Home Remedy For Premature Graying Of Hair

Home Remedy For Premature Graying Of Hair

• One of the best home remedies for premature graying of hair comprises of curry leaves. Include them in your daily diet. Alternatively, you can put some curry leaves in coconut oil and boil it. Strain the oil and let it cool down. Apply it over the scalp.

• Dry a few pieces of ribbed gourd in the sun. Soak them in coconut oil for about 3 to 4 hours. After this, boil it until the residue becomes black and cool it down a bit. Massage the scalp with the residue.

• Extract juice from fresh leaves of amaranth vegetable. Apply this juice on the hair. It will prove helpful in retaining the black color of hair and also aid the growth of new hair.

• Massage the scalp with butter made out of cow's milk. This should be applied at least two times in a week.

• Indian gooseberry is beneficial in treating premature graying of hair. Cut the fruit into pieces and dry them. Once dried, put them in coconut oil, until the solid matter becomes dusty or powdered. Apply on the hair.

• Mix a tsp of Indian gooseberry juice with a tsp of almond oil and few drops of lime juice. Apply this mixture on your hair and keep it overnight. In the morning, wash the hair. This is an effective home remedy for treating premature graying of hair.

• Avoid having refined flour and sugar, soft drinks, pastries, jam, too spicy food, hot food, chilies and oily food.

• Eat a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables. They are effective in treating premature graying of hair.

• Mix a liter of yoghurt with a tablespoon of yeast. Have a bowl of this mixture before every meal, as it is effective in treating premature graying.

Arnica Flowers

Arnica Flowers

SCIENTIFIC NAME : Arnica montana
COMMON NAME : Leopard's bane, mountain tobacco, mountain snuff, wolf's bane


BOTANY

Arnica is a perennial that grows from 1 to 2 feet. 1,2 Its oval, opposite leaves form a basal rosette close to the soil surface. It has bright yellow, daisy like flow­ers.1-3 The dried flower heads are the primary parts used from the plant. The rhizome is also used.2,4 Arnica is native to the mountainous regions of Europe to southern Russia.3,4 The unrelated plant, monkshood (Aconitum spp) is sometimes referred to as wolf's bane.

HISTORY

Internal and external preparations made from the flowering heads of arnica have been used medicinally for hundreds of years. Alcoholic tinctures were used by early settlers to treat sore throats, as a febrifuge, and to improve circulation. Homeopathic uses included the treat­ment of surgical or accidental trauma, as an analgesic, and in the treatment of postoperative thrombophlebitis and pulmonary embolj,5 It has been used externally for acne, bruises, sprains and muscle aches, and as a general topical counterirritant. 6 Arnica has been used extensively in European folk medicine. German philosopher Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) was said to have drunk arnica tea to "ease" his angina.2 Arnica's bactericidal properties were employed for abrasions and gunshot wounds?

CHEMISTRY

A number of flavonoid glycosides have been identified in arnica. Flavonoids (0.4% to 0.6%)3 include betuletol, eupafolin, flavonol glucuronides his­pidulin, isorhamnetin, luteolin, patuletin, spinacetin, tricin, , -trihydroxy- -trimethoxyflavo ne, kaempferol, quercetin,9 and kaempferol and quercetin derivative,lO jaceosidin, and pectolin-arigenin. 4 Isomeric alcohols include arnidiol and foradiol.

Terpenoids in arnica include arnifolin, arnicolide,2 sesquit­erpenes (helenalin9 and helenalin derivatives, dihydro­helenalin, etc). Pseudoguaianolide helenalinmethacry­late, a helenalin ester, has been isolated from the flowers.

Amines present in the plant are betaine, choline, and trimethylamine. Coumarins include scopoletin and umbel liferone.

Carbohydrates such as mucilage and polysaccharides (ie, inulin) are found in arnica. Two homogeneous polysaccharides, for example, include an acidic arabino­3,6-galactan- protein, and a neutral fucogalactoxyloglu­can.13 Further polysaccharide isolation has been per­formed on a group of water-soluble acidic heteroglycaines.

Volatile oils (0.3% to 1 %) may be obtained from rhizomes and roots or from flower parts (used in perfumery)? Constituents in the oil include thymol, its derivatives, 2 and fatty acids (palmitic, linoleic, myristic, and linolenic).4 The fatty acid content in arnica leaf essential oil has been evaluated, as well.

