It has been an interesting journey growing my hair back out for the past few months. I have not been on a hair growth journey for the past few years because, over the past five years, I had managed to successfully grow my hair a little over mid back length. I had forgotten how motivated by hair growth the average person is. However, after I cut my hair, I started to miss the length I had. Nevertheless, the goal has always been to grow my hair out again. So recently, I started to research the “hair growth industry” which encompasses Youtube, vloggers, bloggers, endorsers and many more interested folks.
Because of the internet age, suggestions, mistakes and experiments are quick to become the norm and subsequently, they form a wave that “revolutionalizes” into a movement over a very short period of time. For example, someone applies a certain product on their hair and believes it caused some growth. They post a video about it on youtube and others start to try it out. Before you know it, it becomes a source of hair growth. In this post, I will mention a few of the practices that I have come across. You can let me know if you have tried any and if it worked for you. Also don’t forget to mention if you are willing to try it out sometime. Be honest, I am not here to judge.
The first one is “the hair inversion theory”: This is not an actual theory. I just called it that because it has a ‘science’ behind it. It involves having your head in an inverted position. If you are familiar with yoga poses, this position is called downward facing dog. When you tilt your head downwards, it is believed that there would be an increase in blood flow to the follicles of your hair. More blood flow is believed to be linked with more hair growth. This myth may not be appropriate for pregnant people and people with some pre-existing conditions so it is important to be careful with this one. Blood flows all around the body as it is pumped by the heart and circulates generously across vital organs. I believe that tilting your head may or may not necessarily cause more blood flow to the scalp than usual. Instead, massages with warm oil can stimulate the scalp and encourage hair growth better than the inconvenience of putting yourself in an upside down position.
The second one is applying fungicide cream to the hair: I find this one highly ridiculous and little bit off putting. Products that are known to treat candida had been suggested to promote hair growth by youtube vloggers and bloggers. A good example is monistat. It has been promoted extensively on youtube videos. Demonstrations show monistat being mixed with oils and butters. The notion is that prohibiting the growth of certain organisms can lead the hair to thrive, stimulate the hair follicles and promote hair growth. But this is far from true and can lead to allergic reactions in some people. Instead of going through this extreme, gently cleansing the scalp with non pore clogging products can have the desired effect of promoting hair growth by prohibiting the proliferation of lice, dandruff and other growth inhibiting scalp conditions. It is important to avoid drying soaps and shampoos that can cause the scalp to become flaky and itchy thereby leaving it susceptible to growth inhibiting problems.
The third one is washing the hair with rice water: I call this a myth but there could be some elements of possibility here. The reason is because some parts of the world where people are found to have the longest hair have been said to adopt the practice of rinsing their hair with rice water. There are many ways of using rice water in the hair. Some people use it as leave in conditioner, others use it as a rinse out or deep conditioner. This involves either boiling rice for a short time and isolating the water that comes out of it or soaking the rice for a few days first before isolating the water. In both cases, the water will not smell great as it ferments very fast. However you choose to use it, it is important to note that rice contains arsenic and it is not clear the long run effect this could have on the scalp. It is important to do thorough research before you engage in any of these myths as they may have adverse effects that become cumulative. You can simply get the same effect of hair growth and scalp nourishment by using our Banana leave in conditioner. With 96% organic content, our banana leave in is heaven for the hair. Its main ingredient is of course, banana. Banana is a highly nutritious fruit. Packed with potassium and a host of vitamins like B3, B5, B6, C and more, it is a highly essential fruit that plays an important role in the body. On the hair, it is equally beneficial, resulting in healthier and stronger hair.
I believe it is important to take care of your scalp if you want to grow your hair long. Installing protective styles that are too tight will eventually damage your scalp and negatively impact your hair growth in most cases, permanently. Hair grows at a steady rate in most healthy individuals so, it is more important to focus on retaining your length with pure and natural products than to be obsessed with the growth rate of your hair. The growth rate of hair is impacted by factors beyond our control like genetics and hereditary diseases so it is futile to be preoccupied with length checks.
I will not be trying any of these myths to let you know their exact effects but you are welcome to share your thoughts, experiences and ideas about them in the comment section below.
