How to Use Shikakai for Hair Wash

Before learning how to use shikakai for hair wash, let's see what is shikakai powder. Shikakai is a tree that grows in India, Its biological name is Acacia concinna and it translates as "hair fruit". Shikakai tree produces fruits that look like tamarind. It has seeds inside pods. The seeds of shikakai tree are mixed with shikakai leaves and ground into a powder: this is what is known as shikakai powder.

Indians have known how does shikakai work for centuries, as they have always used it as a cleanser for body, hair and more. Shikakai is often made into a paste together with other ingredients and applied to hair, because of the shikakai benefits for hair. Now, let's discover shikakai benefits and how to use shikakai for hair wash.

Shikakai benefits for hair are countless. Let's discover how shikakai is good for hair:

Shikakai and hair growth

Being rich in vitamin C, A, D, E and K, and antioxidants that nourish the hair follicles with micronutrients, shikakai promotes rapid hair growth. Try a mix of shikakai and amla or fuller's earth for a rapid hair growth

Shikakai and hair softness

Because of its vitamin content, shikakai makes hair soft, thick and shiny. In addition, shikakai paste is amazing at detangling hair and makes it nice and moist.

Shikakai for hair dye

Shikakai for hair slows down the appearance of grey hair. Moreover, by applying it before dyeing your hair with henna or indigo, it makes natural hair dye last longer.

Shikakai for sensitive scalps

Shikakai hair powder is 100% natural. One of the reasons why shikakai is useful for hair is because it has a low pH, which means it is not aggressive on hair, so the hair retain its essential oils. This is why shikakai is good as a hair wash.

One very important shikakai benefit is that it prevents and eliminates dandruff, because of its antifungal, antibacterial and nourishing properties. Do you want to know how shikakai is good for hair? Just use it on you scalp and you will see your dandruff disappear.

Shikakai is a natural cleanser because it contains saponins, which is good on both hair and body. Shikakai is a single ingredient that can work as shampoo, body wash, conditioner and more. Later we will see how to use shikakai for hair wash.

Shikakai for hair prevents fungal infections and lice.

Now that you know shikakai benefits, we are sure you are convinced and will want to use it immediately. How to apply shikakai powder on hair? You can turn shikakai powder into a paste to make shikakai shampoo or shikakai hair mask, you can use shikakai powder together with herbal tea and apply it to the hair, or you can make shikakai hair oil. Let's see how to apply shikakai powder on hair before we discover how to use shikakai for hair wash.

1. Shikakai paste can be bought from health stores. Or you can make your own shikakai paste by mixing shikakai hair powder with enough warm water to form a paste. You can add amla as shikakai and amla are great for hair growth. You should massage it on your scalp and then leave it on for 30 minutes to 5 hours if you want to use shikakai for hair growth or against dandruff. You can store the remaining shikakai paste in the freezer
2. Shikakai tea can be made by adding 1 tablespoon of shikakai hair powder to 1 cup of boiling water or herbal tea and let it infuse for a couple of hours. You can then apply it to you hair as a shikakai shampoo or hair mask
3. Shikakai hair oil can be made by mixing 1 tablespoon of shikakai powder to a cup of hair oil such as coconut, almond, jojoba or basil. Put it in a air tight container in a dark, dry place and let infuse for a couple of weeks. Shake from time to time. Then apply on you hair or skin as a hair mask

Now that you know how to apply shikakai powder on hair for hair growth, strength, shine and general health, let's learn how to use shikakai for hair wash.

Shikakai powder is a natural hair wash and an amazing alternative to the "no-poo" method. In fact, shikakai contains saponins, which not only cleans you hair and skin, but also makes a foam similar to that of store bought shampoos. While you can use shikakai shampoo in some specific shops, shikakai hair wash benefits are greater when it is pure and homemade. An option to use shikakai for hair wash is to add some shikakai powder to your shampoo to get the notorious shikakai benefits. You can also find shikakai hair soap that is good to cleanse both the hair and the skin in shops.

How to use shikakai for hair wash? It is pretty easy as you can simply mix shikakai hair powder and hot water and make a shikakai paste, as we explained in the previous chapter. You just need to scrub the scalp as you do with shampoo. Your hair will retain much of its natural hair, thus they will be stronger, and clean. This a way to have a simple shikakai shampoo the gives you all of the shikakai hair wash benefits.If you want to take your shikakai hair wash one step further, we have a shikakai hair wash recipe for you that will completely substitute your shampoo, and is 100% natural.

Shikakai hair wash recipe

To make shikakai hair wash powder at home you will need:

• 500g shikakai
• 100g amla
• 100g reetha, which you will find in Western health stores under the name of "soap nuts" (picture below)

Grind all of your ingredients into a fine powder. That's it! You have an amla shikakai hair wash that will store for 6 months. Just mix it with water to make a paste. Reetha and shikakai combined provide a natural deep cleaning, while giving you all of shikakai benefits. For more ways to make reetha homamade shampoo, check our article on reetha.

You see, it is easy to learn how to use shikakai for hair wash!

picture: http://www.stylesamba.com

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