Who doesn’t yearn for super shiny and lustrous locks? Getting Rapunzel-like hair is no easy feat, and you can’t grow your hair overnight, but if you tweak your day-to-day hair care routine, your hair will become healthier over time. And the healthier your hair is, the longer it will grow. While there is no magic bullet for instant hair growth, an amazing technique that may promote stronger hair is using the so-called ‘natural scalp stimulators.’ These DIY natural formulae stimulate your scalp and energize the roots of the hair, making your locks stronger, thicker, and healthier looking. With so many amazing natural ingredients, achieving the hair of your dreams isn’t impossible after all.
What Affects Hair Growth?
There are so many different factors that contribute to hair growth or lack thereof. If you ever feel like your hair is just not growing no matter what you do, it is possible that you’ve got some hair growth-stunting factors in play. Many people suffer from poor blood circulation throughout the scalp, nutritional deficiencies, and hormonal imbalances that affect hair growth. While you may not have control over certain factors, there are some simple things that can be done at home to make your hair healthier. For starters, eating a balanced diet, limiting hair styling products, and avoiding stress could help your hair reach its full potential.
TRIVIA: When you’re trying to grow your hair, the process might seem to take forever. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, on average, hair grows about six inches each year which is about ½ of an inch a month. You are born with about 100,000 follicles on your scalp and losing 50 to 100 hairs a day is completely normal (1).
How to Contribute to Hair Growth?
It is important to understand that while you can’t speed up hair growth, you can make your hair appear stronger and healthier. And healthy hair with minimal split ends=longer, thicker hair. There are a lot of factors that contribute to hair growth, but your best bet may be to regularly give yourself a scalp massage and apply natural scalp stimulators. Not only will the scalp massage feel great and relax you, but it will increase blood flow to your scalp, help nutrients get to your follicle faster, and ultimately strengthen your hair (2).
TRIVIA: You can actually eat your way to longer hair. Getting plenty of omega-3 fatty acids are essential to hair health since they nourish hair follicles (3). Great food sources of omega-3s include mackerel, salmon, sardines, walnuts, flaxseed, chia seed, and soybeans (4).
Natural Scalp Stimulators
While there is no magic potion that will grow your hair super long overnight, these natural scalp stimulators are loaded with hydrating ingredients that will help create a healthy foundation for your scalp and are the key to getting your best hair. The best thing is that these products are quite inexpensive, and you probably already have most of them in your kitchen. So check out the following simple recipes for natural hair stimulators that will leave you with Victoria’s Secret Runway-worthy hair.
Also Read – How To Exfoliate Your Scalp – 11 Homemade Brown Sugar Scrub Recipes
Recipe 1: Coconut oil and aloe vera gel – A blend that works wonders
Nothing can stimulate your scalp better than a blend of virgin coconut oil and pure aloe vera gel. Coconut oil is one of the richest sources of nutrients essential for hair, while aloe vera takes great care of dehydrated scalp and hair shafts. When an essential oil is added to this mixture, you get an elixir to boost blood flow and promote hair growth.
Ingredients:
- Virgin coconut oil – 4 tablespoons
- Pure aloe vera gel – 1 tablespoon
- Essential oil (of your choice) – 2 to 3 drops (try lavender essential oil/lemon essential oil/rosemary essential oil)
Procedure:
- If your virgin coconut oil is already in the liquid state, pour it into a mixing bowl. If not, put the solid chunk of oil in a microwave-safe bowl and heat it on a medium-low setting until it melts completely.
- Add pure and fresh aloe vera gel to the bowl and keep stirring with a spoon to make the mixture lump-free.
- Add 2-3 drops of essential oil and give it a thorough final mix.
- Pour the mix into an airtight glass bottle, and you are done.
Recipe 2: Olive oil, coconut oil, and essential oils
This recipe is another big hit among people who are dying to make their hair grow faster. It is a miraculous combination of coconut oil and olive oil, which makes hair strands nourished, moisturized, strong, and healthy from the inside. Tea tree essential oil is a surefire remedy for curing all sorts of scalp issues, while rosemary essential oil ensures faster growth of hair fibers.
Ingredients:
- Organic coconut oil – (1/2) cup
- Organic olive oil – 1 teaspoon
- Tea tree essential oil – 2 to 3 drops
- Rosemary essential oil – 2 to 3 drops
Procedure:
- Start by pouring organic coconut oil into a mixing bowl. As mentioned in the previous recipe, melt it down before using it if the oil is in a solid-state.
- Pour organic olive oil into the liquid coconut oil and stir with the help of a spoon.
