DIY Honey-Infused Hair Oil

Providing your hair follicles with enough nutrients and minerals is a crucial part of having healthy hair. Making your own honey infused hair oil is easy, and you can find most of the ingredients you need either in the kitchen or in the garden.

Haircare has had a great deal of in-depth research conducted on it, so when making your own hair oil, there are a couple of key messages that should be followed:

• In most cases, any hair treatment should be within a pH of 3.7 to 5.5 – which is acidic. A mildly acidic treatment will reflect the pH of your scalp and hair follicle. If your hair treatment is too alkaline, it will cause frizz and static electricity, whereas if it’s too acidic, it will damage the hair follicles and skin.
• Maintaining a healthy balance of sebum production is vital for hair growth. Sebum is a natural oil that we synthesize to protect our scalp and hair. If too much sebum is produced, then this can cause oily hair that clogs up pores and hair follicles, and subsequently lead to dandruff. If too little is produced, then the hair and scalp will become dry and brittle.
• Inflammation of the hair follicle can result in blocking the growth of new hair. This may be caused by an irritant or imbalance. For this reason, it’s a good idea to include an anti-inflammatory in your homemade hair oil.
• Increasing blood circulation to the skin also increases oxygen and nutrients to the hair follicle. There are a number of herbs that you can infuse into a carrier oil to boost circulation.
• Temperatures greater than 98 °F will destroy the beneficial compounds and enzymes in honey and herbs. Warm water will rupture the cell walls to release the beneficial compounds into the oil, however, hot water is likely to destroy both the cell walls as well as the compounds. Therefore, it is important that the mixture is never heated above 98 °F when infusing either herbs or honey into the oil.

Ingredients That Are Good For Your Hair

• Honey is a fantastic option to use in a homemade hair treatment since on average, the pH of honey is about 3.9. It also traps moisture on the hair, scalp, and follicle and promotes new skin cells to grow. The anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-bacterial properties of honey also help to maintain healthy hair, skin, and follicles, including treating dandruff. All of these benefits help to reduce hair breakage as well. It should be noted that leaving honey in your hair for an extended period of time will lighten the color of your hair. This is because the glucose in honey eventually oxidizes and produces hydrogen peroxide, which bleaches your hair.

Related: 50 Amazing Uses For Honey You Didn’t Know About

• Extra virgin coconut oil is great in hair products for multiple reasons, but it’s even more effective when combined with equal amounts of extra virgin olive oil. This will balance out the pH, hydrate, clean, and nourish your hair.

Current research has proven time and again that combining multiple herbs into a remedy is more effective than using each herb individually. For this reason, I have listed a few herbs that you can infuse into the oil to make a base-oil for the honey-infused hair oil below:

• Rosemary increases blood circulation which supplies oxygen and other essential nutrients to the follicles. It has also been shown to regulate sebum production. It is so effective at reducing hair loss that it’s comparable with the active ingredient in Rogaine.
• Sage can also modulate the production of sebum, so it’s a great option for people with either oily or dry hair.
• Peppermint essential oil was found to have the greatest effect compared to other essential oils with respect to hair health. It thickens the follicle as well as increasing the abundance of hair and depth of the follicle. As a strong anti-fungal and anti-bacterial herb, peppermint can also help to clean your hair and scalp at the same time as increasing circulation.

Related: The Complete List of Essential Oil Substitutes 

• Ginseng has been found to promote hair follicle cell growth, as well as block some chemical signals to the hormone that causes hair loss.
• Stinging nettle can also disrupt the hormone that causes hair loss, while at the same time, it increases blood circulation and provides plenty of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals to your hair, scalp, and follicle.
• Geranium strengthens hair and increases circulation.

A Note On Quantities

It’s important to note that you should ideally make enough honey-infused oil for just one application. This is because honey is water-based (approximately 18% water content), so it won’t mix with oil without an emulsifier. The other reason for making smaller quantities at a time is because, without a preservative, the diluted honey-oil mixture may be at risk of fermenting and growing mold.

The most efficient way is to infuse any of your chosen herbs from the list below in a cup of coconut and olive oil. This larger quantity can be labeled and stored so that you can then portion off what you need for one application, and infuse honey into this smaller portion for immediate use.

Ingredients:

The quantities below are for a larger amount of herbal infused oil which can be subsequently portioned off and mixed with honey on an as-needed basis.

• ½ cup of extra virgin coconut oil
• ½ cup of extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon of each of the dried herbs from the list above (I have rosemary, sage, and ginseng available, so that’s what I’m using for this remedy)
• A few drops of peppermint essential oil
• 1 tablespoon of honey (use 2 – 3 tablespoons if you have long hair)

Method:

This remedy is a simple, 3-step process. In the first step, you need to infuse the herbs into the coconut and olive oil. In the second step, you simply portion off some of the warm herbal oil and combine it with an equal amount of honey. The final third step is how to apply hair oil.

Step 1: Make An Herbal Infused Oil

• Pour ½ a cup of olive oil and scoop ½ cup of coconut oil into a glass jar.

• Sit the glass jar in a pot of warm water (maximum 98 °F) and once the oil has melted, add 1 tablespoon of each dried herb.

• Screw the lid on the jar and give it a shake. Leave the jar in warm water for at least 3 hours. Shake the jar and check the water temperature every 20 minutes or so.

• Strain the oil. You should end up with slightly less than a cup of oil which can be stored for a couple of months. Now you are ready for step 2.

Step 2: Make A Honey Infused Hair Oil

• Portion off 1 tablespoon of your warm herbal infused oil from step 1 into a small dish (use 2 or 3 tablespoons if you have long hair).
• If your herbal oil from step 1 has cooled, then pop it back in a pot of warm water for a minute or two.

• Add 1 – 2 drops of peppermint essential oil.
• Add 1 tablespoon of honey (use 2 or 3 tablespoons for long hair) and stir. It won’t technically combine, but it is easier to handle and massage in when it’s warm.

Step 3: Apply The Honey Infused Oil

• While the honey and herbal infused oil are still warm, apply it to your hair and scalp and gently massage it for 10 minutes.
• Rinse it out with warm water, and wash your hair with a small amount of shampoo afterward.

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