Home Remedies for Premature Graying of Hair

Premature graying of hair is often a great concern for younger adults in their 20s or 30s as gray hair make them look much older than they are.

The problem can be caused by factors like a genetic predisposition, poor nutrition, hormonal fluctuations, smoking, pollution, stress, use of unsuitable hair products, and certain diseases such as chronic colds, sinusitis, and thyroid disorders.

Basically, strands of hair turn white or gray due to low amounts of melanin, the pigment that gives your hair its natural color. The melanocyte activity slows down with age and the body gradually stops producing melanin.

Instead of covering those gray strands with commercial and chemical-laden hair colors, try some natural home remedies. In addition, eat a healthy and nutritious diet. Deficiency of certain vitamins and minerals such as vitamin B, iron, copper, and iodine can contribute to this problem.

       

1. Indian Gooseberry

Indian gooseberry, or amla, is excellent for a variety of hair problems including premature graying, dull hair, and hair loss. Being rich in vitamin C and antioxidants, it has anti-aging benefits. In addition to consuming this fruit, you can also apply amla oil or amla pulp on your hair.

• Put some coconut oil in a pan. Boil a few dried Indian gooseberry pieces (if you do not have dried amla then use amla powder) in the oil until they become charred. Let the oil cool. Apply the oil on your hair and scalp. Leave it on overnight, or at least for an hour, before rinsing it out. Do this at least once or twice a week.
• Alternatively, you can mix together one tablespoon each of Indian gooseberry pulp and lemon juice. Massage your scalp with it at night before going to bed and wash it out the next morning.
• You can also apply a combination of equal amounts of amla juice and almond oil. You can add a little lime juice, too. Apart from reducing grey hair, this also facilitates healthy hair growth.

2. Curry Leaves

Curry leaves help increase darker pigmentation in your hair. When combined with coconut oil, it works as a great hair tonic.

1. Boil a handful of fresh curry leaves in a tablespoon of coconut oil until they become charred. Strain the oil.
2. Massage it into your hair. Leave it on for 30 to 45 minutes before rinsing it out.
3. Follow this treatment at least once or twice a week.

In addition, you can consume curry juice daily.

3. Henna

Henna works as a wonderful natural hair colorant. Besides making your hair darker, it will strengthen and condition your lustrous locks.

• Grind a handful of henna leaves into a paste. Add three teaspoons of Indian gooseberry powder, one teaspoon of coffee powder, and a little plain yogurt. Spread it evenly on your hair. After it dries, rinse it out and then shampoo your hair as usual. Repeat the process once every two to four weeks.
• Another alternative is to boil some henna leaves in coconut oil or mustard oil until the leaves become charred, and use this oil on your hair.
• You can also prepare a henna hair mask by mixing hot black coffee and henna powder until you get a yogurt-consistency. Cover the bowl and let it sit for a few hours. Apply it to your hair, leave it on for one to three hours, and then shampoo your hair.

4. Coconut Oil and Lemon Juice

Coconut oil works wonders for your hair. It moisturizes your hair, stimulates hair growth, fights infections, and adds luster to your hair. When used for a prolonged time, it also helps reverse gray hair because it is packed with antioxidants.

1. Mix three teaspoons of lemon juice in some coconut oil, enough for the length of your hair.
2. Apply it to your hair and massage it into your scalp. Leave it on for at least an hour before shampooing your hair.
3. Repeat on a weekly basis.

5. Rosemary and Sage

Both these herbs help cover the gray by darkening your hair color naturally.

1. Boil one-half cup each of dried rosemary and sage in two cups of water. Let it sit for a couple of hours. Strain the solution.
2. Use it as a hair rinse after shampooing. Leave it on for 15 to 20 minutes before rinsing it out.
3. Repeat on a weekly basis.

6. Blackstrap Molasses

Blackstrap molasses is a common and effective home remedy to prevent and reduce the problem of gray hair. It is rich in copper, which helps with the production of hair pigment.

