Archive for the ‘Tonics’ category

Let Your Hair Down!

November 23rd, 2009

Hair loss may be due to negative stress, lack of stimulation or poor circulation of the scalp, a diet deprived of proper balances of amino acids like Lysine, minerals such as Zinc or Iron, or vitamins B1 or C. Here are some simple, yet calming, exercises for the promotion of hair care;

1.      Have someone (or yourself) rub your scalp with fingertips.  A little baby oil may make the experience more pleasurable and less chafing.

2.      Boil dry pieces of Amla (Indian Gooseberry) in coconut oil. Mix even parts fresh Amla juice and lime juice.  Apply as a shampoo.  The Romasanjana variety is traditionally known to specifically stimulate hair growth.

3.      Drink 30 drops of red clover tops liquid extract daily.

4.      Make a mixture of sage tea and apple cider vinegar and place in a plastic bottle.  Use this mixture after shampooing, as a rinse.

5.      Hot and cold cloth applications have been beneficial in stimulating the scalp.

6.      Take 30-60 mg supplemental zinc daily.

7.      Cut a garlic clove and rub it on the problem areas about an hour before bedtime. Just prior to turning in, massage your scalp with olive oil and put on a shower cap. Sleep.  When you wake up in the morning, make sure you shampoo.  Do this for a few weeks.  Hair should stop falling out and new hair may begin to grow. Warning – be careful of lingering odors.  Have spouse or friend let you know if you smell like a deli. Odor

8.      Rub Aloe Vera into the scalp.

9.      Take one and a half Tbsp of apple cider vinegar and mix in a half tsp of cayenne powder.  Dab the mixture onto your scalp 1 hour before shampooing.  Warning – It can sting your eyes so keep the solution and your fingers away from them! Very promising results!

Touch of Gray

November 7th, 2009

If you are like most of us, you are hoping to postpone the Gray hair for as long as possible.  I have found some great ways to get the gray out NATURALLY and with minimal effort. Here are a couple that I have found to work.  Remember that this will take a little time to see a change since you are working on your body chemistry – e.g. the cellular level.

For Getting the Gray Out: Possible Zinc or Copper deficiency or imbalance.

1.      Add 300 mg PABA to your supplement routine. May take up to three months to see significant difference.

2.      Add a good B-complex vitamin to your supplement routine.

3.      Blend two Tbsp of blackstrap molasses, two Tbsp of apple cider vinegar and two Tbsp raw honey in a small glass of juice or water. If it is too nasty tasting, down it fast and chase it with apple or orange juice.

4.      Increase your intake of Colloidal Copper.

5.      Focus on getting B12 in your diet.

What Does Exercise Have To Do With My Hair?

November 3rd, 2009

Think about it… Your hair follicle is fd by your blood stream. If you have poor circulation, your hair follicle will be slowly starved.  Exercise on the other hand improves circulation and increases blood flow to every part of your body.  Along with exercise comes stimulation.  Many parts of our body lack positive stimulation to increase blood flow.  Here are a few tips to help you stimulate your scalp, follicles and even hair growth.

1.      Do not do this exercise if you have high or low blood pressure! Do not do this exercise without your doctor’s approval if you are sig­nificantly beyond young adulthood!

Stand on your head. If you cannot, lay on your bed face down with your torso off the end of the bed and head and forearms laying flat on the floor with palms down.  Stay in that position for a minute each day and, after a week, gradually work your way up to five minutes each day. The theory behind this is that you will bring oxygen to the hair follicles, which will rejuvenate the scalp and encourage hair to grow.

2.      Clinch your fingers so that the nails of your right hand face the nails of your left hand.  Rub the fingernails of one hand against the fingernails of your other. Do this three times a day for 5 minutes each time.  Supposed to reduce gray hair and stimulate hair growth.

3.      Massage your scalp with baby oil or olive oil for five minutes every night and morning. Scalp massages increase circulation to the head and can help hair follicles receive important nutrients from the blood supply.

4.      Massage your scalp with a mixture of six drops of lavender and six drops of bay oil in four oz of sesame oil.

5.      Grab a hand­ful of hair and yank gently. Repeat it over your entire scalp concentrating on problem areas (if possible). This is to strengthen your roots.

6.      Make loose fists and lightly knock on your scalp.  This is done to stimulate your scalp and brain.

7.      Take a 30 to 60 minute walk every day. Take the dog or kids for a walk and then come home for a spa treatment with the tonics and scalp treatments.

8.      Sleep seven to eight hours a night. Your body has to have a good rest period and allow circulation of blood and oxygen to the necessary organs such as skin, heart and lungs just to name a few. Your scalp will also rejuvenate during this time and you will have to brush your hair in the morning.

9.      Tap your scalp with a wire brush.  This is said to increase electri­cal stimulation to the follicles.

10.  A dermal hammer is an acupuncture tool, which has a long handle supporting a head, which holds a cluster of small individual “blunt” needles intended to stimulate, but not puncture the skin. It is commonly used all over the body, but for hair loss, right over the thinning areas of the scalp.  The tool is used once then discarded (or possibly several times if the tool is properly sterilized).  This is a recognized method of fighting hair loss, but due to the nature of the practice, I suggest finding a licensed acupuncturist to perform the therapy correctly and safely.  I also believe that the tapping hairbrush method is a much safer way to accomplish the same thing.

Time To Change That Oil. Stop Oily Hair Today

October 30th, 2009

Most of us have one type of hair and struggle to keep it healthy, strong and glistening. If you have oily hair like I do, here are some simple, natural fixes that will get the oil crisis under control once and for all.

For Oily Hair: Possibly a vitamin B deficiency or hyperactive thyroid.  Follow tips above for suggested amounts of Vitamin B.

