What do you use to stimulate hair growth?

[missmandy]

What kinds of products do you use to stimulate hair growth? Do you use any kinds of herbs? Do you apply them to your hair, or do you take them orally? Do you take any vitamins? If so, which kind? Do you do anything special to your roots? Like, put anything on them?

Any help would be appreciated, thanks!

[chelssix]

I take a daily women's vitamin.

[Cassi]

I am trying the application of monistat (miconazole) cream diltuted with a little water/essential oil (lavender & rosemary) directly to the scalp.

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=156&highlight=monistat

I have also read that supplementing your diet with biotin, MSM and vitamin E can help (don't overdo the E please). Be sure you are eating enough protein after all this is absolutely necessary for healthy hair formation.

Another thing I have been researching is actually retaining as much as possible through proper conditioning and moisturization. I am currently sitting here with a shower cap and then a "beanie hat" (like what you would wear on your head if there was snow outside) over it to heat up my head. I am trying the Caramel Treatment. I made it myself last night. Also, there is great info here on catnip tea helping to retain hair by preventing/repairing split ends and therefore preventing breakage.

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=118

I stopped using traditional shampoo and now CO wash (conditioner only) about every other day. I was oiling my hair, but it got crunchy and hard. I found out oil does not moisturize, it only seals in the moisture that is present. I was effectively sealing out the moisture, and then I was feeding my hair too much protein thinking I was "strengthening" my hair. Too much protein and not enough moisture was causing me to have an increase in mid strand breakage.

Scalp massage is another good idea. I have even read about people standing on their head for a certain amount of time to increase circulation to the scalp or boosting thinking power of the brain!!

Check out the "Articles" section. There is a lot of information there. It is very helpful!

[fishwich]

Tried Monistat, it didn't make any difference. Tried biotin, it turned my pee highlighter yellow but didn't make a difference. I'm back on the benign neglect train now.

If nothing else, I figure that just not worrying about it is best to stimulate it--anxiety slows growth, you know. :D

[drquartz1970]

I have been using Biotin and I don't think it speeds up hair growth much at all. Rather it provides aid in lengthening the anagen life phrase of hair growth so you can achieve your full potential for longer length and helps keep the hair strong, healthy and shiny. I don't appear to shed a lot of hair in the shower which is encouraging for getting longer length in the future.

Genetics, good diet, and proper hair care with plenty of patience is the key. I have also used the Hair/Skin/Nails tablets as well.

I have never used MSM but might give it a go - I eat healthy natural foods and stuff rich in Iodine like seafood, with regular protein from pasta, and eggs and rather then trying to speed up hair growth I concentrate on feeding the growth with good quality food to get good quality hair.

And I'd thought about the monistat treatment but don't want to shed loads of hair either so will leave it alone. I only use organic sulphate-free/silicone-free shampoo/conditioner.

Scalp massage is a recent addition to my hair routine but still too early to say if it's had much effort on the growth yet.

[devs12]

its Shikakai for me ..:)

[Heavenly Locks]

The milk of lactating fruit bats applied under the full moon. :rolling:

[Heidi_234]

The milk of lactating fruit bats applied under the full moon. :rolling:
Ooh yeah, that one is really great, but it is possible to have unpleasant side effects. :nono:
:p

[3azza]

olive oil, castor oil, almond oil, amla oil, henna, and the brew of eucalyptus leaves are all ingredients that i find to stimulate hair growth.

[Madame J]

I use NightBlooming's (Nightshade's Etsy shop) Triple Moon Anointing Oil with a scalp massage before every other wash during the waxing moon. Last night the moon hit full, so I did an extra long massage before my wash today.

I also take a general multivitamin, but that's more for general health than hair growth, although good health leads to good hair health.

[Speckla]

Biotin, B6 and B12, MSM, and plenty of scalp massages. And no scissors unless there's damage.

[Debra83]

I take about 15-20 vitamins a day for health and hair. I noticed my hair getting stronger and longer when I introduced Florasil and msm for sure.

[viking_quest]

A hair, skin, and nails vitamin, and I didn't even get it for the hair part. I doubt it will do much to my hair.

[spidermom]

I stick with patience and distracting myself with other activities. The less attention I pay to my length, the more my hair grows. You never see progress if you check the length every day (or 9 times a day, like I used to do).

[jojo]

Tried them all and to be honest I am not convinced anything works to speed hair growth.

Like SM said,patience and distracting yourself from getting obsessed, a watched pop never boils as they say!

[Speckla]

Tried them all and to be honest I am not convinced anything works to speed hair growth.

Like SM said,patience and distracting yourself from getting obsessed, a watched pop never boils as they say!

:confused::p

My hair actually did start growing faster and my strands are more medium thickness instead of my former fine. I've had fine hair all my life - even when my hair wasn't damaged - and now there's a noticeable difference in the thickness just since starting to take more vitamins.

