sweat glands, and nails¹. Herbal shampoo, a cosmetic product, utilizes plant-based herbs for cleansing hair and scalp, functioning similarly to conventional shampoo. It offers a natural alternative to synthetic shampoos available commercially. Herbalists today advocate for enhancing health through natural means². The main purpose of shampoos is to cleanse the hair and scalp by eliminating unwanted dirt, debris, and dandruff while preserving the hair's natural oils³.

Herbal shampoo, a cosmetic formulation, employs plant-derived herbs as a substitute for synthetic shampoos on the market. Numerous medicinal plants are known for their positive effects on hair and are frequently incorporated into shampoo formulations. Evaluating these formulations is crucial to assess their performance, quality, and efficacy, as well as to ensure they do not have harmful toxic effects on the human body⁴. This study was conducted to identify a cosmetic product that is both safe and effective by analyzing various commercialized synthetic and herbal shampoo formulas. The evaluation includes quality control tests similar as visual examination and physiochemical assessments, including pH, dirt dissipation, solid content, wetting down time, face pressure, and rheological evaluations, in addition to foaming ability and foam stability.

Herbal Shampoo:

"Herbal shampoos are beauty products crafted with traditional Ayurvedic herbs, intended to clean the hair and scalp in a manner similar to conventional shampoos."⁵

Ideal Properties of Herbal Shampoo:

1. It should efficiently and thoroughly eliminate dust and excess oil.

2. Hair must be completely cleansed.

3. It should generate a generous amount of lather.

4. The shampoo should be easy to wash out with water.

5. Hair should remain soft, shiny, and manageable without any dryness.⁶

Fig No. 1: Herbal Shampoo

MATERIAL AND METHOD:

Collection of The Herbs:

Various plant parts known for their hair care benefits were chosen for this study. The selected plants include Reetha powder (Sapindus mukorossi), Bhrigaraj powder (Eclipta alba or Eclipta prostrata), Chia seed (Salvia hispanica L.), Flax seed (Linum usitatissimum), Jatamansi (Nardostachys jatamansi), Hibiscus flower (Hibiscus rosea), Vitamin E oil, and Rose oil, among others.

EXPERIMENTAL WORK:

Preparation of Extract:

The herbs were precisely measured using a digital scale. The raw herbs were gathered, and each ingredient was individually ground into a powder using a hand-operated mixer. The fine powder was then passed through a sieve numbered 120 and mixed separately with 100 ml of distilled water. This mixture was boiled until the water was reduced to one-fourth of its original volume. After boiling, the extract was allowed to cool to room temperature and then filtered through muslin cloth to obtain the final filtrate. All the crude drugs used in herbal shampoo were extracted by this process.^7,8

Fig No. 2: Extraction of above Ingredients

Formulation Table:

Table No. 1: Formulation Batches for preparation of Herbal Shampoo

Sr. No.	INGREDIENTS	Batch HS1 (25ml)	Batch HS2 (25ml)	Batch HS3 (25ml)	PURPOSE
1.	Reetha Extract (base cleanser)	9.5ml	9.5ml	8.5ml	Foaming agent
2.	Bhringraj Extract	2.5ml	3ml	2.5ml	Promote hair growth
3.	Chia seed gel	3ml	2.75ml	2ml	Hydrate hair and reduce breakage, Thickening agent
4.	Flax seed gel	2ml	2.75ml	3ml	Stimulate growth, nourish hair, reduce dandruff, add shine and softness Thickening agent
5.	Jatamansi Extract	2ml	1.25ml	2ml	Promote hair growth, reduce hair fall
6.	Hibiscus Extract	1.5ml	1.25ml	1.75ml	Conditioning agent, treat dandruff
7.	Almond oil	1.75ml	1.25ml	1.5ml	Moisturize hair, soften and strengthen
8.	Vitamin E oil	0.75ml	1.25ml	0.75ml	Promote healthy hair and scalp, hair texture, dandruff
9.	Rose essence	Q.s	Q.s	Q.s	Perfume

Method For Preparation Of Herbal Shampoo:

Take a bowl and add Reetha Extract, bhringraj extract, chia seed extract, flax seed extract. And mix well to get in equal composition.

Later add Jatamashi extract and Hibiscus extract.

Heat the total mixture on hot plate for few minutes.

Slowly whisk Almond oil and Vit.E oil until blended properly.

Cool the mixture and add few drops of rose essence to get the soothing smell.

Evaluation Parameter For Herbal Shampoo:⁹

1. Physical appearance: Consumers often evaluate shampoos based on their visual appeal, which includes clarity, color, and scent, reflecting the formulation's physical characteristics.

