5 Ways To Take A Holistic Approach To Healthy Natural Hair

I see that a lot of naturals are still looking for the one product (or product line) that’s going to make their hair problems go away.

Whether it’s to grow longer hair (TWA or not), repair damage from chemicals as they transition or restore their hair’s natural luster and shine, there is no actual product that will do it for them. It can’t be stressed enough that you need a healthy body to truly achieve healthy hair.

Now, we all hear this all the time, but a lot of us have turned a deaf ear to this advice, and end up frustrated because we keep running into problems that can’t be fixed by a product (natural or chemical). Having a holistic approach for your natural hair regimen is very important and I found that this is what worked for me and many other women — usually unintentionally.

You honestly don’t need that many products for your hair, especially when you are taking care of your body with high nutrition.

As I’ve said before in other articles, eating more fruits and veggies help, but that’s not going to give you the high concentrations of vitamins* and minerals that your body needs to grow and maintain healthy hair. The following tips are what I’ve found to work for achieving healthy hair that grows, shines and thickens naturally.

Consume high nutrition smoothies everyday

This would be one of my top tips to women who are looking to obtain optimum health. These smoothies are made with herbs that are very high in almost 100 different vitamins* and minerals that the body needs.

When you nourish your body to this state, your body can’t help but to regenerate. You’ll notice that your skin’s complexion will clear and have a glow, your hair will grow and look glossy, your nails will grow stronger and longer, and your energy will improve.

My personal daily smoothie consists of seaweeds and moringa* leaf powder, which gives me 92 of the 102 minerals that our bodies need.

Eat an alkaline based diet

If only you could continue to eat burgers, fries and pizza while drinking your high-nutrition smoothies. But it’s not that easy and for a lot of women, it’s impossible.

Changing your diet is one of the easiest things to do, but spewing out excuses not to do so is even easier. Postponing a diet switch is the main reason why a lot of people have trouble with their hair and skin. Now, I don’t mean just growth, but actual hair health.

You can grow longer hair on a bad diet, but it is usually lackluster, thin and downright dull. Switching to an alkaline diet is all in a matter of substituting everything acidic you eat with foods that are alkaline (having a pH level of 7.0 or higher). This excludes hybridized produce and animal products.

Stop using chemical cosmetic products

It seems like creamy crack wasn’t the only addiction black women have. We are also addicted to hair and body products that are filled with chemicals like parabens, alcohol, preservatives, glycol and so on.

Even worse, I still see a lot of naturals still using hair dyes, which is just as damaging as relaxers, if not worse. Eliminate these products and you’ll finally stop the damage being done to your scalp and hair follicles. You should also be wary of makeup, lotions, soaps and perfumes that are also intoxicating your body.

Instead, you should be using natural ingredients to cleanse, moisturize and seal your hair. Nature provides it all. For instance, shampoo/conditioner I like to use are made with shikakai*, amalaki, reetha, bhringraj and brahmi*. I then seal in the moisture (wet hair) with oils* and butters* like murumuru, moringa*, coconut* and olive*.

Stop heat styling your hair

Just as your hair isn’t meant to have chemicals in it, nor is your hair designed for harsh heat, especially when done excessively. Heat can be just as damaging to your hair as a chemical — both fry your hair and dry it out, causing it to become brittle and break off.

It’s counterproductive for anyone who is looking to achieve healthy hair. So rather than looking for ways to repair or minimize the damage (such as by using chemical heat protectants), just eliminate the culprit and problem solved!

Detoxify your body with natural herbs

And I don’t just mean doing a colon cleanse. But a real detox that will address cleaning away the accumulated gunk that sits in all of your organs and even on and in between your blood cells. There are herbal detoxes available that you can use to rejuvenate your entire body.

I actually recommend this to be the first thing you do when you go down a holistic path. You can detox as you drink smoothies and eat healthier, making the process much faster.

When you combine different methods that address your body from the inside out, the end result is going to be a healthier looking body.

I have personally taken this approach and was able to achieve clear skin (after suffering from acne for over a decade), grow relaxed hair past my bra strap (even without doing the big chop) and I feel and look youthful. You aren’t your hair, you’re a body. So treat it well and it will look amazing from head to toe!