[sahiba]

I oil my hair daily and the oil varies from coconut to amla to other herbal oil available here. I believe oiling does help.

[curls2grow]

I take a women's multi vitamin and other assorted supplements like omegas, grape seed extract, spirulina (capsules). I also do scalp massage. I would love to take a hair/skin/nails formula, but I think that my multi and other supplements already have those ingredients. Extra biotin aggravated cystic acne for me, so I'm leery of HSN formulas for that reason also.

[shadowclaw]

I've found that since I started taking vitamins, my hair has grown faster... my hair grew over an inch this past month, when previously it grew only half an inch per month. I can't say with 100% certainty that the vitamins are reason, as my hair could simply not be breaking as much and the growth rate is the same.

In any event, I've been taking a women's multivitamin, biotin, and kelp. I don't think the kelp has anything to do with hair growth, but it is a good source of iodine. I thought about trying a hair, skin, and nails multivitamin, but most of the stuff in the formula can be found in a regular multivitamin.

My multivitamin has the usual lettered vitamins (A, C, D, E, K) and several B vitamins. It also has folic acid, calcium, and the different metals our bodies need (copper, zinc, etc). The biotin I take is 1000 mcg, which is overkill, if I'm correct. I'm sure I read somewhere on the board that we only need something like 225 mcg of biotin per day.

I'm thinking of adding protein powder into my diet. I don't really eat a lot of meat, and I'm not sure if I'm consuming much protein from non-meat sources.

[hennaphile]

I'm going to try motivational posters of Cousin It.

[shadowclaw]

I'm going to try motivational posters of Cousin It.

:D That is a fantastic idea

[Nyghtingale]

I take vitamins also.

[RancheroTheBee]

Women's multi and gelatin.

I also drink a lot of milk, and eat a lot of chili peppers, both of which are supposed to improve growth or stimulate the scalp. But I'd do that anyway.

[camirra555]

I take Centrum as well as Chlorella and Spirulina

[Zindell]

Cheeze!

Actually my hair seems to grow better when I eat all kinds of different foods.
As soon as I decide to try a diet which excludes some kind of food (like low-carb, or no-meat...), growing seems to stall.

Also when I eat a large dose of vitamin D3 during winter my hair growth seems to get a boost.

It used to be that my hair grew more during spring/summer and less at winter. But after I started on the D-vitamins I see no diff anymore. :-)

[Zopheya]

Disclaimer: I am not a physician and do not advise or recommend dietary changes without consulting your health care provider!

That said... :)

I incorporated Biotin into my diet about 2.5 months ago. At first, I only took 1000mcg, but later read that it takes at least 2500mcg to truly encourage hair growth. So now, I take 3000mcg daily. A high dosage, yes, and it worried me at first but logically, I figure that a dangerous overdose is unlikely since Biotin is water soluable.

It seems that my hair has been growing slightly faster than usual since upping my Biotin dosage. Maybe this is just wishful thinking, but bottom line is that I DO think Biotin is helpful, but I am not sure how helpful it is at, say, 500mcg.

Additional feedback on other people's Biotin experiences would be much welcom.

[Zopheya]

Haha, love it.

[JamieLeigh]

I take a Skin, Hair & Nails vitamin, but not so much for stimulating hair growth, as for shine and overall health. I really don't think my hair needs to grow any faster, LOL.

[pinchbeck]

Tried them all and to be honest I am not convinced anything works to speed hair growth.

Like SM said,patience and distracting yourself from getting obsessed, a watched pop never boils as they say!
How long did you try hair growth supplements? Did you take them long enough to see results?

[LawyerGirl]

MSM, Silica, Biotin, and a multi... oils, plus once in a while I'll apply a mask.

[clairenewcastle]

I don't believe in taking food supplements as I believe our bodies are designed to draw nutrition from food and fluid.
However, since starting catnip rinses 6 or 7 weeks ago I've seen a spurt of growth which has encouraged me to start drinking 3 mugs a day of catnip tea. Apparently it contains biotin and sulphur so fingers crossed for more hair growth!
I'm someone who drinks a lot of herbal infusions for their theraputic benefits, so I might as well add catnip to my list.

[ZenBird07]

I credit Ylang Ylang in my monoi. I occasionally do the gelatin thing but I have a medical condition that leaves the possible benefits of it's consumption non-existent...
Scalp massages while oiling heavily with the monoi before a wash and then on my ends after the wash and intermittently with more monoi if I see fit...
Aside from this I really don't think about it unless it gets in my way or it's about to catch fire...Good Luck:)

[Aditi]

A heavy oil massage using Herbal oil is what i do to stimulate for healthy hair growth :)

[hmmm]

I don't believe in taking food supplements as I believe our bodies are designed to draw nutrition from food and fluid.