Blackstrap molasses provides approximately 14% of the daily recommended dose of copper. It also contains other trace minerals such as iron, selenium, and magnesium. Eat a tablespoon of it every morning for at least a few months to see positive results.

7. Onion Juice

Onion juice is believed to be a brilliant home remedy for thinning hair and premature graying. Recently, researchers found that gray hair is chiefly caused by a buildup of hydrogen peroxide at the base of the hair follicles and a decrease in a natural antioxidant compound, called catalase. Onion juice promotes the production of this compound.

1. Apply onion juice onto your scalp, massage, and leave it on for about 30 minutes to an hour.
2. Repeat the process daily for a few weeks.

8. Black Tea

Black tea helps darken your hair, as well as soften it and add shine.

1. Boil two teaspoons of black tea in a cup of water. Add a teaspoon of salt. Allow it to cool.
2. Rinse your hair with this a few times. The last time, let it sit for 15 to 20 minutes.
3. Wash your hair with cold water but do not use shampoo.
4. Repeat the process once or twice a week.

9.Black Sesame Seeds

According to traditional Chinese medicine, black sesame seeds are highly effective in getting rid of the problem of premature graying of hair. It is believed that they promote melanocyte activity to produce melanin.

They are also rich in protein, iron, calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, and copper. Simply eat a teaspoon of black sesame seeds daily for at least three months. Regularly applying sesame oil on your hair is also useful.

Do not expect instant results. You will have to follow these home remedies regularly for a few weeks or even months to see noticeable results. After all, patience is a virtue.

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Best Home Remedies For Common Cold And Cough

                               
Ginger tea:
                                        
It helps by drying up a running and dripping nose and expels phlegm from the respiratory tract. Also. ginger is known to soothe a common cold to make it bearable and perhaps even speed up the recovery process.

Milk and turmeric:

                                         

Besides ginger tea or masala chai, warm milk and turmeric mixture is a popular and effective way to fight a cough. This mixture is applicable for children and adults too. Turmeric and milk are also healthy ingredients needed for healthy living.

Lemon, cinnamon and honey

                                           

Prepare a syrup of lemon, honey and cinnamon to prevent a common cold. Here’s how to: Put some honey in a pan, fill it to half and use a double boiler until it is thin. Then add a pinch of cinnamon and add lemon. Have this syrup to fight a cold.

Gargle therapy:

                                               

Salt-water gargle is an age-old therapy for cough, but you can also add turmeric to it. Salt and turmeric fight cough and will give you relief that you really need.

Water:

                                        
Drink luke warm water to fight a common cold, cough and sore throat. Drinking warm water reduces the inflammation in the throat. Plus, water helps replenish the fluids in the body and washes out the infection.


Amla for prevention:

                                        

Amla is a strong immunomodulator and protects from the onset of many diseases if taken regularly. It ensures the proper functioning of the liver and improves blood circulation. 

Special Spiced tea:

                                          

Add tulsi, ginger and black pepper while preparing your tea. These three ingredients play an important role in fighting a common cold and cough.

Honey, lime juice and warm water:

                                               

Lime water or nimbu pani is a perfect dose to improve digestion and for the circulation system. If you add honey to lime water and warm water it can be a solution to controlling cold and cough. 

Flaxseeds for cold and cough:

                                               

Boil flaxseeds until it thickens and strain it. Add a few drops of lime juice and honey. Consume the mixture for cold and cough relief.

Ginger and salt:

                                                     

Cut ginger into julians and add salt to it. Chew on these ginger julians to fight cold, cough and a sore throat.

Ginger tulsi mixture:

                                             

Take the juice of ginger, crush tulsi leaves to it and add honey. Consume it to get relief from a cough.

Sauté garlic:

                                            

Sauté a few garlic cloves in ghee and consume this when warm. It may sound like a bitter concoction, but it can help you fight the common cold and cough.

Jaggery solution:

                                              

Boil water with black pepper, add cumin and jaggery to it. It will give you relief from chest congestion. 

