From different shampoos, to different oils, serums etc, hair problems are and have been one of the most concerning problem amongst everyone. From baldness, alopecia, to early greying, hair fall, dandruffs to scalp infections such as in folliculitis, hair psoriasis, ring worm infection. Ayurveda deals with all kind of hair health problems. It is rather unknown to many, that like each of us differ so much in our attitude, nature, body types, this difference also comes about in our hair. Based on the prakriti, each of us have different hair types:
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Vata Hair type |
Pitta hair type |
Kapha hair type |
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relatively thin, but often a bit coarse, may be straight, curly, or a combination of the two, grows quickly, and can be a bit unruly.
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straight, soft, predictable, and of moderate thickness, but very fine.
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typically wavy, lustrous, full, strong, coarse, and thick.
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The above being said about prakriti, the vikriti/ vitiation of each of the doshas also lead to various specific issues:
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Vata Hair vitiation |
Pitta hair vitiation |
Kapha hair vitiation |
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causes the hair to be dry, frizzy, brittle, and lustre less. It also causes the hair to thin, fall out in clumps, become shorter and more difficult to grow out, and present with split ends.
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causes excess heat in the hair follicles, which can damage the hair and lead to premature thinning, early greying, and baldness. |
causes excessive oiliness, heaviness, and thickness in the hair. |
According to Ayurveda, hair is intricately inked to the digestive system’s heath and to the nervous system as well. Hair is a by-product of the bone tissue, as are the nails and teeth, making all of these tissues intimately connected. Hence if there is an issue with the gut, the nervous system or the nutrition to allied bone tissues of the body is compromised, the health of hair will be impacted as well. This is how, ayurveda’s holistic treatment approach paves way for better results when compared to the localized hair treatments, which shall not dwell into the main causative factor of the hair issue.
Treatments:
A combination of internal and external treatments is applied for hair problems. Sodhana chikitsa alongwith snehana and swedana followed by Rasayana forms the first line of treatment. Rasayana will nourish the deeper tissue and some rasayanas have a direct impact on hair growth as well. External therapies – oil dhara, application of packs are also applied.
Many Rasayanas which have direct impact on hair growth in mentioned in ancient Ayurvedic texts.
RPAC also practices PRP treatment, wherein the blood is withdrawn from the patient and centrifuged to separate it into red blood cells and plasma. This plasma contains platelets and several growth factors which is directly introduced into the scalp with sterile syringe using local anaesthesia. Consistent sittings are needed for this treatment and it takes about 6-8 weeks with promising results by the 3rd/4th sitting.