Written by Dr. Sanjana V.B Bhms,dbrm,cdn

Founder & medical director of siahmsr wellness.in

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Reviewed by SIAHMSR medical team.

Hair oils to nourish your hair

   Oil treatment works well for dull, rough, and lusterless hair. Oil helps in retaining moisture and makes hair soft and shiny. Use deep nourishing hair oils like coconut or almond oil. Coconut oil helps to penetrate the outer cuticle and hydrate from the inside out.

Almond oil for your hair

     Almond oil has been used for its amazing health benefits since ancient times . It is one of the major ingredient in complementary medicine and cosmetic care. Hair oils are prepared using almonds in complementary medicines.

     History of medicine states that almond oil had been used in Ancient Chinese, Ayurvedic and Greeko-Persian schools of Medicine to treat dry skin conditions such as psoriasis and eczema. Almond oil is yellowish oil extracted from the seeds of the Prunus dulcis tree, also known as the almond tree.

 Almond oil is rich in nutrients like linoleic acid & vitamin E  which are very much beneficial for hair and skin.

       Almond, (Prunus dulcis), tree  belongs to the family (Rosaceae) and its edible seed with immense nutritive value. Almonds are native to southwestern Asia, and grown primarily in Mediterranean climates between 28° and 48° N and between 20° and 40° S,.California  is the major producer of almonds ,and account for  around  80 percent of the global production . 

     There are two varieties of almonds: sweet almond (P. dulcis, variety dulcis) and bitter almond (P. dulcis, variety amara). Sweet almonds are the edible type consumed as nuts and used in cooking or as a source of almond oil or almond meal. Almond oil has numerous health benefits.

Almond oil is used for multiple purposes such as :

·       Cosmetic use

·       Food preparation

·       Pharmaceutical use

·       Others

 Almond oil rejuvenates your skin

  Sweet almond oil is used for beauty and cosmetic purposes. It is a good moisturizer for your skin and hair. Apply a little almond oil into your skin soon after bathing and gentle rub and wet the face again with water for radiance and glow of your skin. Almond oil is rich in Vitamin E antioxidants. It can also remove frizziness of hair. 

Almond oil seemingly reduces scars, smoothens and rejuvenates the skin. Almond oil has emollient and sclerosant properties and, therefore, has been used to improve complexion and skin tone. However, further studies are required to substantiate these clinical claims.

It is also used in the cosmetic industry, especially in dry skin creams, anti-wrinkle and anti-aging products. The sweet almond oil contains vitamins E and K that help skin regeneration and maintain elasticity. Almond oil is one of the key moisturizing and nourishing ingredients in face masks and hair masks.

Almond oil for shine of your hair

The oil is obtained from fruits of Prunus amygdalus which is native to Middle East and South America.

Almond oil consists of healthy monosaturated fatty acid, polyunsaturated fatty acid (linoleic acid) and Oleic acid. It also consists of linolenic acid, stearic acid, palmitic acid.

It is also a rich source of vitamin E which very vital for hair and skin health. Vitamin E is a great antioxidant against free radicals mediated oxidative stress.

 Almond oil has fatty acids that are rich in double bonds and hence has shown to protect against UV radiation induced structural damage .Almond oil is a  good emollient which can be used to soften and moisturize dry hair.

 It has been found that almond oil increases the elasticity of the hair as it fills the gap between cuticle cells.

 The oil has no great role in protein loss as it cannot penetrate inside the hair shaft.

Almond oil imparts shine to your hair due to its emollient property and potential to increase elasticity of hair.

Coconut oil for your hair

  Coconut oil is obtained from the fruits of Cocus nucifera widely used in south India. It consists of saturated fatty acids and is one of the richest sources of medium chain fatty acids. The major fatty acids present are myristic acid, capric acid, lauric acid and monolaurin.

Monolaurin has shown its efficacy as an antibacterial agent. It acts by disintegrating the lipid membrane of different bacteria such as Propionibacterium acne, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus

Coconut oil in concentrations of 5% to 40% (w/w) exhibited bactericidal activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Proteus vulgaris, and Bacillus subtilis.

Monolaurin exhibits antifungal activity.

The styling agents like chemical straightening, curling agents, procedures like heat straightening, curling , colouring damage hair . In order to maintain hair health many other extra agents are to be used after doing these procedures. However, the changes made are permanent and no topical application can reverse it.

To maintain natural hair health after a heat straightening, bad shampoo or exposure to dry winds, heat of sun you may have to apply nourishing oils and serums. Coconut oil is a great emollient and moisture locking agent for hair.

Coconut oil is a great emollient .Coconut oil forms a coating over the hair shaft, thereby sealing the cuticle and traps the moisture inside.

 It provides increased slip in between the hair strands, so detangles the hair, smoothens and flattens the cuticle surface which improves the health and appearance of the strands. So coconut oil very essential to improve the shine and glow of your hair along with prevention of damage to hair by other moisture stripping chemicals ,sun, dry winds etc.

 Due to its low molecular weight and straight linear chain it is able to penetrate inside the hair shaft thereby, preventing loss of protein from the hair.

Coconut oil is used in several parts of the world for better health and shiny glossy soft appearance of hair.

It also contains phenolic acids and antioxidants such as tocopherol.

Coconut oil is a good saponification agent and so has been used in shampoos.

Amla or Indian gooseberry oil for your hair

    It is also known as the Indian gooseberry. It is obtained from deciduous tree Emblica officinalis widely found in India. It It is an excellent source of Vitamin C antioxidant.

It helps to fight against fungus infections of hair and scalp. Antifungal activity ofAmla oil is due to the presence of unsaturated C18 fatty acids. The oil  destroys fungi including M. canis, M. gypseum, Trichophyton rubrum at 0.5% concentration.

Amla oil is found to be effective in preventing graying of hair. Graying of hair is thought to be mediated through ROS oxygen free radicals  causing oxidative damage of the melanocytes, thereby leading to decreased pigmentation or grey hair.

 Amla oil, due to the presence of Vitamin C, gallic acid, ellagic acid, and tannins can remove these free radicals.

Amla oil has anti-microbial properties also. It has shown potent antibacterial activity against E. coli, Klebsiella pneumonia, Klebsiella ozaenae, Proteus mirabalis, P. aeruginosa, and Salmonella typhi.

Castor oil for your hair

It is a widely used ingredient of  hair oils. It has moisturizing and nourishing effects on hair.

 Ricinoleic acid and its derivatives present in the oil have moisturizing quality.

Nourishing effect is due to the fatty acids with very good penetrability and have been claimed to provide nourishment to the hair follicle.

Germicidal and fungicidal effects also have been reported. Ricin and ricinoleic acid present in the oil protects the scalp and the shaft of the hair from fungal and microbial infections.

In androgenetic or male pattern baldness it has been used effectively. Ricinoleic acid has been shown to penetrate skin and act as an inhibitor of prostaglandin D2 synthase (PGD2). Ricinoleic acid has also found to have some degree of effect on hair growth.

    A weekly massage of your hair and scalp with any of these oils may help to improve the health of your hair as well as scalp skin promoting hair growth. Or else you may use these oils in hair masks to apply on scalp and hair. But it is very important to remove excess oil from scalp using a gentle mild shampoo with conditioner and dry your hair in air. Even if you use blow drier hold it from some distance. 

References

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