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A hydrating hair mask is regarded as a super conditioner or a conditioner and more by some people. It is a nourishing hair care product made from natural ingredients that provide significant benefits, even with a single-use. Special oils such as argan, almond, Abyssinian oils, butter, and plant extracts are all used to make hair masks. However, avocado is preferred by many as a result of its teeming antioxidants, essential nutrients, and vitamins. These amazing components are all required by the hair cells to stay nourished, healthy, and glowing (1).
Interestingly, the avocado hair mask is one you can make for yourself from the comfort of your home and to your taste. The hair masks may be made into a pure form, an all-avocado hair care product, or mixed with other ingredients that are highly beneficial to hair health.
The use of avocado hair masks does more work than keeping the hair nourished and healthy. It may restore hair that is visibly unhealthy and largely damaged as a result of exposure to some unhealthy practices.
Practices That Leads To Unhealthy Hair
Let’s take a quick look at some common practices which are unhealthy for hair health. Some of these practices include:
1. Wrong Hair Care Products:
Some of the products sold over the counter are supposedly produced to keep the hair healthy. But in reality, they are unhealthy to the hair and should be avoided. In addition, most of these products are made from ingredients with more long-term demerits than the short-term merits they portray (2).
2. Towel Drying Wet Hair:
This common practice should be greatly discouraged. Instead of rubbing your hair with a towel to dry it, wrap the towel around your hair for 7-10 minutes and leave it to absorb the water.
3. Combing or brushing Wet Hair:
Experts advise that you leave your hair to dry a bit before combing or brushing it. The hair is most fragile in the wet state and may snap if combed at the time.
Also Read – Can Avocado Oil Cure Acne? What New Evidence Suggests
4. Thermal Damage From Heat Styling:
These heat-exuding hair care equipment were designed to make your hair care journey more efficient. However, using them consistently ensures your hair is constantly exposed to heat, which may adversely affect your hair. Therefore, to preserve the health and glow of your health, you should use these types of equipment less frequently, at most once a week. It is also advised you keep them at the lowest heat setting during use (3).
5. Pulling Hair Back Tightly:
This happens so often when you wear your hair in tight ponytails. It may affect the scalp and lead to profuse loss of hair strands, amongst other effects. This may be avoided by wearing your hair loosely pulled back and avoiding hairstyles that constantly require you to pull your hair back tightly.
6. Eating Unhealthy Diet:
The hair, just like every other part of the body, derives its nourishment from the food we eat. So eating right may go a long way in saving your hair from that shabby look you have been avoiding.
The use of hydrating hair masks may be likened to constantly and rightly changing your car’s lubricating oil. It will improve your scalp health, keep your hair moisturized, and rid your hair of free radicals that make it look frizzy, dry, and damaged.
The Avocado Hair Mask
The avocado berry is a favorite for producing hydrating hair masks because of its numerous health properties, such as high antioxidant content, exceptional moisturizing quality, and the abundance of vitamins & nutrients contained in the berry.
8 Avocado Mask Recipes to Try At Home
1. Pure Avocado Hair Mask:
This is the most common and easy-to-make avocado mask. All you need to do is
- Cut ripe avocados into chunks.
- Smash the chunks with your fingers to a consistent blend.
- Evenly apply the mask to your hair.
This seemingly simple practice provides your hair with potassium, magnesium, and other nutrients needed to stay smooth, shiny, and healthy (4).
2. Avocado, Egg, and Olive Oil Hair Mask:
The avocado hair mask may also be prepared with other nutritious products like egg and olive oil. Olive oil readily penetrates the hair shaft to preserve moisture, while the biotin, folate, and vitamins present in the egg greatly contribute to hair growth. A mixture of these three ingredients creates a perfect blend for repairing damaged hair (5).
Also Read – 7 Onion Masks To Treat Dandruff, Dry & Itchy Scalp
Ingredients
- 1 small sized avocado
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon of olive oil
Directions for Use
- Blend the ingredients.
- Apply the mask to your dry hair.
- Wash off after 20-30 minutes.
3. Avocado, Olive Oil, and Lemon Juice Mask:
A mixture of avocado, lemon juice, and olive oil on your hair leaves an evident impact within hours of application (6).
Ingredients
- 1 avocado
- 2 teaspoons of olive oil
- 2 teaspoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice
Directions for Use
- Mash the avocado using a blender.
- Mix the blended avocado with olive oil and lemon juice.
- Whisk the mixture thoroughly.
- Apply the mixture to your dry hair.
- Rinse after 20-30 minutes with tepid water
4. Avocado and Banana Mask:
Banana’s antimicrobial properties and silica content will keep your hair stronger, thicker, and free from dandruff.
Ingredients
- ½ avocado
- 1 ripe banana
- You may add any essential oil of choice
Directions for Use
- Blend the ingredients and apply directly to your hair.
- Leave the mask to dry on your hair.
- Rinse off thoroughly with warm water (7).
5. Avocado, Yoghurt, Honey, and Olive Oil Hair Mask:
A mixture of avocado and yogurt (dense in protein and lactic acid) will cleanse your scalp, facilitate hair growth and keep your entire hair healthy (8). When honey is added to these other two natural products, it becomes a highly hydrating mask.
Ingredients
- ½ avocado
- 1 cup of yogurt
- 1 tablespoon of honey
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
Directions for Use
- Blend the four ingredients to get a smooth paste
- Apply the mixture to your damp hair
- Rinse it off after 30 minutes
6. Avocado and Oatmeal Mask:
Adding oatmeal to a hair mask may help improve hair strength and length (9). In addition, an avocado and oatmeal mask will leave your hair moisturized, smooth and shiny.
