Kaminomoto Shampoo Review UAE: How to Use It With Kaminomoto Hair Serum

September 07, 2026

If you're already using Kaminomoto Hair Serum, you might be wondering whether you actually need the matching shampoo. Is it just another shampoo with the Kaminomoto name on it? Does it help with hair thinning? And does using the shampoo and serum together make more sense than using the serum alone?

The short answer: the shampoo and serum have completely different jobs. The shampoo is the cleansing step. The serum is the leave-in scalp-care step. If your concern is thinning-looking hair, oily roots, scalp buildup, or a parting that suddenly looks more visible, understanding that difference matters more than simply buying more products. Here's our honest review.

What Is Kaminomoto Scalp Care Shampoo?

Kaminomoto Scalp Care Shampoo is a Japanese scalp-focused shampoo made for both men and women. Unlike a shampoo designed mainly to make the lengths feel silky, this one focuses first on keeping the scalp clean and comfortable. Kaminomoto itself describes it as a pre-care shampoo intended for people who use Kaminomoto hair lotions, meant to cleanse the scalp and remove buildup that can interfere with the next scalp-care step.

That's why we use it differently from a normal beauty shampoo. You're not buying it because you expect shampoo foam to magically grow new hair — you're using it to create a cleaner scalp environment before applying your leave-in serum.

What Does Kaminomoto Shampoo Actually Do?

The main job is surprisingly simple: clean the scalp properly. That sounds obvious, but once your hair starts thinning, it's easy to become obsessed with serums, oils, and "growth" products while forgetting what's happening underneath them. Your scalp collects sebum, sweat, styling products, dry shampoo, pollution, and normal daily buildup — especially noticeable in the UAE, where heat, sweating, frequent washing, and air-conditioning can make the scalp and lengths feel like they need completely different things.

Kaminomoto Scalp Care Shampoo is designed to remove scalp dirt and keep the scalp clean while also helping prevent dandruff and itching. Think of it as preparation, not the entire treatment.

The Ingredients That Matter

Piroctone Olamine is used in the formula to help control microorganisms associated with dandruff and itching, supporting a cleaner scalp environment. Kaminomoto lists it as one of the shampoo's active ingredients.

Glycyrrhetinic Acid, a licorice-derived ingredient, is used to help calm scalp irritation and support scalp comfort — Kaminomoto specifically lists it for helping with dandruff, itching, and inflammation.

So although we often talk about this shampoo within a thinning-hair routine, its direct role is really: scalp cleansing, scalp comfort, and preparation for the leave-in treatment.

Is Kaminomoto Shampoo Sulfate-Free?

No, and we'd rather tell you that clearly. The official ingredient list includes cleansing agents including Sodium Laureth Sulfate and TEA-Lauryl Sulfate. That doesn't automatically make a shampoo "bad," but it does mean you should use an appropriate amount rather than pouring half the bottle onto your scalp — Kaminomoto itself warns that using too much shampoo can strip excessive sebum and contribute to scalp dryness or dandruff.

If your scalp is extremely dry, irritated, or medically sensitive, this may not be the right everyday shampoo for you. But if your problem is a scalp that gets oily, heavy, itchy, or prone to buildup, that stronger cleansing profile can make considerably more sense. Product choice should depend on your scalp, not on what's trending.

Does Kaminomoto Shampoo Grow Hair?

We want to be clear here: we wouldn't buy this shampoo expecting the shampoo itself to regrow thinning hair. A shampoo is rinsed off — its strongest role is cleansing. The more targeted step in the Kaminomoto routine is the Kaminomoto Super Strength Hair Serum Gold, which stays on the scalp rather than being washed away.

If you only want one product focused specifically on the scalp and areas where your hair looks thinner, we'd choose the serum first. The shampoo becomes much more useful when you build the whole routine around it.

Why Use Kaminomoto Shampoo and Serum Together?

Because one cleans and the other stays — that's the easiest way to understand the combination.

Step 1 — Shampoo: remove sweat, oil, and buildup from the scalp.

