Can Black Seed Oil Help Prevent Hair Loss? We Asked the Experts

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Google “black seed oil for hair” and the very first thing you may discover is {that a}) there are tons of articles on the subject, and b) most of them are associated to hair loss. That being stated, it is solely one in all many elements which can be touted as natural hair loss solutions, so what makes this any totally different? And is it legit? This is what you should learn about black seed oil for hair, in keeping with high specialists.

What Is Black Seed Oil?

Black seed oil—technically known as nigella sativa oil—is extracted from the seeds of a flowering plant that grows in Southwest Asia, the Center East, Southern Europe, and Northern Africa, says Kamara Brown, a StyleSeat hairstylist. (FYI, it bears mentioning that black seed oil can be typically known as black cumin seed oil, black onion seed oil, kalonji oil, and different pseudonyms.) The oil is well-known for its medicinal properties in Jap tradition, says Krupa Koestline, a clear beauty chemist and founding father of KKT Consultants; it has been used to deal with the whole lot from bronchitis to diarrhea to pores and skin issues. “Most of those therapeutic properties are because of the presence of thymoquinone (TQ), which is a serious energetic chemical part of the oil,” she says. TQ itself has antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antiviral properties.

Black Seed Oil Advantages for Hair

So what about black seed oil’s purported advantages for hair? “Black seed oil is usually promoted as a pure remedy for hair loss,” says Brown. In truth, many shampoos and conditioners comprise it, she provides. Theoretically, this profit would doubtless be resulting from all of these aforementioned advantages of TQ…however theoretically is the important thing phrase right here. There are some research that point out black seed oil might assist with hair loss, but it surely’s not sufficient to persuade the specialists we spoke with, each of whom underscore the truth that there must be extra knowledge and proof to again up any hair progress claims.

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For instance, one study discovered that an natural oil containing, amongst different issues, black seed oil, helped cut back hair loss in women and men. The difficulty there’s that black seed oil was solely one in all many elements in that oil. Another study discovered {that a} mixture of coconut oil, black seed oil, and candlenut seed oil did assist stimulate and pace up hair progress. The one downside? This research solely had three members, and once more, black seed oil wasn’t the one ingredient concerned. Level being, though there is a historic and anecdotal precedent of this ingredient serving to with hair loss, there’s not sufficient scientific literature to help its use as such. If hair loss is your main concern, it is essential to speak together with your dermatologist or a trichologist to find out the foundation trigger (pun supposed) and finest answer, fairly than blindly counting on black seed oil, notes Brown.

So is it value utilizing?

So far as another advantages in your hair go, the oil itself is moisturizing, says Koestline, although she says that there are different hair oils higher fitted to hair loss particularly. Brown says in case you are inquisitive about black seed oil, it is a good choice to strive you probably have a dry scalp or eczema; in different phrases, concentrate on utilizing it as a scalp remedy fairly than in your hair. She suggests placing it in a bottle with an eyedropper applicator so as to apply it to the scalp. (Doing a patch check beforehand to ensure you’re not allergic can be a superb transfer, she notes. Apply a small quantity in your interior forearm and wait 24 hours to verify no response or irritation develops.)

TL; DR: Black seed oil has an extended historical past of advantages and makes use of (so actually value attempting), however the scientific jury continues to be out as as to whether or not it is a good hair loss answer.