Why You Should Wash Your Hair With Apple Cider Vinegar

Unfiltered raw apple cider vinegar (ACV) is an excellent natural hair treatment. It is cleansing, gives the hair more body and luster and can reduce hair-loss. Washing your hair with ACV reduces itchy scalp and dandruff by destroying the bacteria and/or fungi that clog hair follicles. Apple cider vinegar rinse can also add shine to your hair and prevent split ends.

Many times harsh soaps and shampoos can strip hair and skin of their natural oils, leaving them dry. But rinsing your hair with apple cider vinegar is a great treatment for your hair and scalp and has a long list of benefits.

What is Apple Cider Vinegar?

Apple cider vinegar is made by fermenting apples and adding bacteria which converts the alcohol to acetic acid. This results in an acidic liquid with a PH of 3.1 to 5. The main active ingredient in apple cider vinegar is acetic acid which has potent health benefits. Raw apple cider vinegar has antiseptic properties and healthy bacteria.

Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar for Hair

Let’s look at the many health benefits of apple cider vinegar hair rinse.

Apple cider vinegar helps to balance hair and scalp pH

There are many commercial hair-care products that have a negative effect on the hair, leaving it dry and brittle.

A study published on 2014 discovered that the high alkaline pH of many shampoos may damage the hair fiber surface, and this may lead to damage and breakage of the outer layer of the hair. The researchers also say that it is a reality and not a myth that lower pH of shampoos may cause less frizzing and generate less negative static electricity on the hair surface.

Our hair has an ideal pH of 4 to 5. The acidity of the apple cider vinegar rinse means that it can help maintain the pH balance of your hair and remove buildup at the same time without stripping the hair of its natural oils.

Treats dandruff, itchy and dry scalp

Apple cider vinegar makes a great natural treatment for dry itchy scalp because of its antibacterial properties and its ability to balance pH levels on the skin.

Its antibacterial and anti-fungal properties help to get rid of dandruff and you can use apple cider vinegar rinse as a good preventative regimen.

Apple cider vinegar will help you to maintain the natural pH of your scalp, which will help to create a hostile environment for fungus, bacteria or yeast that cause dandruff.

Apple cider vinegar is a natural hair detangler

Apple cider vinegar is an excellent natural hair detangler and you can use it as an alternative to conditioner. The acidity of the apple cider vinegar rinse helps to smooth down the hair cuticle and helps you to enjoy a smooth, frizz-free hair.

Apple cider vinegar can encourage hair growth

Apple cider vinegar can treat clogged hair follicles due to bacterial infection that creates crusty flakes on the scalp (which can result in hair loss).

There is an anecdotal evidence stating that apple cider vinegar rinse stimulates better circulation to the hair follicles, which strengthens the hair roots and promotes a healthy hair growth.

Apple cider vinegar rinse adds shine to your hair

Rinsing your hair with apple cider vinegar helps to seal the hair cuticle. As a result, light is reflected off the hair, making it smoother, softer and shinier.

Prevents split ends

When you regularly use an apple cider vinegar hair rinse, you’ll be naturally removing tangles from your hair and help to close the cuticles which may help to reduce split ends and hair breakage.

How to Make an Apple Cider Vinegar Hair Rinse

It’s very easy to make and apply an apple cider vinegar hair rinse but first of all, you need to make sure and use the right kind of ACV.

Choose raw, organic, unfiltered, and unpasteurized kind of apple cider vinegar. Not the refined kind you find in most stores. Buy a good quality kind of apple cider vinegar that contains the “mother” of vinegar, which is the cloudy stuff that sinks to the bottom of the bottle.

This mother of vinegar contains the beneficial enzymes, bacteria, pectin and trace minerals that makes apple cider vinegar so good for you (and for your hair). It’s also a good idea to shake the bottle each time before using apple cider vinegar to distribute the healing elements.

ACV hair rinse ingredients

1 cup water
2 tablespoons ACV

How to prepare the ACV hair rinse

In a spray bottle mix two tablespoons apple cider vinegar with one cup water (use the same ratio if you prepare a larger quantity, something like 1/3 cup of apple cider vinegar mixed with one liter of water).

Some references use higher concentration of apple cider vinegar because oily hair likes more ACV than dry hair. Start from the lower dilution and experiment to find the dilution that works best for your hair type.