Ingredients
- 1 ripe avocado berry
- 1 cup of oatmeal
Directions for Use
- Prepare the oatmeal and leave it to cool
- Blend the cold oatmeal with your avocado
- Apply the mixture from the root to the tip of your hair
- Rinse your hair with tepid water after 20-30 minutes (10).
7. Avocado, Mayonnaise, and Olive Oil Mask:
This mixture will add strength and shine to your hair.
Ingredients
- 1 avocado
- 1 banana
- ½ cup of mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon of olive oil
Directions for Use
- Blend the four ingredients into a consistent mix.
- Apply directly to the hair.
- Leave it on your hair for 20-30 minutes, then wash off with apple cider vinegar.
- Rinse your hair with tepid water
8. Avocado, Honey, Millet Flour, and Rose Petal Hair Mask:
Rose petals function as a natural conditioner and are more beneficial to the hair when mixed with avocado and millet flour to make a mask.
Ingredients
- 1 avocado
- 1 handful of fresh rose petals
- 2 teaspoons of olive oil
- ½ cup of millet flour
Directions for Use
- Soak the fresh rose petals in olive oil for 4-6 hours
- Add avocado and millet flour to the mixture and blend
- Apply the mixture to your hair and wash off after 20-30 minutes.
Also Read – 6 DIY Deep Conditioning Hair Mask Recipes
Hair Health Benefits of Avocado Hair Mask
The power food, avocado, is dense in potassium, amino acids, sodium, and other nutrients/minerals, which have enormous benefits to the internal body health and the external (11). When this power food – avocado is made into a hair mask, the benefits include:
1. Promotes Hair Growth:
Slow and stunted hair growth is very common. The process of hair growth may be facilitated or stalled depending on certain factors. These factors include nutrition, medication, hormone influence, stress, and lack of sleep. The vitamins and nutrients that avocado contain helps to protect and strengthen the hair, repair damage on the scalp, lock moisture into hair cells and strengthen the hair root. These actions promote hair growth visibly.
2. Moisturizes Hair:
The hair is usually exposed to unhealthy conditions that rid it of moisture and leave it unhealthy, dry, and weak. The vitamins A, D, E, and B6 present in avocado, in addition to the amino acid and magnesium, make it a potent moisturizing agent.
3. Revitalizes Hair:
A mixture of avocado with other natural products like banana and mayonnaise functions greatly in revitalizing hair health. Avocado helps keep the cuticle layer in good health; this, in turn, keeps the hair healthy and revitalizes already damaged hair.
4. Prevents Dandruff:
Dandruff is a common hair health threat that cuts across every age and gender bracket. It is caused by the flaking of dead skin tissues and results in redness, itching, and irritation. An avocado mask is a very potent product to rid the hair of dandruff (12).
Side Effects of Avocado Hair Mask
There are no side effects associated with the use of avocado; however, certain individuals have proven to be allergic to it. If you have allergic reactions when you eat avocados, it is advised that you also avoid the use of a hair mask made of it. If you are yet to know your possible allergic response to it (because you haven’t eaten it), try a skin patch by applying a small amount of it to a small area and leaving it for 30-35 minutes. If there are no signs of an allergic reaction, you can continue using the hair mask.
Summary
The avocado berry, known by many as a power food has many benefits to various parts of the human body, and the hair is up on the list. A mask made independently from avocado or with a mixture of other very nutritious ingredients has numerous benefits. The mask may function to restore unhealthy hair to its original glow, revitalize it, keep it moisturized, rid it of dandruff, dryness & brittleness, and generally maintain hair health. The highlight of this process is, the hair transforming mask can be easily made from the comfort of your home with a time and cost-effective budget.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Can I use an avocado hair mask every day?
Yes, you can apply the avocado mask as often as you wish, especially the pure avocado mask recipe. However, when mixed with other ingredients like lemon, it should be applied with caution to avoid bleaching.
Can avocado hair masks get rid of dandruff?
Avocado hair masks, because of their moisturizing qualities, can greatly reduce dandruff and dry scalp.
Does an avocado mask make my hair thicker?
Biotin (Vitamin B) is essential for hair growth, while Vitamin E helps repair damage on the scalp. These two ingredients are abundant in avocado, so it is considered a strong hair growth and strengthening product.
How can I revitalize my damaged hair?
The best remedy for damaged hair is the use of natural products such as avocado berry. These natural products are most effective when mixed in the right proportion.
How long can I leave avocado in my hair?
Avocado masks are oil-based, so they should always be applied to dry hair. You may leave it on the hair for 20-30 minutes. If there is no lemon in the mask, you may leave it on all night for more benefits.
How can I make my hair grow faster?
For your hair to grow faster, you must
- Avoid exposure to adverse weather conditions
- Ensure you eat a balanced diet
- Constantly massage your scalp
- Enhance your nutrient profile
- Use essential oils and other natural products
- Use hydrating hair masks such as avocado hair masks.
References –
- “How to use avocado oil for hair” – medicalnewstoday.com
- “10 HAIR-CARE HABITS THAT CAN DAMAGE YOUR HAIR” – aad.org
- “How to brush your hair the right way” – gernierusa.com
- “Hair Cosmetics: An Overview” – ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- “Egg Yolk for Hair” – healthline.com
- “Here’s What an Avocado Hair Mask Does to Your Hair” – allure.com
- “Banana hair mask benefits” – healthline.com
- “Yogurt for Hair: 5 Easy Home Remedies For Hair Care” – food.ndtv.com
- “This Unlikely Food Can Do Wonders for Your Hair” – naturallycurly.com
- “Homemade avocado hair mask recipes” – healthline.com
- “12 Proven Health Benefits of Avocado” – healthline.com
- “Can avocado oil strengthen my hair?” – medicalnewstoday.com
