Castor Oil for Hair

Castor Oil is one of the oldest products used as the basis for natural hair oil treatments. With foundations in Ayurvedic medicine, many brands include castor oil as a core ingredient in scalp treaments for its rich and nourishing properties, including the fatty acide ricinoleic acid. It's even an ingredient in some natural shampoo products in our store, because when it's used on the hair shaft from root to tip, castor oil both coats and nourishes each hair shaft, reducing the risk of breakage. Castor oil also has antimicrobial properties and does provide gloss and shine when worked through the hair. 

Does castor oil prevent hair loss?

No. We don't make unfounded claims like that. Our research does show that the use of castor oil for hair when massaged in to the scalp, increases blood vessel dilation which increases nutritent and oxygen rich blood to the hair follicles on your scalp. This creates a healthier environment to support your own natural hair growth.

How do you apply castor oil to your hair?

Castor oil for hair treatments is always more effective when applied to dry hair. Here's a few ways you can use it.

• To treat damaged ends - work a generous amount of castor oil through the ends, leave in for up to 2 hours or overnight and then shampoo out. Condition as normal.
• For a full treatment - apply a generous amount of castor oil from roots to tip, apply heat or steam to convert to a hot oil treatment, then shampoo.
• To stimulate natural hair growth - massage a generous amount in to the scalp. Leave for a minimum of 2 hours to overnight then shampoo out.
• Help to tame frizz in humid weather - add a few drops to your conditioner (not in the bottle for storage, just in your hand).

Experiment with what works best for you. Those options that use a generous amount of oil may need to be shampooed twice to remove all the oil. You may also find a conditioner is not necessary. If you're using oils as treatments on a regular basis, you may find that once a month you need to use a clarifying shampoo for a deep clean.

What's the difference between Jamaican black castor oil and regular castor oil?

Jamaican black castor oil is made from roasted seeds that are then crushed, hydrated with water and simmered to create a thick dark oil. The roasting process leaves ash in the mix which increases the pH level, making it more alkaline than regular castor oil.