Carrot juice:

                                             

It is not a common home remedy to fight a cold and cough, but carrot juice helps to fight a cough. It may be unconventional but it makes an interesting drink. Drink it to prevent cough and reap the benefits of carrot juice.

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Natural Ways To Get Rid Of Pimples

Home Remedies
Use a Turmeric Paste: Turmeric has healing effects. Mix Turmeric in the correct ratio with a little water or yogurt and apply at night for at least 30-40 minutes before washing with water as a mask. However, be careful of using acidic products. Check the pH by using pH testing stripes. It should not be below 3. Use of it over a period of time can give desired results. In a single night the impact is not instant.
                                            

Make a cucumber mask. This solution works best for soothing your skin and reducing redness, but is not as effective as aforementioned solutions for killing bacteria. Mince a bit of cucumber to form a paste, and put this directly on your pimple or over your whole face. Wait for it to set for 15-20 minutes, and then rinse your skin off with cold water. Voila! Your redness should be significantly reduced, and you’ll feel cool as a cucumber.
                                           

Steam. Steaming will help you open your skin pores as well as let your skin breathe. Using this method, you can deeply get rid of bacteria, dirt, and oils trapped inside the pores, which may cause infection or inflammation. To do this, you fill a big container with the hot water. Next, you let the steam come in contact with face for some minutes. Then, you rinse off your face using the lukewarm water. After drying, you should apply your oil-free moisturizer.
                                        

Use Diluted Tea Tree Oil or Neem Oil (neem oil is also known as margosa leaf oil). Tea tree oil is used in many beauty products for its skin-soothing qualities and ability to naturally kill bacteria. Purchase a bottle of pure tea tree oil,and dilute it to treat a pimple. Do this only once a day, and repeat until your zit has completely disappeared. Be careful though, as utilizing undiluted tea tree oil can actually have the opposite effect and cause a chemical burn.
                                    
Try a bit of garlic. As odd as it may seem, garlic is great for reducing pimples for two reasons: it is a natural antiseptic, and it also contains high levels of sulfur (good for drying oil). Either mince a clove of garlic to form a paste, or cut a clove of garlic in half and hold it to your pimple. Leave the garlic on for 5-10 minutes, and then rinse off with cool water.
                                                

Use a honey spot treatment. Honey is a great all-natural skin purifier, as it works to kill bacteria and block out dirt and grime. Pour a bit of honey onto your pimple, and leave it on for as long as you’re able. If you prefer to add the goodness of honey to your whole face, you can do so in the form of a honey mask. When you’re ready to take it off, simply dissolve the honey with a bit of warm water.
                                                          

Try using papaya. Yes, the tropical fruit you often enjoy in smoothies is also great at cleaning your skin and getting rid of pimples. Juice a papaya or crush a small amount of the fruit to form a paste, and then dab it onto your pimple(s). Let it set for as long as you are able before washing it off and splashing your face with cold water. You can repeat this process several times daily if you desire.
                                         

Keep your skin clean. Throughout the day, pollution from the air, sweat, and dirt stick to the skin on your face and make your pimples worse. Wash your face twice daily, and keep cleansing pads/towelettes with you throughout the day. This way, whenever your face feels oily, grimy, or sweaty, you can wipe it off and leave your skin fresh and clean. These are especially handy for after a workout and in hot weather.
                                       

Ice your pimple. Similar to aspirin, ice is often used to bring down swelling and redness on the body. Hold an ice cube or an ice pack over your pimple for 20-30 minutes. This will cause the pore to close up, which then causes the excess bacteria and dirt to drain out on its own. Furthermore, it will lose its redness and size, giving your skin a nearly normal texture and appearance. This method may also help if the pimple is causing you pain.
                                        

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Ways to Prevent Hair Loss!

Normal Hair Loss- nothing to worry about!

