Ayurvedic Hair Care
Ayurvedic Hair Care
Problems you may have with your hair and scalp generally relate to your overall health. Like skin and fingernails, hair is an outward reflection of your inner wellbeing. Eating a balanced diet appropriate to your dosha, reducing stress, and protecting hair from too much sunlight and chlorine is a key for having lustrous and attractive hair.
You’ll be glad to hear that Ayurveda has tools to keep your hair beautiful without using expensive harsh chemicals.
Shampoo:
Make a shampoo using 1 part liquid olive soup or organic olive oil shampoo from health food store and 8 parts of strong herbal decoction using
– Lavender or geranium for Vata *
– Chamomile for Pitta*
– Sage, bay leaf or rosemary for Kapha *
* See “Hair and your dosha” article here
These natural shampoos do not produce much lather because unlike brand name shampoos, they contain no sodium or aluminum lauryl phosphate or other sudsing agents that destroy hair protein and strip the natural oils. Herbal cleansers wash away the dirt without washing away the natural moisture, so you do not need conditioner to undo the damage of commercial shampoos.
Conditioner:
If you think you still need conditioner use a half of a very ripe avocado BEFORE you shampoo. Dampen your hair and apply an avocado mashed with a fork massaging the scalp to the ends of your hair. Live on for a while (up to 20 minutes), wash up with Ayurvedic shampoo.
For additional shine:
Rinse your hair with the juice of ½ lemon in 1 cup water.
Final glossing:
Put a few drops of essential oil (rose, geranium, jasmine, rosemary) diluted with a carrier oil (sesame, almond, olive) in the palm of your hand. Rub your palms together and comb your fingers through your hair.
Weekly conditioning hair mask:
Make a paste with 1 tsp each triphala, neem, sandalwood, and licorice powders with 10 tsp water. Apply paste to dry scalp, leave on for ½ hour, and rinse well with warm lemon water.
TODAY’S TIP : A weekly scalp massage is one of the most beneficial treatments for maintaining beautiful hair.
Nice! Thank you, I should try that!
Thank you Larisa, for you are into totally great ingredients and natural products from the bottom up. Congratulations on your intelligence in this area. Really natural ingredients straight from nature is always better. I commend you for promoting these ideas.