Step 2 — Serum: after washing, the Kaminomoto Super Strength Hair Serum Gold is applied directly to the scalp and left in, with no rinsing. The serum is the targeted scalp-care step, particularly around the parting, hairline, temples, or crown. This is also why putting an ordinary hair oil on your ends isn't the same as using a scalp serum — different area, different purpose, different step.

How to Use Kaminomoto Shampoo With the Serum

On wash days: wet your hair and scalp thoroughly with warm — not extremely hot — water. Apply a reasonable amount of Kaminomoto Scalp Care Shampoo, focusing mainly on the scalp, and massage gently using your fingertips rather than scratching with your nails. Rinse thoroughly — Kaminomoto's official directions specifically emphasize rinsing the shampoo out properly. You don't need to repeatedly shampoo your dry lengths; the foam that runs through the hair while rinsing is usually enough for them.

After washing: towel-dry your hair gently, then part your hair into sections and apply Kaminomoto Super Strength Hair Serum Gold directly to the scalp, focusing more attention on the areas that concern you. Massage gently and leave it in — do not rinse the serum out. This is the part of the routine that stays in contact with your scalp after your shower.

Want to see what consistency actually looks like? Read our 90-day Kaminomoto diary, where we follow the routine week by week.

But What About Dry Ends?

This is exactly why we don't like treating thinning hair as one single problem. You can have an oily scalp and extremely dry ends at the same time — very common, especially when you wash frequently, style your hair, spend time in air-conditioning, or your lengths are already damaged.

So the third step in our routine isn't another scalp product — it's Lucido-L Argan Rich Oil Hair Treatment Cream on the mid-lengths and ends. It's leave-in, and it helps the lengths feel softer, smoother, and more moisturized without asking your scalp to do the same job as your ends.

That gives you three separate jobs: Kaminomoto Shampoo cleans the scalp, Kaminomoto Serum is the targeted leave-in scalp care, and Lucido-L Cream cares for the dry lengths. That's the logic behind the Thin Hair Revival Therapy.

Kaminomoto Shampoo Alone vs. Shampoo + Serum

If your main concern is a scalp that gets oily, itchy, or feels heavy, the shampoo alone may be useful. If your concern is that your parting looks wider and your hair looks thinner, we'd prioritize the serum. And if your scalp feels wrong, your roots look thinner, and your ends are dry and damaged, that's where the complete routine makes more sense — you're treating three different problems instead of expecting one bottle to do everything.

What We Like

It's straightforward, it cleans the scalp well, and it has a specific role instead of pretending to be a miracle product. It was formulated to complement Kaminomoto scalp lotions rather than simply being another cosmetic shampoo. For people whose roots get oily while their lengths stay dry, separating scalp cleansing from length conditioning makes a lot of sense.

What We Don't Love

It won't suit everyone. If you want an ultra-gentle, sulfate-free shampoo, this isn't it, and if your scalp is extremely dry or sensitive, you may prefer a milder cleansing formula. If you're buying it because you think switching shampoos alone will reverse significant hair loss, we'd save your money — hair shedding and thinning can also be related to medical causes, hormones, iron deficiency, thyroid conditions, genetics, stress, and many other factors. Sudden or significant hair loss deserves medical evaluation. A shampoo is hair care, not a diagnosis or medical treatment.

So, Is Kaminomoto Shampoo Worth It?

Yes, if you understand what you're buying it for. We like it most as part of the Kaminomoto routine rather than as a random standalone "hair growth shampoo." Its job is to keep the scalp clean, help with dandruff and itching, and prepare the scalp before the next treatment step. Then the serum becomes the leave-in scalp step, and if your lengths are dry, the treatment cream takes care of them separately. That's why we prefer this structure: clean the scalp, treat the scalp, protect the lengths.

Should You Buy the Serum Alone or the Full Routine?

Start with Kaminomoto Super Strength Hair Serum Gold if you want one focused scalp-care product and don't want to change your entire routine yet.

Choose the Thin Hair Revival Therapy if your hair feels like several things are going wrong at once — thinner roots, scalp buildup, dry lengths, frizz, weak-feeling ends, and no clear routine. The set combines the Kaminomoto shampoo, Kaminomoto Serum Gold, and Lucido-L treatment cream into one scalp-first routine.