It is easy to neglect hair care when it is covered for large chunks of the day, and one of the biggest problems I’ve personally faced is hair thinning and a dwindling hairline!

Not all hair care tips work for everyone. This is aimed towards those with straight, South Asian locks who adorn the hijab. So over the past few months, I’ve adopted holistic hair care habits which have worked wonders:

• tie your hair with silk scrunchies

• comb wet hair with a wooden comb

• brush dry hair with a wooden hair brush

• shampoo with dr bronner’s lavender castile soap – it doesn’t dry out my hair/scalp like other liquid soaps by dr bronner. and it smells divine!

• use a natural conditioner – I’m still on the hunt for the perfect, inexpensive conditioner but faith in nature leaves my ends feeling healthy and silky

• apple cider vinegar herbal rinses with fresh rosemary. Rosemary is an amazing natural remedy for hair loss and is an effective anti-inflammatory herb

• massage scalp weekly with a tablespoon of warm sesame oil and 3 drops of rosemary essential oil – leave the oils to penetrate scalp for a few hours or overnight

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Black seed oil (Nigella satvia seed or black cumin seed) is the real liquid gold. Abu Hurayra narrated that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said: "There is healing in black cumin for all diseases except death." – Sahih al-Bukhari. The main bioactive component in black seed is thymoquinone. Other components include thymol, thymohydroquonine and carvacrol. Studies show the pharmacological effects of these components are: 🖤 anti-inflammatory; including for acne and psoriasis 🖤 improves immunity 🖤 anti-microbial activity; anti-viral, anti-fungal, anti-bacterial and anti-parasitic 🖤 anti-cancer 🖤 antioxidant activity 🖤 anti-asthmatic 🖤 enhances male fertility by increasing amount and motility of sperm 🖤 protects neural health; helps with depression and improves memory a daily teaspoon of black seed oil and/or sprinkling a generous pinch of black seeds on salads should suffice inshaAllah. 🐞 ——— Sources: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352241015000286 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6535880/

A post shared by Ashiya 🌺 (@tayyibhealing) on Aug 3, 2019 at 11:10am PDT

• before putting on the hijab, do not brush hair back into a ponytail – it pulls the hair back, leading to thinness of hair at the forehead. instead, do a middle parting, then comb the front sides of your hair downwards and tie into a ponytail. the hair tie should be wrapped tightly to hold hair in place, but it shouldn’t put any strain on the hair

• get ends trimmed every few months or so

• sleep with hair in a loose plait

• massaging scalp is great for blood circulation

• hair loss and dry scalp is caused by blood deficiency, so eat blood-boosting foods: beetroots, leafy greens, organic red meat, ginger, turmeric and garlic

• hair mask with one part castor oil and two parts coconut or avocado oil – castor oil boosts blood circulation to the follicles and contains omega-9 essential fatty acids that are responsible for healthy hair. For other castor oil benefits, see here.

• keep your hair down/untied when not wearing the hijab. if it gets in your way, pin it back with a hair clip

• de-stress. healthy hair and skin can only truly be achieved and maintained when you are mindful and attentive to your emotional, spiritual and mental well-being, even if your diet is super clean.