10 Ayurvedic Home Remedy Tips to Stop Hair Loss





Men and women love to have thick, luscious, black hair.  It makes them feel young and confident.  But the numbers of men and women with healthy thick hair growth seem to be dwindling day by day.  There are a number of reasons for hair loss and similarly there are a number of home remedies too to treat this condition.

Long hair was a craze not so long ago.  Womenfolk would set aside time to take care of their hair, keeping the scalp adequately oiled and hair neat and untangled.  Washing the hair and drying it took a long time.  Spending so much time on hair has become a luxury for all these days.  People could not devote much time to hair care due to their hectic schedule.  It has resulted in a dramatic increase in the number of people suffering from hair loss and poor hair growth.

Some reasons for hair loss include heredity, anemia, stress and anxiety, dandruff, autoimmune diseases like lupus etc, hypothyroidism, unclean or unhealthy scalp, fungus, chemicals, environmental pollution etc.

Take plenty of Fruits and Vegetables to arrest hair fall
Intake of healthy food like fruits and vegetables, keeping away from junk food and leading a stress free life, though sound clichéd, are still the basic tenets for healthy living as well as healthy hair.  So the first step to arrest hair loss is to adopt this healthy lifestyle.  This should be followed by trying a few home remedies specific to the individual’s condition.  Proper hair care takes time, but the benefits are there to be seen.

Some of the time-tested Ayurvedichome remedies for hair loss are given below.  Choose the one that suits you best, based on your body type and easy availability of ingredients.

Fenugreek Paste Arrests Hair Fall
Fenugreek is a great hair loss remedy.  The best way to use fenugreek is to make a paste with cow’s milk.  The paste made of fenugreek and milk is applied generously onto the scalp and washed off after 15 minutes with warm water and soap nut powder.  One note of caution.  This method is not suited for those who catch cold very easily.

Dried gooseberry, white pepper, kadukkai, aromatic turmeric (kasthuri manjal), and neem seeds of equal quantity are collected.  These are powdered individually and then mixed together.  A teaspoon of this powder is taken and boiled in milk to form a thick paste.  The paste is applied warm on scalp.  It is allowed to remain for 10-15 minutes and then washed off with soap-nut powder.



Arugampul (Bermuda grass) and athimathuram powder are added to coconut oil and boiled to reach a thick consistency of a thailam.  Filter the resultant preparation and store in a cool place.  This thick oil is applied to scalp and washed off after 15 minutes.  This is a very effective treatment for dandruff and hair loss.

Navacharam is the Tamil name for ammonium chloride.  One very effective way to combat hair loss due to fungus attack of scalp is to mix a teaspoon of navacharam in honey and applying the ensuing preparation on scalp, particularly in spots which have been affected by fungus.

Cut small onion (shallot) into half and rub it on the scalp where there is hair loss due to fungus, ringworm, or bacterial infection.  Wash off with warm water after 15 minutes.  Onion has well-known antibacterial and antiseptic properties and hence can help in arresting hair fall.  The same technique can be followed using wild garlic pods.  Freshly cut wild garlic pods are rubbed on scalp.  Garlic is also a well known antibacterial and antifungal agent which can prove beneficial in cases where hair loss is due to ringworm or other bacterial infections.  Care should be taken as some can be allergic to onion or garlic.  So the ideal way to benefit from garlic or onion is to test a small portion of the scalp initially and then if there is no reddening of scalp or unbearable itchy feeling, you can proceed to treat the rest of the affected areas of the scalp.

Henna Leaves help luscious hair growth
 Henna leaf is yet another time tested herb that helps in treating hair loss.  Collect two fistful of henna leaf and make a fine thick paste out of it.  The paste is patted flat and round into shape of a one rupee coin.  Allow this to try in shade for a day or two.  Drop these henna tablets into a bottle of sesame oil.  After 3-4 days place this bottle of sesame oil in hot sun for one day.  Heat the oil in stove and as the henna paste turns brown remove from stove and let it cool.  Store the oil in a bottle.  This henna steeped oil is applied on scalp and massaged thoroughly to prevent hair loss and premature graying.