- Add tea tree essential oil and rosemary essential oil drops to this mixture.
- Whip up everything thoroughly to create a smooth blend.
- Transfer it to an airtight glass jar and store it for future use.
TRIVIA: Rosemary is not only a delicious culinary herb, but this woody perennial has been used as medicine in Mediterranean cultures for centuries. It is believed that rosemary can promote hair growth and that it has anti-inflammatory properties that improve circulation (5).
Recipe 3: Jojoba Oil, Cayenne Pepper, and 5 Essential Oils
This natural scalp stimulator formula is a blend of jojoba oil, cayenne pepper, and 5 essential oils that encourage hair growth and take care of its overall health. It increases blood circulation throughout the scalp and makes the roots of hair fibers considerably stronger. It also controls the production of sebum on our scalp and conditions the locks deeply at the same time.
Ingredients:
- Jojoba oil – (1/2) cup
- Peppermint essential oil – 8 to 10 drops
- Rosemary essential oil – 35 to 40 drops
- Lavender essential oil – 15 to 20 drops
- Basil essential oil – 15 to 20 drops
- Lemongrass essential oil – 10 to 15 drops
- Cayenne pepper – (1/8) teaspoon
Procedure:
- Unlike the other two recipes, this blend needs to be prepared directly inside the storage container. So, start with pouring jojoba oil into an airtight glass jar.
- Add peppermint, rosemary, lavender, basil, and lemongrass essential oil drops to it.
- Close the lid of the jar tightly and give it a good shake.
- Place the jar in a cool, dark place for at least 24 hours so that the essential oils can synergize.
Also Read – Cinnamon For Hair – 5 Ultimate Masks To Stimulate Scalp & Hair Growth
How To Apply a Natural Scalp Stimulator?
Now, as your DIY natural scalp stimulator is ready, here are the steps you need to follow for its application:
- Ensure that you are not allergic to essential oils before using your DIY natural scalp stimulator. For most people, essential oils are safe and free of adverse side effects when used properly, but you can do a patch test to be sure.
- Make sure that your scalp is completely dry.
- Divide your hair into multiple sections to make the application easier.
- Pour a little amount of scalp stimulating blend onto your palm and apply it to your scalp. You can also make use of an applicator brush if you wish.
- Keep repeating the step until the entire scalp, and all your hair roots are covered thoroughly.
- Massage gently for 5 to 10 minutes by moving your fingertips in a small circular motion.
- Let it sit for at least 20 minutes.
- Finally, wash off with a mild shampoo and a good conditioner. Ensure to rinse your hair with cool water as cold water helps close up the cuticle and strengthens hair follicles.
Summary
Everyone is looking for a secret to long, lustrous hair. While there isn’t just one magic secret to improve the growth of your hair, there are many factors that contribute to hair growth and healthier hair. Some of those methods include eating a healthy diet, doing regular scalp massages, using DIY natural scalp stimulators, and limiting heat styling, and the use of hair products. However, if you want to nourish your hair and help it grow, the most important thing is to be consistent in whichever method you choose. Bear in mind that it will take a couple of weeks before you see results with any of these treatments as the most noticeable changes in your hair growth occur from the three-month mark.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What are some natural ways to make hair grow faster?
Besides getting a regular scalp massage, you should limit heat styling and the use of hair products because they damage your hair and make it dry and brittle. If you do use a heat tool, we would suggest you use a heat-protectant spray before.
Does washing your hair every day affect the growth rate?
It will not affect your growth rate, but it may damage your hair by stripping it of its natural oils.
How often should I massage my scalp?
If you have oily roots, you should do the scalp massage once a week. But if your hair is not oily, you can also do it before every time you wash your hair.
Does hair grow faster if you trim it regularly?
It does not grow faster, but if you’re after long, healthy-looking hair, trimming it frequently will make it look healthier and thus longer. If you don’t cut off split ends, they will eventually cause your hair to break, which will make your hair look thinner and shorter.
What lifestyle changes help hair growth?
Some lifestyle factors that may promote hair growth are not smoking, eating healthy, and keeping stress levels to a minimum.
References:
- “What kids should know about how hair grows” – aad.org
- “Standardized Scalp Massage Results in Increased Hair Thickness by Inducing Stretching Forces to Dermal Papilla Cells in the Subcutaneous Tissue” – pubmed.gov
- “Mackerel-Derived Fermented Fish Oil Promotes Hair Growth by Anagen-Stimulating Pathways” – mdpi.com
- “12 Foods That Are Very High in Omega-3” – healthline.com
- “Should I Use Rosemary Oil for Hair Growth?”– healthline.com
