Your hair is not growing as quickly as you want, right?
You don’t want to wait years to rock long and shiny locks.
Luckily, it’s easy to speed up yourhair growthby improving your hair care and eating habits.
Yes, it’s that simple. No expensive products or treatments required.
Theway you treat your hair – from the products you use to the food you eat-hasa huge impact on how healthy and long it can be.
In other words, the key to long radiant hair is proper self-care.
First, let’s see what is making your hair grow slowly:
Causes Of Slow Hair Growth
Unhealthy Scalp. The strength, length, and shine of your hair depend on the health of your scalp. Your hair can’t grow fast if you have imbalances affecting your hair follicles.
Itching, dandruff, irritation, and excess oil are signs that your scalp is not allowing your hair to grow as beautifully as it should.
Harsh Hair Products. Most hair products on the market are laden with chemicals that harm your scalp and hair.
Harsh cleansers strip your scalp from the natural oils it needs to stay healthy. This triggers itching weakens your hair strands and spikes an overproduction of oil in your roots.
Excess Heat. Heat from styling tools like curling irons, flat irons, and blow dryers can burn and weaken your hair strands, making them look dull and brittle.
Damaged ends will require you to cut your hair, halting your hair growing efforts.
Nutrient Deficient Diet. The first signs of a poor diet are dull-looking hair, nails, and skin.
Your scalp needs key nutrients that allow the follicles to create strong, thick and shiny hair.
When your body has a nutrient deficiency, your hair growth will slow down, and your strands will weaken because your body will redirect the nutrients toward vital organs instead of your hair.
Luckily, daily habits and lifestyle changes can prevent this from happening.
Here’s what you can do to supercharge your hair growth on a daily basis:
Hair Care Tips To Speed Up Hair Growth
Massage Your Scalp
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Massaging your scalp once a day will increaseblood circulation around the hair follicles, which promotes hair growth.
It will also diminish stress, a key factor in hair loss.
You can massage your scalp in 3 different ways:
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- Massage with your fingertips. Massage your scalp with your fingertips in a circular motion for 5 minutes to increase relaxation and reduce stress. You can do this daily.
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- Massage in the shower. While you’re shampooing, massage your scalp with your fingertips in circular motion.
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- Do this every time you wash your hair.
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- Massage with oils. Oil massages with coconut, almond, olive, or jojoba oil will stimulate your hair follicles and relief dryness.
- Massage in a circular motion for 5 minutes and then wash your hair. You can do this twice a week.
Trim Your Ends Once A Month
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The more damaged your hair gets, the more you have to cut.
Trimming split endsonce a month will prevent further damage to your hair strands.
Brush Your Hair At Least Twice A Day
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Brushing your hair regularly stimulates your follicles, increases circulation in your scalp, and distributes the oils from the roots toward the ends of your hair.
Improved circulation leads to quick hair growth, and the distribution of the oil helps to hydrate your ends and get rid of excess oil in your scalp.
For best results, use a boar bristle brush.
Replace Harsh Cleansers With Natural Products
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Ditch chemical-laden shampoos and conditioners.
They are made with cleansers that strip the natural oils from your scalp, which disturbs your hair follicles and damage your hair.
Avoid products with sulfates, like Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS), silicones, parabens, and alcohol.
Instead, pick natural brands that use certified organic ingredients, or try the no-poo method.
Don’t Wash Your Hair More Than Twice A Week
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Avoid washing your hair daily.
Your scalp needs time to produce the natural oils your hair needs to stay strong and hydrated.
Washing too often can lead to dry and brittle hair.
Wash your hair no more than twice a week. Personally, I wash my hair only once a week, and it has never felt healthier.
Use Cold Or Lukewarm Water To Wash Your Hair
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A hot shower can remove many beneficial oils from your scalp, increase irritation and dandruff, and dry out your hair.
Shower with cold or lukewarm water for beautiful hair instead.
Cold water has many benefits for your skin and hair, including shinier hair and tightened pores, which prevents dirt from accumulating in your scalp.
Use Styling Tools Less Often
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Minimize the use of styling tools that burn and dehydrate your hair.
Let your hair air-dry as often as possible, and use styling tools only on special occasions.
When you do use your iron or blow dryer, apply a heat protectant to minimize the damage.
Don’t Brush Your Hair When It’s Wet
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Your hair is the most fragile when it’s wet.
Instead of using a brush, use a wide-tooth comb to detangle your hair when you come out of the shower to minimize breakage.
Brush once your hair is completely dry.
Ditch Elastic Hair Ties
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Elastic bands can cause breakage and split ends.
Use fabric hair ties or scrunchies instead.
Braid Your Hair Loosely Before Sleeping
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To protect your hair from breakage due to the friction against your sheets during the night, tie it in a loose braid and secure it with a bobby pin or a fabric hair tie before sleeping.
Sleep With A Satin Or Silk Pillow Case
Satin or silk are much gentler fabrics for your hair than your regular pillow cases. Consider investing in one to reduce the damage caused by the friction against your sheets.
These smart habits will help your hair grow faster and keep it healthy during the process.
Now, let’s take a look at what treatments can speed up your hair growth.
Photo credit: Ecogenics
Hair Treatments To Speed Up Hair Growth
Coconut Oil Hair Mask
Photo credit: Cosmetics
There’s almost nothing coconut oil can’t do for your body.
Coconut oil is full of fatty acids that can penetrate your hair shaft and nourish each hair strand from the inside out.
It feeds your scalp lauric acid, a fatty acid that helps to grow shinier, thicker, and longer hair by binding to the proteins that make up your hair.
This mask is perfect for regenerating damaged hair and boosting your hair growth.
Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon of coconut oil (short hair)
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- 2 teaspoons of coconut oil (shoulder-length hair)
- 1 tablespoon of coconut oil (long hair)
Method:
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- Apply the oil to your scalp with your fingertips or with a dropper in sections until you cover your whole scalp.
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- Massage your scalp in a circular motion for 5 minutes.
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- Spread the oil toward the ends of your hair by using a comb or your fingers.
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- Cover your head with a shower cap.
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- Let it sit for a minimum of 2 hours, but preferably overnight.
- Wash your hair with shampoo.
Castor Oil Hair Mask
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Castor oil is one of the most popular treatments to grow hair quickly.
Ricinoleic acid, the main component of castor oil, prevents hair loss.
It’s also packed with vitamin E, omega 3 and omega 9 fatty acids, which thicken and strengthen your hair.
Since castor oil is quite thick, it’s best to mix it with lighter oils for an easier to apply hair mask.
Ingredients:
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- 3 tablespoons of castor oil.
- 3 tablespoons of coconut, almond, olive, or jojoba oil.
Method:
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- Mix the oils in a small container.
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- Apply the mask to your scalp with your fingertips or with a dropper in sections until you cover your whole scalp.
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- Massage your scalp in a circular motion for 5 minutes.
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- Spread the oil toward the ends of your hair by using a comb or your fingers.
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- Cover your head with a shower cap.
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- Let it sit for a minimum of 2 hours, but preferably overnight.
- Wash your hair with shampoo.
Peppermint Oil Hair Mask
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Peppermint oil is an essential oil that has been proven to increase hair growth and thicken your hair.
Since it’s an essential oil, you should always dilute it in a carrier oil.
Ingredients:
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- 10 drops of peppermint oil.
- 2 tablespoons of coconut, olive, almond, or jojoba oil.
Method:
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- Mix the oils in a small container.
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- Apply the mask to your scalp with your fingertips or with a dropper in sections until you cover your whole scalp.
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- Massage your scalp in a circular motion for 5 minutes.
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- Spread the oil toward the ends of your hair by using a comb or your fingers.
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- Cover your head with a shower cap.
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- Let it sit for a minimum of 2 hours, but preferably overnight.
- Wash your hair with shampoo.
Coconut, castor, and peppermint oil are three of the most effective treatments for quick hair growth.
Just as you need to feed your scalp healthy fats, you need to feed your body the nutrients it needs to create beautiful and shiny hair.
Eating Habits To Speed Up Hair Growth
Don’t Do Crash Diets
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Extreme diets will deplete your body from essential nutrients, leaving your scalp without the minerals and vitamins it needs to grow your hair.
Drink 1.5-2 Liters Of Water Per Day
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Make sure to drink a minimum of 1.5 liters of water per day to keep your scalp hydrated.
This will prevent dandruff and dryness and will allow your follicles to grow healthy hair.
Eat Plenty Of Protein
Photo credit: Sportouk
Your hair is made almost completely out of a protein called keratin.
The protein in your diet provides amino acids that are directly responsible for keratin production.
To make sure your body can grow strong and long hair, eat plenty of protein on a daily basis. The recommended dietary allowance for protein is 46g for women and 56g for men.
The best protein sources include lean meats like chicken, turkey, tuna, salmon, and sardines.
However, you can still get a decent amount of protein from plant-based sources like soybeans, tofu, lentils, pinto beans, chickpeas, and tempeh.
Eat Biotin Rich Foods
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Biotin is an essential B-complex vitamin. It’s in charge of preserving your hair’s strength, texture, and shine. A deficiency of biotin could cause brittle hair and hair loss.
The best sources of biotin are peanuts, almonds, sweet potatoes, eggs, onions, oats, tomatoes, carrots,walnuts, and salmon.
The recommended dietary allowance for biotin is 300 mcg. To put that into perspective, that’s about 2.7 cups of peanuts.
Eat Foods Rich in Vitamin A, C, and E.
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Vitamin A,C, and E are antioxidants that help your cells produce more collagen, protect the cells of your hair follicles, produce healthy sebum on your scalp, and protect your hair and scalp from free radicals.
Vitamin E causes capillary growth and improves circulation in your scalp, which helps regrow hair quickly.
The best sources of vitamin A include sweet potatoes, carrots, spinach, kale, mustard greens, and collard greens.
You can find vitamin C in papaya, bell peppers, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, strawberries, and oranges.
Vitamin E can be found in sunflower seeds, almonds, spinach, swiss chard, avocado, and peanuts.
Eat Foods Rich In Pantothenic Acid (Vitamin B5)
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Pantothenic acid is another vitamin essential for beautiful hair and skin. It gives your hair shine, strength, and flexibility. A deficiency of vitamin B5 can damage your hair follicles and cause hair loss.
The richest foods in pantothenic acid include shiitake mushrooms, avocado, sweet potatoes, lentils, peas, crimini mushrooms, and chicken.
Conclusion
You can grow your hair faster with better hair care and eating habits.
Taking care of your hair and scalp daily with massages, brushing, and gentle cleansing methods will speed up your hair growth naturally.
You can also speed up the process with oil hair masks that nourish your follicles and hair shaft. Coconut, Castor, and peppermint oil are some of the best for your hair.
Keep in mind that excessive styling can also hurt your hair. So while making efforts to speed up your hair growth in a natural way, it wouldn’t hurt to lessen repeated styling as it defeats the purpose.
Finally, you need to stay on top of your nutrition if you want to grow your hair as quickly as possible.
By giving your body the nutrients it needs to thrive, you’ll grow long and strong hair.
Have you had success growing your hair quickly?
Share with us below some of the methods you’ve used!