We all lose some hair strands each day. So, it’s normal to see some hair coming off your scalp when you brush your hair daily. Normally we lose about 80-100 strands daily due to the end of life cycle of a hair strand. If that’s the matter, you don’t have to worry a lot. Just continue to have a stress-less healthy lifestyle including balanced diet. It’s when you see an abnormal loss of hair that you should start taking measures to stop this. There are many causes of hair loss. You may lose hair due to some hormonal changes, unhealthy lifestyle, junk food devoid of nutritional value, stress, some medication, vitamins deficiency, thyroid problems, menopause etc. Whatever the causes, you should try to eliminate them first and then resort to these home remedies for hair loss.

Actual Hair Loss- Get, Set, Go….

Massage, massage and massage…

More and more people are adopting regular head massage to cure as well as prevent hair loss. Why is massaging your scalp so important? It increases blood flow to your scalp! When blood flow to the hair follicles increases, it conditions the scalp, and strengthens the hair roots. The warmed up skin during massage opens up the blood vessels that help in greater nutrient intake. Don’t forget that hair is one of the important part of your body that also needs sufficient nutrients to grow and remain strong. Proper conditioning through oil massage also prevent dandruff which is yet another cause of hair loss. Not only this, massaging is relaxing and it relieves you off stress, another cause of hair-loss. When hair massage is so beneficial, why not make it a regular habit of massaging hair twice or thrice a week? It will definitely prevent hair loss and make them healthy and shiny. But what oils to use for head massage? I’ll tell you.

Best oils to prevent hair loss

These can be categorized into two, in fact, three groups- Herbal Oils, Essential Oils and Carrier Oils (also called base oils). Carrier oils are used to dilute essential oils before they can be applied to the skin for massage. That way, while you need to use carrier oils with essential oils, you can use natural herbal oils directly on your scalp for massage. Here’s the list of herbal oils that you can use for head massage in order to prevent hair loss.

#1 Coconut Oil Massage

                                            

Coconut Oil is perhaps the best oil for preventing hair loss. This oil is used extensively in India and no one can doubt the quality of hair that Indian women possess. Coconut oil acts as sealant by preventing hair from losing its moisture. Apart from the fine nutrition that it provides to your hair, the lauric acid in coconut oil has antibacterial properties that keep away your scalp from infections.

#2 Olive Oil Massage

                                         

Olive Oil is rich in antioxidants and thus provide great nourishment to your hair. It also penetrates hair shafts better and prevent them from narrowing down by controlling the hormone called DTH. The extra virgin olive oil is best one when it comes to hair loss as it is rich in vitamin E and mono unsaturated fatty acids that not only prevents hair loss but also promotes hair growth.

#3 Almond Oil Massage

                                          

Almond Oil is perhaps the most nutritious oil with its rich contents that include Vitamins E, D, iron, magnesium, calcium, and fats. In fact, almond oil can also be used carrier oil when applying essential oils to the scalp. It gets absorbed slowly and deeply into the hair which makes it a perfect base for essential oils. This way you can get benefits of both- herbal as well as essential oil!

Now, it’s the turn to know the essential oils that are best for preventing hair loss.
lavender, cedarwood, thyme and rosemary

#4 Lavender Oil Massage

                                       

Lavender Oil with its wonderful fragrance is beneficial for preventing hair loss due to its antioxidant nutrients as well as antifungul and antiseptic properties. This oil derived from lavender flowers treats dandruff as well as itching, controls hair breakage all to prevent hair loss. It deeply conditions the hair and also controls dandruff. Lavender oil is widely used to treat alopecia areata too. Alopecia areata is a condition when excessive hair is lost and that too in patches. In such extreme cases daily massage with lavender oil is required. Jojoba and grapeseed oils can be used as base or carrier oil for any essential oil including lavender.

#5 Rosemary Oil Massage

                                       

Rosemary Oil, obtained from rosemary leaves, is yet another essential oil used to prevent hair loss even for acute alopecia areta condition. This oil stimulates the hair roots and increases blood circulation in the scalp leading to hair growth too. Jojoba oil, grapeseed oil as well almond oil prove to be great carrier oils for rosemary oil. So mix it with one of any carrier oils and massage your scalp daily or weekly as per your hair loss status!

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