Ayurveda, which is a world renowned holistic health care branch, falls under the Indian traditional system of health care.
In an individual, condition of hair is reflection of complete constitution of his / her physical state.
In Ayurveda, Ahara-Vihar (diet and lifestyle) are two major factors that influence our body and health of our hair. Irregular dietary habits, poor diet, illness and deficiencies of any vitamin and mineral affects quality of hair, giving rise to problems like dandruff, early baldness and premature graying.
Ayurveda provides some basic guidelines that one can follow for well-being of one’s hair.
Tips for long and lustrous healthy hair
- Massage scalp regularly: Regular cleansing of scalp and hair: Always keep your hair and scalp clean to avoid clogged hair follicles and itching of scalp. Cleanse with a gentle herbal shampoo. Excessive use of shampoo, especially a harsh one, can lead to drying of scalp and damaged hair. Use lukewarm or fresh water to wash your hair, and follow with a natural conditioner. Let hair dry naturally rather than blow-drying. Trim hair regularly to take care of split-ends and natural wear and tear. Regularly cleaning and brushing hair is important. Brushing helps stimulate oil-producing glands in scalp. This natural oil makes hair healthy and glossy.
- Regulate dietary habits: Food must be eaten in properly ventilated, quiet corner and one should not do any other job while eating. For good digestion, avoid drinking too much water during meals. Proper time to drink water is half an hour after food. Drink lukewarm water if oily and spicy food is consumed.
By following these rules, you can keep your body free of ama (toxins). Toxins obstruct nutrients from reaching cells and tissues and so, bad food habits like excessive intake of tea and coffee should be stopped and the consumption of alcohol, non-veg food and smoking must be totally avoided. Eating fried, oily, greasy, spicy, sour and acidic foods in excess is harmful. Chemical or synthetic medicines should be avoided.
Hence, our diet needs attention for a perfect hair care. - Nutritious diet: A balanced assortment of nutrients is necessary to prevent premature hair loss and early greying. List of beneficial healthy hair foods includes white sesame seeds, fresh coconut, green vegetables, whole grain-rich diet, dates and raisins, dahi (curd), sprouted mixture of beans, nuts and seeds and healthy fats such as ghee or oil.
Ayurveda advises to cook food with spices and aromatic herbs as they improve digestion and detoxify our body tissues. Ayurveda advocates for regular intake of haridra (turmeric), maricha (black pepper), methi (fenugreek), dhania (coriander) and jeera (cumin) are both flavoring and agni (digestive fire) enhancing. herbs like amalaki (emblica officinalis), haritaki (terminalia chebula), hingu (asafoetida), bhringraja (eclipta alba) and seasonal fruits especially citrus fruits help to improve digestion and immunity for all age groups and all dosha types. - Sleep Sufficiently: As per Ayurveda, sleep is important for well-being of our body. Improper or irregular sleeping schedule causes disturbance to our body clock. Sleep is a phase when our body repairs tissues and reorganises systems. One should retire to bed before 10pm and finish dinner two hours prior to sleep. Light dinner with less spice followed by a glass of milk (an hour after dinner) is always found to induce good quality sleep. Lack of sufficient sleep can lead to poor health of hair.
- Stress management: Living regularly in a state of stress can lead to excessive falling, premature graying, dry, dull-looking, lifeless appearance of hair. Herbal tea enriched with any one or more of brahmi (bacopa monnieri), mandookparni (centella asiatica), ashwagandha (withania somnifera) and jatamansi (nardostachys jatamansi) supports natural ability to manage stress. Always spare time to rest and relax and practice relaxing yoga techniques and meditation to keep stress under control. Massaging scalp with medicated herbal oils is found to be helpful to mental relaxation and to control mood swings.
So let your hair loose!
