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Detox your scalp for healthier hair

scalp mask treatment

One way to ensure your hair grows long and healthy is to go a step further than shampooing by doing a scalp detox treatment. At times we forget that our scalp is living and breathing, and the hair strands are dead. We spend so much time, energy, and products on the hair on our head and neglect the reason why we have it in the first place; it grows from the scalp.

With this lapse in judgement, we continue to pile on product after product and wonder why is my scalp so dry? Or itchy? Well, that’s the scalps way of telling you that something is wrong, in other words, “I can’t breath” lol.

scalp-and-hair-follicle-build-up-diagram

Hair products that we use daily can clog pores by creating build up on top of accumulated dead skin, which can cause dull, greasy hair, and slow hair growth. Shampooing alone does not cleanse your scalp deep enough to get rid of all the build up.

Therefore, detoxifying your scalp is a great process to include in your healthy hair care regimen.

How to detox your scalp

A scalp detox treatment includes massaging in a mask to exfoliate the scalp, which unclogs your pores of dead skin and removes toxins from the hair follicles, roots, and oil glands.

For a simple at home DIY scalp mask recipe, you will need:

scalp-detox-recipe

1 teaspoon of baking soda

  • Baking soda is a natural cleansing ingredient that absorbs oils, grease, and product residue from your hair.

2 tablespoons of olive oil

  • Olive oil is filled with antioxidants great for fighting dandruff and dry scalp. The oil can prevent hair loss by reducing the chances of Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) production (a hormone that decreases the hair follicle shaft growth which can cause hair loss).

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon powder

  • Cinnamon contains organic compounds eugenol and cinnamaldehyde which are antiviral, antifungal, and antibacterial. This is said to prevent fungal and bacterial infections of the scalp.

Steps to detoxifying your scalp:

To prevent dry hair and scalp, this mask treatment is for a deep clarifying cleanse and should not be used more than once a month.

scalp-massageStep 1: Mix all ingredients in a small container

Step 2: Part your hair in small sections and apply the mask down each part on the scalp

Step 3: Massage the mask into the scalp in a gentle circular motion

Step 4: Cover your hair and scalp with a shower cap for 10 -15 minutes

Step 5: Shampoo and conditioner your hair as normal

For an alternative to shampooing your hair, you can finish the detox treatment off with a apple cider vinegar rinse and then condition as normal. Apple cider vinegar, or ACV, helps to balance the hair and scalp ph levels, kills the bacteria that causes dandruff and itchy scalp, and gives the hair extra shine.

 

References:

About the author

thirsty roots®

Our goal is to share the beauty of Afro-textured hair and to have a place where we can come together to get examples, advice, and information of black hair growth and hairstyles. Whether you have permed, pressed, or natural hair it's still black hair and it's beautiful.

23 Comments

  • I tried this today for the 2nd time. Waiting to see how my hair feels. The 1st time I used Braggs acv after the detox and my hair smelled like a sour orange. Today I used ‘nothing but clarifying shampoo’ for the first time as well after the detox.

  • It definitely made my hair soft and clean but I had a hard time rinsing the cinnamon out! Next I will try the apple cider vinegar rinse maybe that will help.

  • i was wondering if the rinse of apple vinegar worked on your hair let us know lady i will be giving it a try my self cause i love my hair and all i do is get it braided up every two weeks. i cant keep them in more than that at a time or it breaks easy

  • Brilliant! I imagine I can substitute olive oil with grape seed or Tea Tree oil since its what I have on hand.

  • lol.. I had to wash my hair 4 times to get all the cinnamon out.. lol… Smelling like a box of red hots…

  • I’m trying this scalp detox right now. See how it works! Thanks for the tip.

  • I’ve tried this detox for the first time today. But I used coconut oil instead of olive oil instead of using cinnamon I used cayenne &garlic Infused Honey. I’ll let you know the results!

  • I do this detox every other week. I don’t do the cinnamon though… I personally don’t see the point of that ingredient. I use 2tsp of baking soda and 2tbsp of olive oil. Apply to the scalp and massage for about 4 mins. Then I do the apple cider vinegar rinse. I let my hair sit in a plastic cap for 20 mins. Then rinse out and wash as normal. My hair comes out super clean and shiny. You can feel the clean on your scalp (if that makes sense). I really like this detox.

  • Gonna try this tomorrow, lets see how it feels. I have tried baking soda shampoo and acv rinse before, that was good too. So hoping this works well.

  • Trying this as we speak and do far, no burning or itching from the cinnamon. Not sure if I’m supposed to rinse this out them do the acv rinse but I’d rather rinse out my hair first, hope adding this to my haircare regimen helps stop the hair loss, we’ll see.🙏

  • Kantu makes a apple cider vinegar scalp rinse that won’t have your hair smelling weird after that you can use in place of shampooing

  • I am 63 and am having male pattern baldness, am treating my hair for 1 month now… used the baking soda and vinegar scrub on my scalp first… then I used rosemary, ginger, oil on my scalp, made a rosemary and vinegar spray at night,,, I do feel like I got something crawling on my head during the day, I do think I am seeing little hairs,,, not sure to old eye sight not good but I do think I see some

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