HOW TO USE COCONUT OIL FOR HAIR CARE

HOW TO USE COCONUT OIL FOR HAIR CARE

Coconut oil acts as a super conditioner for hair. Coconut oil is the one oil that our hair can absorb better than any other. The great benefit of this oil is that it is a purely natural product. A lot of women have noticed that conditioners with added artificial ingredients can have a damaging effect on the hair and the scalp when used over long periods of time. This is particularly so as far as black African hair is concerned. Here the hair and scalp can react badly to such substances as paraben preservatives, alcohol and many
petroleum derived substances. Just take a look at the conditioner that you usually use, if it contains any of these substances then you may be doing more harm than good by using it. 

Another good reason for using coconut oil is that it is relatively cheap, considering the great results that it produces. The coconut oil helps your hair in many ways from: keeping it totally moisturized; allowing the hair to grow fully; producing hair that is strong and won’t break easily through to preventing dandruff flakes from developing. One of the ways that it makes your hair stronger and fuller is by maintaining the quality of the protein keratin that makes up your hair. 

A large number of commercial cosmetic companies have started to recognize the importance of coconut oil when it comes to conditioning hair but their response has been to add relatively small amounts of it to their products and then still adding the artificial petroleum based substances as well. This means that the benefits of the coconut oil are often outweighed by these other chemicals. This does however allow them to claim that their product is superior because it does in fact contain some coconut oil. 

Coconut oil has often been given as a remedy for hair loss. This is especially true where hair has stopped growing at the hair line. This loss can often be due to the use of harsh chemicals to treat hair. Examples of these are hair relaxers and hair perm solutions. My sister used to use a lot of these, but since using coconut oil as a conditioner her hair has started to regrow, but not only that, it has grown a lot stronger as well. 

Coconut oil is a great choice when it comes to dealing with brittle dry hair. Most commercial hair moisturizers only put a temporary shine on your dry hair. They won’t actually deal with the real problem of the dry hair. The reason for this is that they can’t actually get into the hair shaft. Moisturizers based on lanolin and mineral oils only coat the hair and give the impression that it has actually been moisturized. Water based products do a little better but they tend to let you down if the hair is relaxed or heat styled later. The only really effective hair moisturizer is virgin coconut oil. This is because it can penetrate right into the shaft and core of every strand of your hair.

You can use virgin coconut oil as a daily moisturizer for your hair. To do this, take a little of the oil and rub it into the palm of your hand. It will start to melt as soon as it touches the skin. Start to rub the oil throughout your hair. Concentrate on the strands of hair rather than the scalp. Always start with a small amount of oil because if you use too much the hair will become greasy and heavy. With this in mind, you can use this method to moisturize you hair as often as needed.

You can use virgin coconut oil as a prewash in order to really get the moisture into your hair. The first thing to do is to get a big handful of coconut oil out of your jar.  With long hair you should bend down forwards and flip your hair forward.  Start to spread the oil slowly through your hair. The oil will start to melt as soon as it touches your skin and spread into your hair so there is no need to heat the oil before you use it. Make sure that the oil is massaged into all of the hair and concentrate on those parts that you know are problem dry areas. Once you have done this, and all of your hair is soaked in coconut oil, you should tie it up into a ponytail or a bun. Clip or tie your hair up in this position. 

Use a shower cap to cover your hair and leave the oil to soak in for about thirty minutes. You can do the job more quickly by applying heat to the shower cap using a hair dryer. The heat helps the coconut oil get into the hair more quickly. If you use heat you will need to heat it for at least fifteen minutes. After the time is up you should wash your hair and condition it as you usually would. 

If the hair is still too oily you may need to wash it twice. Concentrate on washing the roots and only do just enough to the ends of the hair where you want the oil to do its magic work. You can then go on to style your hair and be generally stunned as to how smooth and soft your hair is, after applying the coconut oil. If your hair is in bad shape you will need to apply the oil each time you wash it. As the condition of the hair improves you can back off to a regular treatment of once a week. If you maintain the treatment you will find that your hair will grow both longer and stronger. 

Hair is rather like a tube and as such is hollow inside. This is often called the hair shaft. Coconut oil is a natural product and has water loving chemical groups as part of its makeup. This means that it is ideally made to get into the hair shaft and fill it up. This then gives the hair more body and makes it look full and thick. 

During normal hair treatments such as washing and styling, the hair fibers are subjected to alternate swelling and shrinking. This is due to alternate water absorption, retention and loss. This is a type of hair fatigue. Coconut helps to prevent this because once it has penetrated the core of the hair it prevents it swelling up. This is the reason why coconut oil helps to protect your hair even during heat treatments. 

Hair is made up from protein and these proteins can be lost from the hair. This causes damage and weakness to the hair. Regular moisturizing with coconut oil helps to stop the protein being lost from your hair. Coconut oil will seal the hair from the outside and this means that moisture is kept in the hair. This means that it will have a shiny and silky feel to it. The coconut oil in the shaft of the hair can move down into the hair follicle where it supplies moisture. This helps to protect it from heat damage due to styling and chemical damage from other hair treatments.  Coconut oil contains some specific substances which have been identified as being very good for the health and growth of hair. These are all natural substances and are found in useful amounts in coconut oil. 

One of these substances is called lauric acid. This is well known as an antimicrobial agent. Microbes on the scalp have been identified as one reason that hair may be lost from the scalp. The microbes may collect in hair follicles and cause 
weakened low quality hair to be produced. Lauric acid can help prevent the build up of these microbes in hair follicles. This then, in turn, helps to stimulate new growth, which is also stronger and healthier. Lauric acid seems to be particularly good at stimulating new growth at and around the hair line. The substance called capric acid is another antimicrobial agent which is found in coconut oil and acts in a similar way to lauric acid. The antimicrobial action of coconut oil protects against scalp infections and dandruff as well as preventing hair follicle infections. All of this leads to better quality hair and less of the hair falling out due to weakness. 

To deal with dandruff you should use a circular motion to massage the oil into the scalp. This will help to remove the scales of dead skin cells that characterize the dandruff condition. This massaging will also moisturize the skin layers below the surface of the scalp, which will help to prevent future occurrences of dandruff. The lauric acid will use its antimicrobial nature to kill any bacteria and fungi that could go on to cause dandruff at a later date. Regular use of coconut oil helps stop dandruff forming in a far gentler way compared to commercial anti dandruff shampoos. Coconut oil also contains vitamin E which is well known as being responsible for maintaining the health of the scalp skin. This vitamin maintains healthy hair production and helps to keep your hair shiny and bouncy. 

A lot of people are gradually changing their usual hair care products for ones that use coconut oil as the main active ingredient. They are then reaping the benefits of this super conditioner. There is also a move to use coconut oil products for styling the hair as well. The reason for this is that the oil can be made to act in the same way as hair waxes and gels. In doing this job they moisturize the hair and scalp at the same time. Coconut styling products don’t damage the hair in the same way that other styling products can. One key factor in the use of coconut oil in this area is the fact that it can keep moisturizing the hair at just about any temperature that is used during the styling process. (SOURCE: 107 EVERYDAY USE OF COCONUT OIL)