Elephant tusk is prescribed in certain Siddha texts to treat hair loss due to fungal growth.  The tusk is burnt to ashes.  The ensuing fine powder is mixed in coconut oil and applied on fungus affected areas of the scalp.

Water amaranth (Ponnanganni in Tamil) and false daisy (karisalanganni, bhringraj) are two herbs used in preparing hair oil.  Bhringraj hair oil is a well known Ayurvedic hair oil for hair growth.  Both these herbs are cleaned and the leaves are ground to make a fine paste.  This paste is added to coconut and allowed to boil for 3-4 minutes.  Remove from heat and allow it to cool.  Store the oil in a bottle.  Apply this oil to scalp and hair every day.  This arrests hair fall and helps thick luscious hair growth.


Shallots, a remedy for fungal attack on scalp
Take a handful of small onions (shallots).  Cut them to thin slices.  Heat a liter of coconut oil and drop the onion slices into the oil.  When the onion slices start to float atop the heated oil, remove from heat and allow the oil to cool.  This oil is applied to the scalp once in two days for 10 to 15 minutes and then washed with soap nut powder.  This is an effective way to prevent hair loss.



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Ayurvedic Home Remedies: Health Benefits of Ice Apple (a.k.a. Palm Fruit)



One fascinating aspect of Mother Nature is her myriad ways of taking care of the living beings that inhabit the earth.  During the summer season we can see plenty of cucumber, water melon, tender coconut, ice apple etc everywhere that help human beings combat the ill effects of the soaring temperature of a hot summer.

Freshly cut Ice Apple cluster
Ice apple, also known as palm fruit or Nungu in Tamil is a delicious jelly like fruit that beats all the others for its cooling effect on a hot summer day.  This seasonal nungu is the tender fruit of the palmyra tree.  This tree is found in plenty in the villages of South India lining the paddy fields.  It is the official tree of the Tamil Nadu State.  It is a native to South and Southeast Asia.  You can also find these trees in Pakistan, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Java and other Southeast Asian countries.

During summer you can find clusters of palmyra fruit in the tree hanging down below the palm leaves.  They have a thick violet black husk.  The top greenish covering is cut to reveal the three sockets in which the fruit is located.  The jelly has a tender brownish-yellow skin.  Watery fluid is found inside the jelly which has excellent cooling properties.

Ice Apple with skin
The fruits of the palmyra palm grow in clusters. The tender, pale white, translucent jelly like fruit is seasonal and can be found in plenty in summer.  Ice apple is rich in vitamins, iron, zinc, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, thiamin, riboflavin etc.  Children love ice apple for its taste and softness.  Pregnant women can overcome constipation and related difficulties with the help of ice apple.  Dieters who are on a weight loss regimen can take ice apple.  It does not contain fat or carbohydrates.

Seasonal problems like prickly heat affect children and grownups alike in summer.  Ice apple is an excellent remedy for prickly heat.  This has been my personal experience.  In my childhood days I was prone to prickly heat of the summer.  Come the month of April and my chest and back would be covered with prickly heat.  My mom used to coat me with a thin layer of ice apple jelly.  The soothing effect of the ice apple provided an immediate relief to that nasty itch.  This application was continued for two to three days and the prickly heat boils would vanish in no time.

Ice Apple skin removed
To reap maximum benefit out of ice apple it should be consumed along with its tender pink, brownish skin.  Though taking the fruit with the skin may taste a bit sour it can heal stomach ulcers.  So take a few fruits along with the skin for your benefit.  The jelly part is cut to pieces and added to milk and honey.  This preparation cools the body and helps tackle the hot summer.  People suffering from chicken pox can take ice apple regularly to bring down the intensity of the disease condition as well as aid rapid healing.


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