Make Your Hair Grow Faster

Many people suffer the agony of slow-growing hair. It’s difficult to deal with the frustration of waiting, but is there any way to stimulate hair growth? Even though your hair typically grows, on average, about a centimetre and a half per month, instances of hair not growing quickly enough increase by the day.

It’s not just how you treat your hair on the outside. Diet, stress and other internal factors can all affect how quickly your locks lengthen. In this article, you’ll learn a bit more about how to make your hair grow.

Simple remedies for faster hair growth

It’s true that healthy hair is likely to grow faster. Try any – or, indeed, all! – of the following home recipes and remedies to promote healthier hair. Some are applied directly to the hair and some work from the inside out when you consume them. They are:

• Olive oil with rosemary: These two ingredients stimulate your hair follicles to speed growth. All you have to do is add two tablespoons of rosemary to half a cup of olive oil. Put the mixture in a microwave safe container, then heat it for two minutes. Cover and let it age for three days. When it’s ready, apply it by gently massaging through your hair from the roots to the tips. Do this treatment after shampooing and before conditioning.
• Green tea: This wonderful infusion is not only beneficial to your general health, but it’s especially good for making strengthening your hair and increasing its resistance to damage. Enjoy green tea as often as you want throughout the day and you’ll soon reap the rewards.

• Natural oils and nuts: You’ve got to feed your hair the proper nutrients if you want it grow strong! Vitamins B and E – which are found in vegetable oils (olive, coconut, corn, sunflower), avocados, vegetables and nuts – are especially vital. Don’t hesitate. Add them to your diet straight away.
• Beer shampoo: Beer is a boon for your hair, but you can’t just expect to become Rapunzel by downing a few pints a week at your local. In fact, you don’t need to drink it at all. You just need this simple shampoo recipe. Heat one cup of beer (any type, fresh or flat) in a small saucepan over medium heat until the beer has reduced to 1/4 cup. Add this to one cup of your favourite shampoo (preferably, in a bottle) and use it to shampoo as usual.
• Boiled potato water: It sounds odd, we grant you, but you can use the water that’s left after cooking potatoes. Let it rest on your hair for a few minutes, then rinse thoroughly and wash.
• Nettle treatment: You’ll be hard-pressed to find a more effective remedy than this for accelerating hair growth. It helps nourish your hair along the way. Mix nettle infusion with your shampoo and use as you normally would.
• Aloe vera and agave nectar: Extract the pulp from a few aloe leaves or use a commercially prepared aloe. Just ensure that it’s as pure as possible, without added ingredients. Add two tablespoons of agave and apply it to your head. Leave it to be fully absorbed for 20 minutes, then wash as usual.

• Onion: Choose a medium-sized onion and add it, finely minced, to your regular shampoo. Let it age in a sealed container for 15 days and then use it as you’d use any other shampoo. Not only will this blend encourage growth, but it’ll produce shinier locks for you in the process.
• Protein for breakfast: Kickstart your day (and your follicles) by adding a tablespoon of each of the following to a cup of soya or coconut yoghurt: soya lecithin, wheat germ, maple syrup or agave and brewer’s yeast.
• Tomato, olive oil and aloe vera: Add a drop of olive oil to a tomato and the pulp of one aloe leaf. Smooth it onto your roots, then let it sit for as long as possible before rinsing.
• Olive oil and milk: Put a teaspoon of olive oil into a glass of warm milk (preferably almond, coconut, oat or soya) and drink daily. For best results, take when your stomach is empty.
• Plantains: It’s their high vitamin E content that helps your hair to grow. Crush a plantain and add a tablespoon of agave nectar. Work it through your roots, leave it for about half an hour, then completely rinse the mixture out.

Tips to grow your hair quickly

Above and beyond these useful and effective home remedies, you’d do well to be conscious of ways you can tweak your lifestyle to promote healthy hair. The following tips and tricks can help your hair grow more quickly.

• Eat well: Your daily diet has a strong influence upon the appearance and condition of your hair. When you’re eating nutrient dense foods, you’ll be getting the full benefit of vitamins and minerals. Start by introducing more fruits, vegetables and amino acids from grains like quinoa.
• Increase your blood flow: For your hair to grow, you need to keep blood ‘flowing’ to the area. A massage is a great way to promote good circulation. Just apply gentle pressure to your roots for 5 to 10 minutes each day. An easy way to do it is whilst you are applying or removing shampoo or conditioner, during your favourite television programme or whilst lying in bed before you go to sleep at night.

• Get ample vitamin B: It’s easy to do if you eat plenty of nuts, sea vegetables or legumes.
• Eat vitamin E: Yummy sources include avocados, apples, plantains, sunflower seeds and green, leafy vegetables.
• Let the moon be your guide: It may be a myth or a placebo, but trimming the ends of your hair when the moon is in a quarter phase may strengthen your hair and promote growth.
• Avoid extremes: Although it’s tempting to have a hot shower, it’s better for your hair if you wash with water that is either at room temperature or slightly above. When you rinse for the last time, try to quickly blast it with cold water. This will close your capillary follicles.
• Flip your head upside down when brushing: Bend over and comb from the roots to the tips with a wide-bristled brush. This increases blood flow to your head and stimulates the process of growth.
• Treat it gently: Try not stress your tresses by tying them tightly, straightening them or using the blow dryer too often. Leave it natural and don’t over-process with chemicals for bleaching or colouring.

Images courtesy of Michael Coghlan, Maegan Tintari, longhair broad, Jesse Acosta, Andrew Cuchling