2. pH: The pH of the shampoo was measured in both 1% and 10% solutions using a pH meter at a room temperature of 25±2°C.

Fig No. 3: pH Determination

3. Dirt dispersion:

A 1% shampoo solution was mixed with water, and 10 ml of this diluted shampoo was combined with one drop of India ink. The test tube was sealed and shaken ten times. The ink's presence in the foam was categorized as none, light, moderate, or heavy. Shampoos that cause the ink to gather in the foam are deemed low quality, as the dirt should remain in the water. Dirt in the foam is hard to rinse and may redeposit on the hair.

4. Foaming ability and stability:

A test tube containing a 1% shampoo solution was shaken ten times. The cylinder shake method was employed to evaluate foam stability. A 10 ml sample of the vigorously prepared product was used. The test tubes were shaken lengthwise for 15 seconds at a specific frequency, also left to stand for 15 minutes. Foam stability was assessed by repeating the procedure and measuring the foam volume after 10 minutes.

Fig No. 4:Foam Ability Tes

4. Foaming ability and stability:

5. Percentage of solid contents :

A clean, dry sinking dish was used to hold four grams of the formulated soap. The dish containing the soap was counted with an electronic balance, and this original weight was noted as W₁. The dish was also placed on a hot plate until all the liquid faded. After cooling, the dish with the remaining solid content was counted again, and this weight was recorded as W₂. The chance(%) of solid content was determined using these measures.

W₃ – W₁

Solid Content(%) = _{––––––––––––––––}× 100

W₂ – W₁

Where,

W1= Weight of empty dish

W2= Weight of evaporating dish +Weight of Shampoo sample

W3= Weight of evaporating Dish + Weight of Dried Residue

6. Skin Irritation Test:

The set herbal soap was applied to the skin for five twinkles, after which the skin was checked for any signs of vexation or inflammation.

Fig No. 6: Skin Irritation Test

7.Washability: After applying the soap to your hands, wash them completely.

Fig No. 7: Washablity Test

8. Antimicrobial Activity:

In this procedure, agar is melted, cooled to 45°C, invested with the test microorganism, and poured into a sterile petri dish. Once the agar solidifies, holes roughly 9 mm in periphery are made in the medium using a sterile cork borer. The antimicrobial agent is placed in one hole, while a retailed expression serving as a standard is placed in another. After incubation at 30- 35 °C for 2- 3 days, the periphery of the zone of inhibition is measured, indicating the relative effectiveness of different antimicrobial substances against the tested microorganism.

RESULT AND DISCUSSION:

Evaluation result of all the three formulation batches are given below.

1. Physical Evaluation:

In this test colour, odour, texture and state of the three formulations were checked.

Table No. 2:- Physical parameter of herbal shampoo

Sr. No.	Parameter	Result
1.	Colour	Greenish Brown
2.	Odour	Aromatic
3.	Texture	Smooth

Table No. 3:- Physical Evaluation of Herbal Shampoo

Sr. No.	Parameters	Batch HS1	Batch HS2	Batch HS3
1.	pH	5.37	5.53	5.18
2.	Foam	Height-7ml and foam was stable for 5min.	Height -7ml and foam was stable for 5min.	Height-5ml and foam was stable for 3min
3.	Percentage of solid content	18.50%	21.75%	17.25%
4.	Rheological assessment	2995cp	3109cp	3104cp
5.	Skin irritancy	No Irritation	No Irritation	No Irritation
6.	Washability	Easily Washable	Easily Washable	Easily Washable
7.	Microbial Contamination	Not Detected	Not Detected	Not Detected

CONCLUSION:

The herbal shampoo is the preparation which are used for the washing and cleaning of hairs and to provide nourishment. The herbal shampoos are widely used due to their no or less side effects as compared to conventional shampoo, because it contains pure natural or herbal ingredients rather than synthetic chemicals. The formulated herbal shampoo was successfully developed and evaluated with its physicochemical properties, cleansing ability and hair benefits. The shampoo exhibited an ideal pH (5.53), good foaming capacity and stability making it suitable for regular use. After all evaluation of the formulation (HS2) shows good results among all the formulation so it was selected. The incorporation of chia seed and flax seed gel provided natural thickening, hydration and nourishment while herbal extract promote hair growth and improve overall hair texture. Overall, study confirms that herbal shampoo formulation is effective and eco-friendly option for hair care.

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Received on 05.05.2025 Revised on 21.06.2025

Accepted on 26.07.2025 Published on 06.10.2025

Available online from October 13, 2025

Asian J. Pharm. Res. 2025; 15(4):379-382.

DOI: 10.52711/2231-5691.2025.00059

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