Its pungence may be off putting, eye watering even, but did you hear the one about onion juice for hair growth?
Onions are a vegetable I’ve eaten all my life, it is used as a flavouring agent in almost every Jamaican lunch or dinner dish. I have never thought of it as anything beyond the reason I hate cooking. Its smell lingers on my fingers even after washing with soap and its juices assault my eyes in retaliation to my assault, in preparation to be placed in my pot. So you can imagine how incredulous I was when I stumbled across a Youtube video, where a lovely young lady illustrated how to make onion juice and credits it for her hair growth after years of hair damage.
I decided to look into this claim a bit more, even though I probably wouldn’t try it, my curious nature wants to know more. Many fads have come and gone; every three months or so, a new hot ingredient or product is plastered all over the natural hair community as the new thing that will make our hair grow. I’ve learnt to filter it out because I’m on my own journey, this is why having a hair regimen is vital, it keeps you focussed.
According to a research paper published in the Journal of Dermatology, July 2014, 23 patients with alopecia areata joined a study to test the effectiveness of topical onion juice for hair regrowth. They were instructed to use it twice per day for two months. It is reported that after 4 weeks of treatment, 17 patients (approx 74%) saw hair regrowth and after 6 weeks, 20 patients (Approx 87%). I don’t know how you feel about statistics, but I think these results are fantastic!
Though these results seem very encouraging, it was a small scale research and there are questions such as what happens if the treatment is stopped? Another point of note is there were some people who did not experience hair regrowth, therefore, if you try it, keep in mind that it may or may not work for you.
Onion Juice contains a variety of vitamins, minerals and compounds including sulphur, which stimulates blood circulation and allicin (formed when the onion is cut and alliinase is released), which contains antibacterial and antioxidant properties. These properties are what stimulate the scalp, and provide the environment for healthy, strong hair and a healthy scalp.
How To Make And Use Onion Juice For Hair Growth
You could buy the onion juice, however fresh is best when it comes to onions. The onion juice can be made in a few ways. You need the juice of approximately 3 medium to large onions for your full head, 1 medium onion if you’re only using it on a small area. The type of onion doesn’t seem to matter but the onion juice needs to be in its undiluted form.
Some ways to extract the juice:
- Cut onion into quarters and place in a Blender or Food Processor, then using a cheesecloth to strain, squeeze the juice out
- Cut onion into quarters and place in a Juicer, job done
- If you don’t have any of the above, use the cheese side of a Hand Grater to grate the onion, then use a cheesecloth to squeeze the juice out of the macerated onion.
Pour the onion juice into an applicator bottle to apply it to the scalp, or the area of your scalp that you need to regrow. It is advised to let it sit on the scalp for 30 minutes then rinse it out. The study suggests using this everyday for at least 4 weeks, however, with our Afro Curly hair, you may choose to do this treatment once or twice per week, as daily washing is not optimal for our hair. Of course, this process will take longer to see results as opposed to someone doing the treatment daily.
As with any new treatment or product used on the skin, do a patch test on your inner arm to check for sensitivity before applying all over your scalp. I would also suggest skipping this hair treatment if you have cuts or abrasions on your scalp.
Tell us, have you tried using Onion Juice for hair growth? Has it worked for you? We would love to read your thoughts and experiences.
Until next time,
Be GREAT x