This. And I'm actually more than a little surprised at the number of supplements some people on LHC take. I also think that it's best to get your nutrition and vitamins from fruits and actual food instead of pills. And it's also cheaper in my opinion, lol.

I do notice faster growth if I eat well, for instance if I'm eating nuts and fruits on a daily basis. And I'm convinced that eggs help my hair grow better. I don't eat a lot of meat, so most of my protein comes from eggs, nuts and legumes. I also take omega-3 tablets and calcium supplements. And I drink green tea as well, sometimes with lemon. ^^

[prittykitty]

I started using monistat last week. I have noticed that there are tiny hairs growing right in the front where my bangs are. I will have to continue to use it for several months though to see some real growth. I also take a B-complex vitamin every day along with Calcium and Magnesium. I also tried that blackstrap molasses because I read where it can make hair grow nice but it tastes bad so I quit with that for a while. I was using gelatin every day but got really tired of it. It is suppose to make hair grow strong. I might start using it again. I also heard that Shapley's MTG (a conditioner for horses) is really good for hair growth because it has sulfur in it and it stimulates growth. I was going to use this as plan B if the monistat didn't work or if I found that I can't use monistat due to side effects. So far I have not had any side effects from it.

[prittykitty]

I stick with patience and distracting myself with other activities. The less attention I pay to my length, the more my hair grows. You never see progress if you check the length every day (or 9 times a day, like I used to do).
This is some excellent advice. I do find myself checking my hair all the time. I am glad I am not the only one that does this. I will have to find a way to get my mind off of my hair on those days when it feels hopeless like it is never going to grow any longer.

[Othala]

Direct stimulation: Massaging Neelibringadi oil into my scalp every other day

Indirect stimulation: I eat animal protein at every meal and ensure I eat a diet rich in micro-nutrients. I do not take supplements or artificial vitamins on principle.

[Rapunzal2Be]

I take a women's multi, MSM, biotin, folic acid, gelatin, fish oils, extra b's and garlic. I also eat a variety of fruits, veggies and protein every day. I have a few superfoods almost every single day (pumpkin smoothie, spinach and/or tomatoes, blueberries, flax, cucumbers, whole grain cereal) for overall health, not just the hair benefits. But I admit I did add millet to my whole grain cereal mix specifically because I read about it here. It's good though! I also use coconut oil (in oatmeal or coffee or to cook with) daily. Now, if I could just drink more water and cut out the sweets, I'd be really proud of myself!

I have found that twice daily scalp brushing does *wonders* for me. I'm skeptical because I have had other experiments that worked really well in the beginning and then stopped working along the way (garlic for shedding, Monistat, MegaTek) so I am worried that this will stop working at some point - but for now I notice that on days when I brush my scalp vigorously (but careful not to pull the hair) at least twice per day I have markedly less shedding in the brush, in the shower, and when styling. I also use only cool water on my hair - I love warm/hot showers, but have noticed that I have a lot less shedding when using cool/cold water on my hair (and now that I live with my Mom who watches the utility bills carefully, I should tone down the temp/length of my showers anyway, and I'm sure my skin will thank me!).

Like I mentioned, I've tried Monistat and MegaTek as scalp treatments. I had no bad experiences with either of them and in the beginning MN seemed to cut back my shedding for a while. Problem is, I started them very shortly after I found LHC and I did not measure my growth beforehand. So I do not know how much of a difference either was making with my growth. I also am not an obsessive measurer, so I can't say for certain how much growth I was getting, but when I look at my progress, my hair has definitely not been growing slow. I've decided not to buy any more Monistat, and will probably save my MegaTek for protein treatments.

My next experiment is going to be sulfur oil. My sulfur powder should arrive today or tomorrow and I will mix it with some coconut, sweet almond, bringaraj (I can never spell it unless I'm looking at the bottle, sorry) and castor oils. After reading about MTG and Boundless Tresses and finding some recipes to make my own, I've decided to see how this works for me. I'll report back. :)

I've also got some diatomaceous earth coming. My mother is really apprehensive about this, but I couldn't pass it up. Not specifically for the hair growth, but because I'd like to detox and make sure I am parasite (gross, I know) free. We'll see how that goes. I'm nervous, but hopeful.

Oh, and I use henndigo. The henna has really made a difference in the strength and shine of my hair. It's also increased my thickness. I love it!

[kimannabella]

I have been doing a twice weekly scalp massage with weleda rosemary oil this month, it's winter so my growth has slowed down somewhat, so I cannot tell if it is doing any good. It feels nice,though.

I take a multivit and mineral supplement,along with a skin hair and nails one. I definitely notice a difference, more pronounced on my nails-they grow like weeds, which is annoying because I like to keep them short.

Catnip tea? I drink a lot of herbal tea's, I can easily add this to my list of things to try.