Onion juice for hair? Yes, if it's shedding!
I hate this. I really do, but it does work.
Onion juice. Yes, really. This isn’t a TikTok trend somebody made up last month. Onions in hair care have roots in Ayurvedic tradition people have been rubbing this stuff on their scalps for thousands of years, and there’s actually a reason it stuck around.
Here’s the short version: onions are loaded with sulfur, and sulfur is found in keratin, one of the main building blocks of your hair. Stinky, but powerful.
So when you apply it directly to your scalp, you’re essentially feeding your hair what it’s already made of. On top of that, sulfur may improve blood flow to your scalp and support your hair follicles, which means better conditions for growth. And onions have antibacterial properties that may help fight scalp infections because a healthy scalp is more likely to have strong hair follicles. There’s even a 2002 clinical study where hair regrowth started after just two weeks of using onion juice, with nearly 87 percent of participants seeing results by six weeks. That’s not nothing.
You only need about a third of an onion. Grate it, squeeze out the juice. That’s what you’re putting in your hair!
Now, the smell. It’s a thing. To make it more bearable, mostly for the people who have to be near you, add a dropper of peppermint oil and a dropper of rosemary. You don’t have to, but I’m not trying to clear the room. The rosemary also isn’t just a cover-up; it’s doing real work for your scalp too.
Mix it together, apply a little at a time, and massage it into your scalp for about five minutes. It’s actually not as bad as you think it’s going to be. A little peppery, maybe?
If you make more than you need, it keeps in the fridge for two to three days and use it within that window.
To wash out that smell, just double wash with a clarifying shampoo! Leave the shampoo in your hair for a couple of minutes, then rinse, and repeat!
If you read “onion juice” and immediately checked out, that’s valid, go in peace, booboo.
But if you’re dealing with shedding and you want something that has thousands of years and actual science behind it, this is worth trying.
It smells interesting, but your hair will thank you.
-S