1.      In a small saucepan, bring a cup of water to a boil.  Place in two Tbsp of rosemary and reduce to medium heat. Steep the tea for 15 minutes. Let it cool.  Separate out the solids and pour the tea into a plastic water bottle. Use a little of the rosemary tea solution after every shampooing. Rinse out if desired.

2.     Take a half of a bottle of your favorite shampoo and fill the other half of the bottle with water. Add 20 drops of oil of one or more of the following: Basil, Lemongrass, Mint or Sage.

Shake up the new mixture (before each use) and pour an amount roughly the size of a quarter into the palm of your hands.  Gently massage it into your wet hair and distribute it evenly across hair and scalp. Let it sit for a minute.  Rinse well using warm (not hot) water.

3.      To absorb oil from your hair, dust a SMALL amount of talcum powder onto your scalp and hair.  Massage it in well.  Be sure to start with a little. Too much and you will look like you are on your way to parliament.

4.      Mix the juice of two lemons into a pint of water (distilled is preferred). Pour into a plastic water bottle. Shampoo and then sponge dry hair.  Spray the lemon juice mixture to your hair and let it sit for five minutes. Rinse with warm water.

5.      Mix equal parts apple cider vinegar and water into your plastic bottle.  Spray onto hair as a rinse after shampooing.

For Extremely Oily Hair - This could be due to a vitamin B deficiency or hyperactive thyroid which means an overproduction of sebum.

1.     Use an alcohol-based mouth­wash ¼ cup to one cup of water. Shampoo hair, and then use the mouthwash rinse. Follow with a conditioner. This will also make your hair shinier and smell great. Use a “mint” mouthwash and not a medicine-smelling (Listerine) one or you will smell, well weird.

    2.     Put 1 tablespoon of coarse (large crystals are easier to retrieve than table salt)     kosher salt in a saucepan and put on the stove top on low. Once warm, carefully spread the warm salt onto your scalp and distribute throughout your hair.  Leave in for about five minutes then carefully brush out.  Use a natural-bristle hairbrush to remove all of the salt. Be sure to get all of the salt out of your hair and brush.

    I’ve Been Typecast By Dandruff!

    October 21st, 2009

    Most of us have one type of hair and struggle to keep it healthy, strong and glistening. If you are beyond “Dry Hair” and your scalp is actually flaking off, you have dandruff (and everyone knows it.  Before you put TAR on your head (literally), try these natural fixes.

    For Extremely Dry Hair - Dandruff Help: Possibly hypoactive thyroid. Bacilli may be clogging natural oil ducts causing a thin, scaly crust to form on the scalp. Hair deprived of natural oils may become brittle and break off easily or even fall off at the follicle.  In advanced cases, this may lead to thinning of the hair and/or baldness.  If scalp is to the point of soreness or bleeding, consult a health care provider (dermatologist) immediately.

    1.      Massage a little pure coconut oil onto your scalp daily.

    2.      Apple cider vinegar kills bacillus and stimulates healthy oil production.
    Pour 3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar in cup.  Part your hair in sections and sponge Apple Cider Vinegar directly onto areas of the scalp that are affected by dandruff or redness.  Afterwards, put on a shower cap or wrap your head with a towel. Wait for at least 30min.  Do this once every other day to begin with, then less frequent after remedy shows visible improvement.

    3.      After your shampoo, use warm burdock or sage tea as a scalp rinse.

    4.      Take a half of a bottle of your favorite shampoo and fill the other half of the bottle with water. Add 20 drops of oil of one or more of the following: Sage, Geranium or Myrrh.

    Shake up the new mixture (before each use) and pour an amount roughly the size of a quarter into the palm of your hands.  Gently massage it into your wet hair and distribute it evenly across hair and scalp. Let it sit for a minute.  Rinse well using warm (not hot) water.

    5.      Dissolve a teaspoon of boric acid in a cup of wa­ter. Wet your hair and distribute the solution with a natural bristle hairbrush daily for up to seven days. If mixture works for you, repeat this every three days for up to six additional applications.

    6.      Blend a half ounce of Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) into two cups of water. Let the MSM dissolve in the water for a couple days. Shake every six-eight hours.  Sponge solution onto your scalp every other day.

    7.      Massage Vaseline or olive oil onto scalp nightly

    8.      Add fresh fruit, vegetables and low-fat dairy to your diet.

    9.      Boil a cup of Urtica Dioica (stinging nettle) in a pint of water and add a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar. Let simmer for ten minutes then allow cooling to room temperature.  After a shampoo, rinse your hair with the broth.

    10.  Press all of the juice of a lemon into a plastic cup. Pour half of the lemon juice you collected into your plastic water bottle. Add a pint of water to the bottle.

    First, rinse your hair with the pure lemon juice.  Let it sit for up to a minute then wash your hair with your favorite shampoo.  Rinse out the shampoo with warm water. Follow that with the mixture of water and lemon juice in the plastic bottle. Do this two to three times a week until the dandruff subsides.

    11.  Use natural pomades that include Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM).  Add essential oils like Sage, Geranium or Myrrh to it.  Experiment with scent combinations before adding to pomade.

    12.  Shampoo with DILUTED detergent made with pure vegetable soap in an alcohol and water solution. Try Green Soap tinctures diluted 1 part soap to 9 parts water. Start with high dilution ratio. Used in cleaning skin of bacteria for surgery, wound cleaning and tattooing.

    13.  Massage 4 tablespoons of kitchen-variety corn oil into dry hair and scalp and cover hair with a shower cap. Let it sit for 20 to 30 minutes. Shampoo out and rinse thoroughly.