How to use the apple cider vinegar hair rinse

After shampooing apply the apple cider vinegar hair rinse, massaging into your hair and scalp. Leave for a couple of minutes. Then rinse your hair thoroughly. You don’t need to use a conditioner as the vinegar hair rinse will naturally condition your hair. But if the lack of conditioner affects your hair, you can apply it to the ends of your hair after the ACV hair rinse.

Don’t get the ACV rinse into your eyes as it will sting. As your hair is drying, you may smell vinegar, but once your hair dries, the smell is gone.

Do this treatment once or twice a week.

You can even include herbs in the ACV rinse (previously infusing them in the water):

• You can add lavender for a great scent or rosemary to encourage hair growth.
• You can also add a few drops of the best essential oils for healthy hair.

 

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.   

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Rice Water - 6 Unexpected But Super Helpful Uses

With some items, it’s pretty obvious that you can reuse them. For instance, it’s just common sense to use a single-use plastic bag as a trash bag or to repurpose an empty glass jar as a vessel for mixing and storing homemade salad dressing. On the flip side, the potential of other items, such as pasta water or baby powder is hidden until someone tells you precisely how you can use it.

Rice water belongs to that second category. Yes, we do mean that cloudy water that you usually pour down the sink while rinsing rice. Surprisingly, rice water has a multitude of handy uses around the house and even for your body. After reading this article, you will never throw away rice water again. 

 

1. Strengthens the hair and maintains scalp health  

The practice of using rice water on the hair is by no means a new invention. In fact, rice water has been the secret behind the shiny and long locks of Japanese, Chinese, and other Southeast Asian women for millennia. For example, Japanese women from the Heian period (8-12th century AD) would rinse their floor-length hair in rice water to make it stronger, shinier, and more elastic.

Today, we know that rice water is brimming with vitamins and minerals essential for hair strength and growth, namely folic acid (vitamin B9), magnesium, allantoin, niacin (vitamin B3), inositol (vitamin B8), and selenium. Folic acid, niacin, allantoin, and selenium are all important to maintain the health of the scalp, strengthen the hair, and stimulate hair growth. Magnesium helps remove hard water residue from the hair follicles, whereas inositol increases the shine and elasticity of the hair. 

 

Overall, you can expect the following hair benefits from rice water: 

 

Strengthens the hair follicles and hair strands. According to a 2017 study, rice bran mineral extract strengthens the hair, stimulates hair growth, and helps prevent hair loss. 

 

Improves hair density. A 2010 study found that an inositol supplement stimulated hair growth and reduced thinning in participants after 6 months of daily use. 

 

Makes the hair smoother, shinier, and more manageable. One study investigating Japanese rice water (called Yu-Su-Ru) stated that it improved hair elasticity and reduced surface friction. 

 

All hair types can add rice water to their hair-care routine. It’s recommended to use rice water on your hair 1-2 times every week. You can either use it in place of shampoo or as a treatment after you've washed your hair. Simply saturate the entire hair and the scalp with rice water, and then massage your scalp to make sure it gets absorbed. We recommend doing this in the shower, as you will not have to worry about spillage. 

 

Keep the rice water on the hair for anywhere between 10-30 minutes, and then rinse with water as usual. You will likely experience improved shine and elasticity after just a few weeks of use, but it usually takes at least a month or two for you to notice the strengthening aspect and the improved hair density, so be persistent and consistent. 

 

2. Skin-soothing and plumping

Rice water isn’t only good for the hair. Your skin can also benefit from all those nutrients present in rice water. The use of rice water and skincare products that contain rice extracts is gaining popularity across the globe, and rightfully so. What benefits can you get by using rice water on the face and body? 

 

Anti-aging benefits. According to a 2013 study, fermented rice water increases collagen production in the skin and helps improve the signs of sun damage. This means that using rice water regularly will help prevent wrinkles from forming or worsening while also ameliorating sun-spots. 

 

Sun protection. We all know that we must protect our skin from the sun every day to prevent skin cancer. While rice water will not replace sunscreen, the chemicals present in rice will help boost your skin’s sun protection, as proven by research. 

 

Improved hydration. People with dry skin and eczema can also benefit from using rice water. It was shown to alleviate skin irritation caused by SLS, a common cleansing agent in skincare and hair care products. In India, rice water is also used as an Ayurvedic treatment for eczema. 

