Hair Growth Remedies

Long, thick, healthy, and lustrous hair is seen as a sign of good health and vitality. But problems like hair breakage or split ends, hair fall, and dandruff can make it impossible to grow long and lustrous hair. However, these problems can be resolved with some simple remedies and a healthy lifestyle. But before going into the details of different home remedies, let's find out the root causes of hair fall or hair thinning, so that this problem can be addressed properly.

Losing a few strands of hair is normal, but excessive hair loss can stem from wrong eating habits and lifestyle. The loss of excessive hair can be caused by the interplay of several factors, of which the most important ones are, an unhealthy diet, that does not contain the required amounts of the essential nutrients and vitamins, hormonal imbalance, stress and anxiety, presence of dandruff on the scalp, thyroid problems, use of hair care products that contain harsh chemicals, and injudicious use of hair styling products.

A proper hair care regimen that incorporates cleaning, conditioning, and scalp massaging is the prerequisite for growing healthy hair. Regular cleaning, massaging, as well as brushing your hair several times a day, can help stimulate the oil or sebaceous glands of the scalp to secret more oil, which can make your hair soft and glossy. Regular cleaning helps open up the skin pores by removing dirt, grime, and dead skin cells from the scalp.

However, it is equally important to consume healthy and nutritious food for maintaining the health of your hair and skin. Along with a healthy diet, and proper hair care, you can try the following natural remedies to stimulate hair growth, and alleviate some common hair and scalp problems.

• Massage your scalp with coconut, olive, or almond oil prior to shampooing. Ideally, massage the scalp with coconut or olive oil in the night, and then wash it off the next day with a mild shampoo.
• Use castor oil, if you are experiencing hair thinning. You can use it alone, or mix it with almond oil to massage the scalp.

• Make a paste of amla (Indian gooseberry) by combining amla powder with water, and apply this paste on your hair and scalp. Leave it for about half an hour and then wash it off. You can also mix amla powder with eggs to promote hair growth.
• For preventing hair loss caused by dandruff, use rosemary oil. The regular use of rosemary oil can significantly reduce dandruff, and ensure healthy growth of hair.

Aloe vera is one of the most effective products for hair care. Massage the scalp and hair with aloe vera gel, and leave it for about half an hour, before rinsing it off with water. For best results, use aloe vera gel twice or thrice a week.

Henna is an excellent hair conditioner. It can make your hair smoother and shinier, besides stimulating the growth of new hair, and strengthening the roots.

Henna paste can be used alone or it can be mixed with eggs, olive oil, coconut oil, and lemon juice. Ideally the paste should be kept on the scalp and hair for about an hour, and then rinsed off with clean water.

• Shikakai can clean hair without removing the natural oil from it. It can be mixed with Indian gooseberry or bhringraj powder for better results.
• Massage the scalp and hair with flaxseed oil to increase blood circulation and promote hair growth.

• Use apple cider vinegar to rinse your hair after shampooing. It can unclog the skin pores by removing dead skin cells.
• Use essential oils, like lavender oil, basil oil, lemon oil, chamomile oil, tea tree oil, and sage oil for massaging your scalp. These essential oils can have remarkable effect on hair growth, and they can cure some common scalp problems.

Along with these natural remedies, use a mild shampoo for cleaning your hair. Avoid using shampoos with harsh chemicals like sodium lauryl sulfate, which can dry out the scalp and hair. Use a good conditioner regularly after shampooing your hair. Trim your hair at regular intervals in order to get rid of hair breakage and split ends.

However, all these efforts to stimulate hair growth would not be helpful, if you do not follow a balanced diet, that includes fresh fruits and green leafy vegetables. Also important is to reduce the consumption of fried and oily food, and drink plenty of water, and manage or reduce the level of stress.