Someone was saying, “Those who have good hair wouldn’t understand the pain of those whose are bald or are losing hair”. People who are losing their hair too much wouldn’t leave any stone unturned while trying to stop hair fall and regrow the lost hair. In here, we provide you with some home remedies for hair fall that you can try. Remember, there are 101 reasons ranging from environmental factors to genetics for losing hair and these remedies for hair fall may not work for all but each one is worth a try.
Hair oil and massage
Massaging the scalp will not only make you feel relaxed but can also help hair regrowth and thickening of hair. Unlike today, a decade ago, almost everyone in India used to apply hair oil to their head and such hair oils included castor oil, coconut oil, sesame or gingelly oil (just oil or oil mixed with herbs such as bhringraj or mint etc) etc. Regular application of hair oil with a nice massage to the scalp with finger tips can at least help you by stopping or reducing the hair fall.
Coconut oil has been used as hair oil in India since several centuries and limited studies say that coconut oil stops the loss of proteins from hair, nourishes the hair follicles and gives the hair natural shine and strength.
Application of pure aloe vera gel
Aloe vera has a ton of benefits and treating hair loss with it is just one among them. Aloe vera soothes the scalp and acts as a conditioner for hair. Aloe vera helps in treating dandruff (as it acts as a moisturiser for the scalp) too.
Viviscal
Viviscal is a hair growth supplement made of minerals, vitamins, shark and mollusc powder. Viviscal stops thinning of hair and helps in regrowing hair by cell regeneration and strengthening of roots of hair. It may take upto six months to see the benefits of viviscal when used regularly.
Gingseng
Gingseng supplements have also shown to grow the hair by stimulating hair follicles. Gingseng contains ginsenosides that are believed to work on the hair follicles and help in good growth of hair.
Onion Juice
You would have seen many hair oils laced with onion juice in the market in the past couple of years. Onion juice when properly applied to the roots of the hair helps in strengthening and also helps in treating ‘bald spots (called alopecia areata)’ on the head. Studies done with onion juice on animals have shown improved keratin levels and improved blood flow to the cuticles.
Ideal way to extract juice from onions is to cut them into tiny pieces, grind them with a mortar and pestil (instead of using a blender). Take a fine handkerchief like cloth which is little porus, put the ground onions in it and squeeze or twist the cloth to extract the juice. Apply the juice to hair (massaging the scalp) and leave it for half hour. Then wash your hair and repeat the process everyday or once a couple of days. “I applied onion juice to a bald spot on my 4 year old daughter’s head and saw the hair grow back in the area in just few weeks” says one of the patients of Dr. Karthik Gunasekaran from Flood Gates Plastic Surgery Clinic, Chennai.
Application of lemon juice
Not just to treat dandruff, you can apply lemon juice to your scalp, massage gently to keep the hair strong. If you have an itchy scalp and can’t take your fingers off your head, lemon juice should be your first home remedy. Lemon juice can also help in treating infections in the scalp that could lead to hair loss. Squeeze the lemon directly on the head and rub the lemon or gently massage the scalp with fingers after applying lemon juice.
Rosemary oil or Geranium oil
Natural rosemary or geranium oils can promote hair growth and arrest hair loss. Rosemary oil stimulates growth of new hair and treats ‘androgenetic alopecia’. Mix few drops of either oil with a carrier oil like coconut oil or sesame oil and apply few times every week. Apply this mixture to head half hour before washing your hair. You should see good hair (re)growth and shiny hair in just few weeks.
If none of these home remedies work to stop hair fall or in regrowing lost hair, you need to see a dermatologist or a hair care specialist. When everything fails and you still want your hair back, your options would be ‘hair transplant’ wherein the plastic surgeon will take the hair strands from one part of the head and transplants it to the bald area.