 

Using rice water on the skin is easy. If you want to apply it onto the face, simply dampen a cotton pad in rice water and swipe it on a clean face and neck like a toner. Follow up with your usual moisturizer. You can do this every day. If your goal is to reduce inflammation and irritation in an area, you can soak a cotton pad or a cloth in rice water and let it sit on an area for 10 minutes. This trick works wonders for sunburn or dry patches on the skin. 

 

Lastly, if you intend to use rice water on the body, you can also add it to bath-water and take a bath in the mixture. This method works best if you have dry skin on the body.

3. Watering plants

Even if you don’t feel like using rice water on your hair or skin, there are still plenty of ways you can repurpose it around the house. One of the best ways to do so is by using rice water as a mild fertilizer. As we’ve already explained in-depth, there is a number of starches, enzymes, vitamins, and minerals in rice water. And humans aren’t the only ones who can benefit from these nutrients. 

 

Using rice water to fertilize your plants will enrich the soil with starches that help encourage beneficial soil bacteria, as well as bring in nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium into the soil. Some experts even say that rice water is superior to store-bought fertilizers because it’s difficult to over-nourish plants with rice water. Regular use of rice water on plants takes the worry out of over-fertilizing. 

 

4. Starching clothes

Don’t have any plants at home? Worry not, you can easily use rice water to starch clothes (and we’re sure you have plenty of those). If you’re not familiar with starching, it’s a practice that can really help improve the longevity and appearance of clothing, especially that of dress shirts. Starching prevents stains from penetrating fabrics, which makes them easier to remove. Starched clothes also retain their structure and ironed appearance for longer, and white starched clothes stay crisp white even after several washes. 

 

Ordinarily, starching powders or sprays containing cornstarch are used before ironing. But these can be messy and costly, so many people decide to skip this step. Well, an alternative way to starch your button-down shirts is to simply soak them in rice water, hang out to dry, and iron afterward. 

 

5. Cleaning

We’re no strangers to the use of natural cleaners, such as baking soda and vinegar, to tidy-up our homes. After all, these ingredients already live in everyone’s pantry, and they are, frankly, quite cheap. Welcome another member to that list of natural but effective cleaners you already have in your pantry - rice water. 

 

The next time you’re cooking rice, save some of that rice water and use it to clean countertops, kitchen appliances, and even cookware. After all, it’s something people in China have been doing for centuries, and with great success! The reason why rice water is an effective cleaning agent is that the starchy sediment in rice water is abrasive, so it will help you to manually scrub off any dirt or grime from various surfaces. 

 

In addition, rice water is slightly acidic, so it will help you get rid of any mineral deposits. This means that you can also use it to remove hard water stains or rust from shower doors, kitchen utensils, and even the toilet bowl. Just make sure to keep it away from granite and natural stone countertops and tile, as the acidity may ruin their shiny finish. 

 

Simply dip a cloth or sponge in rice water to clean the item in question. Let it sit for a few minutes, and then rinse away with water.

 

6. Restores healthy digestion

The last but definitely not the least method to reuse rice water is to drink it. Yes, you read that right. Why would you want to do that, you ask? Boiled rice water is great for soothing indigestion and improving digestive health in acute diarrhea. In these cases, rice water functions as an electrolyte-replacing beverage. 

 

According to a study from the 1980s published in The Lancet journal, rice water can be more effective than an electrolyte solution in babies with acute diarrhea. The solution was able to reduce the number of bowel movements in the babies better than a compatible drug. 

 

Important: If you decide to drink rice water for digestion, make sure to only use BOILED rice water. Uncooked rice water could contain Bacillus cereus, a pathogen that commonly causes food poisoning, and high temperatures kill the germ. We explain how to make boiled rice water correctly in the next and final section. 

 

How to Make and Store Rice Water  

There are several methods of preparing rice water, and the one you prefer will probably depend on the way you choose to use it. You can use any rice in any of these recipes. 

 

Soaked Rice Water 

This is the fastest way to make rice water, and it’s fairly straightforward. Simply take any amount of rice you want, rinse it with water, then cover it with water and soak it for 30 minutes. About 2 cups of water should be used for every cup of rice. Afterward, just strain the rice and use it in cooking, and reserve the milky rice water for later. 

 

Soaked rice water can be used for hair care, skincare, cleaning, starching, and watering plants. You can store soaked rice water in the fridge for up to 3 days.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.   

https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement