Sure, you can let your hair do its thing; you lather, rinse and repeat and your hair just breezes along, happily growing at the rate of one cm per month. But since when were we happy with just being…regular? Use our go-to remedies to aid this natural process by eliminating excess chemical usage and give YOUR hair that oomph factor, without the hefty salon bill. Where can you find these remedies? Why, in your pantry, of course!
Eat the correct balance of the following vitamins and minerals to supply hair with all that it needs to remain shiny, lustrous and strong.
Protein:-
As hair is made of protein, ensuring you have enough protein in your diet is crucial for making hair strong and healthy. If you are not consuming enough protein in your diet, your hair is likely to become dry, brittle and weak. Extremely low protein diets may result in hair loss. Choose chicken, turkey, fish, dairy products and eggs as excellent sources of protein along with vegetarian sources such as legumes and nuts.
Iron:-
Iron is an especially important mineral for hair and too little iron (anaemia) is a major cause of hair loss. The hair follicle and root are fed by a nutrient rich blood supply. When iron levels (serum ferritin) fall below a certain point, you may experience anaemia. This disrupts the nutrient supply to the follicle, affecting the hair growth cycle and may result in shedding. Animal products such as red meat, chicken and fish provide iron with a high bioavailability, meaning the iron is readily available to the body. Vegetarians can raise their iron stores by including lentils, spinach and other leafy green vegetables such as broccoli, kale and salad greens.
Vitamin C:-
Vitamin C aids the absorption of iron so foods high in vitamin C are good to eat in conjunction with iron-rich foods. Vitamin C is also an antioxidant so is used readily by the body. The best sources are blackcurrants, blueberries, broccoli, guava, kiwi fruits, oranges, papaya, strawberries and sweet potatoes. Vitamin C helps in the production of collagen that strengthens the capillaries that supply the hair shafts.
Omega-3:-
Omega-3 fatty acids are important fats our body cannot make itself, and therefore must be obtained through our diet. Omega-3s are found in the cells that line the scalp and also provide the oils that keep your scalp and hair hydrated. Look out for oily fish such as salmon, herring, sardines, trout and mackerel and plant sources including avocado, pumpkin seeds and walnuts.
Vitamin APumpkin:-
Vitamin A is needed by the body to make sebum. Sebum is an oily substance created by our hairs sebaceous glands and provides a natural conditioner for a healthy scalp. Without sebum we may experience an itchy scalp and dry hair. Include animal products and orange/yellow coloured vegetables which are high in beta-carotene (which makes vitamin A) such as carrots, pumpkins and sweet potatoes.
Zinc and selenium:-
Scalp protection involves other important minerals, notably zinc and selenium. A lack of zinc can lead to hair loss and a dry, flaky scalp. Fortified cereals and wholegrains are a good source of zinc along with oysters, beef and eggs.
Vitamin ENuts:-
The sun can damage our hair just like it can damage our skin so ensure you eat foods rich in vitamin E to provide protection for your hair. Nuts are nutritional powerhouses, providing zinc and selenium as well as vitamin E so try to include them as part of a balanced diet.
Biotin:-
Biotin is a water-soluble B vitamin. Too little biotin can cause brittle hair and may lead to hair loss. Include biotin rich foods such as wholegrains, liver, egg yolk, soy flour and yeast.
Natural treatments:-
Make your own hair mask for a deep, nourishing treatment every two weeks. Whisk an egg yolk and mix with half a mashed avocado and a spoonful of honey. Massage onto damp, clean hair and leave for 30 minutes before rinsing thoroughly.
Most of what we eat, to strengthen our hair, can also be topically applied to further up the ante. Let’s explore some of these goodies and see what they do for you, inside out.
1. EGGS
Packed with Omega-3s and essential proteins, eggs are a part of a balanced diet beneficial for toddlers all the way up to the elderly. It is also a fantastic conditioner for your hair. Whip up an egg with a teaspoon of instant coffee (to mask the egg smell) and leave it in your hair for 30 minutes. Rinse it with cold water and then shampoo it out with a nourishing shampoo such as Dove Intense Repair, and revel in the softness it imparts.
2. LEMONS
The lemon is a wonderful wonder-food. When consumed, it settles the tummy, battles nausea and relieves dehydration. When applied to skin, it battles the effects of the sun. When applied to hair, it cuts through scalp grease, acts as a natural astringent for scalp skin, and as a bonus, naturally lightens your hair! So, if you want low-lights without the disastrous chemical effects, try lemon juice instead!\
3. BAKING SODA
It's not just for cakes and cookies! When you don't have time to wash your hair, sprinkle some baking soda onto the roots of your hair and brush it through. Baking soda can chew through grease like chocolate cake on cheat day!
4. MINT
The reason it is found so often in toothpastes and gum is because of its cooling properties and ability to battle halitosis. When consumed, mint soothes the tummy and battles nausea like a pro! It is also jam-packed with antioxidants and antibacterial properties that make it an amazing weapon against an itchy scalp. When the dreaded white flakes make an appearance, boil a healthy handful of mint leaves in half a liter of water, and cool. Wash your hair with shampoo as usual and do a final rinse with the mint solution. Don't rinse out and let the mint water to do its thing.
5. YOGURT
If there is only one natural hair remedy you swear by, let it be yogurt. It supports upset stomachs, is a fantastic source of calcium, and is the healthiest snack when topped with fruit. We love it for its hydrating and cooling effects in wretched summer months. Yogurt, mixed with sugar, can remove dandruff, soothe itching, and is a wonder cure for dry hair! The fat from the yogurt goes in deep into the hair shaft and plumps it up, lending your tresses some serious softness and volume!
6.Spinach
This leafy vegetable is excellent for your body for many reasons, not the least of which is hair health. The power players here are folate and iron. Folate is a B vitamin that aids the creation of red blood cells, and iron (which spinach is high in) helps the red blood cells carry oxygen. With iron deficiency, a condition known as anemia, cells can't get enough oxygen to function properly.
The result can be devastating to the whole body, causing weakness, fatigue, and maybe even hair loss. One large-scale study found that premenopausal women who had severe hair loss were more likely to have low iron reserves (as measured by a test for a form of iron called ferritin) than women with sufficient reserves of iron.
Women of childbearing age are more likely to experience iron deficiency because they lose a significant amount of iron in the blood that's shed during menstruation. Before menopause, women may want to consider taking a multivitamin that contains iron.
7.Lentils
Along with tofu, soybeans, starchy beans, and black-eyed peas, lentils are a great vegetarian source of iron-rich protein, which I recommend for two reasons. First, protein is necessary for all cell growth, including hair cells. Hair gets its structure from hardened proteins called keratin. Without enough protein for keratin, hair grows more slowly, and the individual strands that do grow are weaker.
Second, the iron found in animal foods (called heme iron) such as lean beef, turkey, chicken, or pork is more easily absorbed by the body than the iron in plant foods (non-heme iron). So, if you are a vegetarian, it's especially important to fill your plate with the most iron-rich plant foods.
Additionally, you should combine your iron-rich vegetables with foods high in vitamin C, because vitamin C improves the body's ability to absorb non-heme iron.
8.Bell Peppers
Red, yellow, and green bell peppers are a colorful, delicious source of vitamin C, which is necessary for hair health for many reasons. Besides helping the body use non-heme iron the type found in plant foods to ensure that there is enough iron in red blood cells to carry oxygen to hair follicles, vitamin C is also used to form collagen, a structural fiber that helps our bodies (quite literally!) hold everything together. Hair follicles, blood vessels, and skin all require collagen to stay healthy for optimal growth. Even minor vitamin C deficiencies can lead to dry, splitting hair that breaks easily.
9.Sweet Potatoes
Beta-carotene in foods is converted to vitamin A in the body, and vitamin A is necessary for all cell growth, including hair. A deficiency can lead to dry, dull, lifeless hair and dry skin, which can flake off into dandruff. Be aware that you can have too much of a good thing when it comes to vitamin A: Too much can cause hair loss.
My advice is to add more beta-carotene-rich foods like sweet potatoes, carrots, kale, butternut squash, cantaloupe, dark green lettuces, asparagus, and pumpkin to your meals rather than take vitamin A supplements. If you should choose to take a multivitamin, check the label to make sure that your brand supplies no more than 50 percent DV of vitamin A in the form of retinol. Retinol is listed on supplement labels as palmitate or acetate, and should never exceed 2,000 IU. The other 50 percent or more should come in the form of beta-carotene (or carotenoids), which is converted to vitamin A only as we need it.
Post a Comment