by Dr. Uzoma for Beauty 365
In my quest for healthier hair, I decided to experiment with an Ayurvedic approach. I did some research on it and I saw that others who used the powders (Henna, Cassia, Amla, etc.) were getting great results. So on a recent trip to the Indian grocery store, I saw three powders, which I thought would be interesting to try: Amla, Brahmi, and Shikakai.
The powders are manufactured by Hesh and are said to have the following properties. . .
Amla Powder
- Promotes hair growth
- Controls hair fall
- Cures scalp infection
- Controls premature graying of hair
Brahmi Powder
- Cools the scalp and induces sound sleep
- Controls dandruff
- Makes hair long, dark, dense & lustrous
- Strengthens hair roots
Shikakai Powder
- Provides new life to hair strands
- Strengthens hair roots
- Increases bounciness and silkiness of hair
- Clears dandruff
- Keeps the scalp clean and cool.
So on my next wash day, I was ready to go with the powders. Here is the mix I used.
- 1 spoon Shikakai
- 3 spoons Amla
- 3 spoons Brahmi
- 1 spoon each: castor, coconut, and jojoba oils
- Hot water to mix
For each “spoon” I used the white spoon in the picture. It was a bit less than a tablespoon. I mixed everything until it looked like a muddy paste and left it for an hour.
The paste immediately after mixing
While the mix was setting, I used Dabur Amla Oil on my hair as a pre-poo and stayed under heating cap for about an hour. Then, using latex gloves, I applied the mix after roughly sectioning my hair into 4. I left the mix on my hair for an hour. Then, I rinsed it out, washed and deep conditioned as I normally do.
It wasn’t difficult to rinse out but my hair felt so dry afterwards. I had to put TONS of different moisturizing conditioners (Neutrogena Triple Moisture Deep Recovery Hair Mask, Suave Humectant Conditioner, and Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose) plus castor oil to help. I also deep conditioned with heat for about 2 hours.
After conditioning, my relaxed hair was so tangled and matted. It took over an hour to detangle, when it usually only takes about 30 minutes. I lost much more hair than normal in the detangling process. I was planning to roller set my hair that day but since it was such a disaster after the treatment, I just let it air dry. My hair was still dry after moisturizing. So, I had to moisturize and seal every day until it was back to normal.
I’m not sure why I got these results but I don’t think I will try this again. Since my hair has been responding well to Amla oil, I may try to use the powder to make my own oil infusion with coconut oil or olive oil.
Have any of you had good or bad results with Ayurvedic treatments?
Let us know in the comments.
xx,
Dr. Uzoma
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This entry was posted
on Thursday, May 31st, 2012 at 11:23 pm and is filed under Dr. Uzoma, Hair, Hair Care.
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this sounds SO disastrous. so sorry it went poorly!
It was TERRIBLE! I may try it with only one powder and LOADS of conditioner. Any tips are more than welcome.