Other components found in arnica include bitter com­pound arnicin, caffeic acid,7,9 carotenoids (alpha- and beta-carotene, cryptoxanthin, lutein),4,9, 16 phytosterols, resin, tannins,2,4 and anthoxanthine.

PHARMACOLOGY

Not only is arnica employed in hair tonics, antidandruff preparations, perfumery, and cosmet­ics, it is used in herbal and homeopathic medicines as, wel1.4,7 The plant possesses a slight anti-inflammatory and mild analgesic effect, most likely due to the sesquit­erpene lactones. Helenalin and dihydrohelenalin exert mild anti-inflammatory and antibacterial activity.6,9 They expressed anti-inflammatory activity in mice and rats,4 and in humans, as well. Arnica improved feelings of stiffness associated with hard physical exertion (vs pla­cebo) when tested in 36 marathon participants in a double-blinded, randomized trial. However, in another report, contradictory results were seen.
Patients who had impacted wisdom teeth removed re­ceived either metronidazole, arnica, or placebo. Metro­nidazole was more effective than arnica in controlling postoperative pain, inflammation, and healing. Patients receiving arnica had greater pain and inflammation than those receiving placebo.

Arnica contains a group of polysaccharides with 65% to 100% galacturonic acid that can inhibit the complement system, thereby modifying the immune system re­ponse.19 This polysaccharide displays marked phago­cytosis enhancement in vivo. Yet another compound

HAIR LOSS AND BALDNESS TREATMENT

AYURVEDIC TIPS :

Hair loss, thinning of hair and balding are some of the common hair problems. Many of us suffer from these ailments due to our modern lifestyle and diet. Ayurveda can be very beneficial in treating these conditions as it investigates the root cause of the problem. The causes for these hair conditions are:

• Excess of Pitta dosha in the body is the chief cause of hair problems. Pitta is increased by excessive intake of tea, coffee, alcohol, meats and excessive smoking. Pitta is also aggravated by eating too much fried, oily, greasy, spicy, sour, and acidic foods.
  
• Intake of too many chemical medicines, low blood circulation, anemia, general weakness after disease, stress, anxiety, and mental tension are also prime causes of hair loss.
  
• Chronic diseases like typhoid fever, presence of dandruff or lice and hormonal imbalance also cause hair loss.

So watch out carefully for these reasons! You may be overdoing one of them, and thus losing your beautiful hair.

Treatment

• The first step is to locate the root cause in your diet or lifestyle that may be increasing the Pitta dosha. Once you locate it, try to give up or at least reduce the diet, habit, or activity responsible for increasing Pitta.
• Always use a natural shampoo or soap to clean the hair. As most soaps and shampoos have chemicals, they might be the cause of your problem. Usually the chemicals have a heating effect, and increase Pitta locally. Amala (embilica officinalis) , Shikakai (Acacia concinna) are very commonly used in India for washing the hair.
• Oiling and massaging of scalp is very beneficial for stopping the hair loss. Use coconut oil or mustard oil at least three times in a week. Certain medicated oils like 'Mahabhringraj oil', 'Amala oil', and 'Arnica oil' are very useful. Put oil on the scalp, and massage gently in the roots of the hair.
• The person should maintain a regular bowel movement everyday. In case of constipation, a mild natural laxative can be taken. Triphala, an Ayurvedic herbal powder, is also useful.
• The diet should contain more green leafy vegetables, salads, milk, fruits and sprouts. Take more proteins, milk, buttermilk, yeast, wheat germ, soybean and vitamin A.
• Regular physical exercise is very beneficial as it helps in balancing the aggravated doshas.
• A special Ayurvedic preparation made from Bhringraj (Eclipta elba), Amala, corals, iron and black sesame seeds is very useful, and even stops the graying of hair.
• Rub your scalp vigorously after washing the hair. It increases the blood circulation, and activates the sebaceous glands.
• A mixture of lettuce and spinach juice is good to drink to induce hair growth. The juice of alfalfa mixed with that of carrot, and lettuce juice is also good to take.
• Daily application of coconut oil mixed with lime juice on the hair is also beneficial. Applying juice of green coriander leaves on the head is also good.
• Washing the hair with a paste of cooked Urad dal (black beans) and fenugreek (methi) 2-3 times a week, is also good.
• A paste of licorice made by grinding it in milk can be applied in the bald patches. It induces hair growth. A paste of seeds of lemon and black pepper may also be applied on the bald patches.

These remedies are worth trying and will solve your hair problems.