If you have a known allergy, sensitivity, or just strong preferences about what goes on your hair, you can flag ingredients to exclude — and your routine will work around them.
Common reasons people exclude ingredients
Allergic reactions — most often to specific botanicals, fragrances, or preservatives
Scalp sensitivities — itching, redness, or flaking from sulfates, alcohols, or fragrances
Pregnancy or nursing — avoiding specific actives like retinol or salicylic acid in scalp products
Lifestyle preferences — vegan, fragrance-free, silicone-free, sulfate-free, parabens-free
Religious or cultural reasons — halal, kosher, or specific ingredient avoidance
Trichologist or dermatologist guidance — your provider has flagged something specific
How to set ingredient exclusions
Sensitivities and exclusions are captured during the quiz and stored on your hair profile.
Go to your Profile page on tryrituala.com
Tap the Scalp sensitivity question or the Sensitivities section to jump to the relevant quiz step
Toggle the issues that apply to you (sulfates, fragrances, silicones, specific botanicals, etc.) and save
Your routine and product recommendations will respect those exclusions going forward — both at the routine level and inside Ask Rituala
If something specific isn't in the toggle list, ask Rituala in the chat — it can apply a per-conversation exclusion and recommend alternates.
How exclusions work in your routine
Recommended products are filtered to exclude anything containing your flagged ingredients.
If excluding an ingredient narrows your options too much, you'll see a note flagging it so you can decide whether to relax the constraint.
Ask Rituala will respect exclusions when suggesting substitutes too.
Common ingredient names to watch for
If you're allergic to one form of an ingredient, you may need to exclude all variants:
Sulfates: sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), sodium laureth sulfate (SLES), ammonium lauryl sulfate
Silicones: dimethicone, cyclopentasiloxane, amodimethicone, anything ending in "-cone" or "-siloxane"
Parabens: methylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben
Fragrances: "fragrance" or "parfum" can hide hundreds of compounds — you may want to exclude both
Common allergenic botanicals: coconut, soy, wheat, almond — all show up in shampoos and conditioners
Severe allergies
If you have a serious allergy (anaphylaxis-level), please always read the ingredient list on the actual product before using it — formulas change. Our recommendations are filtered, but final responsibility for what touches your scalp is yours.
Not sure what to exclude but suspect a sensitivity? Ask Rituala — describe what you're reacting to and it can help narrow down likely culprits.