Drinking green tea and using hair products that are based on it can decrease the chances of you losing your hair as well as stimulate hair restoration.
For centuries green tea has been one of the most consumed beverages worldwide.
Many businesses have included green tea in their products, particularly those that promise to improve your hair’s health status.
However, one may be curious if these claims about green tea helping your hair are true. This article highlights what green tea is all about and how it can help keep our hair healthy.
What is Green Tea?
The plant from which we obtain tea leaves is called Camellia sinensis. Through processing, tea leaves can be used to make black, white, or oolong teas apart from green ones.
Green teas are prepared by allowing fresh leaves to dry out or sterilize through drying and exposure to sunlight so as to avoid oxidation which is responsible for the distinctive taste of green teas.
Different types of green teas may be subjected to various processes. For example, matcha teas are made by placing pre-harvested tea leaves under 90% shade thus enhancing its flavor and antioxidant content.
Antioxidants in Green Tea
Green Teas are known for their abundance of antioxidants. In particular, most antioxidants in green tea come from a type of flavonols known as catechins or EGCGs,
Of all the catechins contained in green teas, this one epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) has got strong implications on cancer types like prostate cancer and heart risks.
For instance, due to its high content of antioxidants; extracts derived from the tree have been used as anti-hair loss treatment measures among other purposes.
Hair Benefits of Green Tea
These purported benefits have led many companies to add it to their range of hair care products Here are some potential hair benefits of drinking green tea:
May Prevent Hair Loss
It affects both men and women around the globe with multiple causes like stress, diet, autoimmune diseases, and hormonal changes.
Androgenetic alopecia, which is caused by hormonal imbalance is the most common type of hair loss in men (50 million) and women (30 million) in the United States.
Some 50% of men and 25% of women aged over 50 years will undergo a certain extent of hormonally induced hair loss.
This leads to a change in the natural growth cycle for hair during this period it falls off naturally.
The complete hair life cycle comprises three stages; anagen (hair growth), catagen (transitional phase), and telogen (hair loss).
The two hormones testosterone and dihydrotestosterone (DHT) decrease the hair growth phase while increasing its loss.
In green tea, there are components such as EGCG that can nullify how these hormones affect your hair resulting in slower balding.
Ten participants who suffered from male pattern baldness took a Forti5 supplement for 24 weeks which was funded by the Company. At the end of that study, 80% of them had seen significant regrowth in their hair.
It’s worth mentioning that this product was fortified with undisclosed amounts of melatonin, omega-3s, beta-sitosterols soy isoflavones, and vitamin D besides a green tea extract.
Therefore nothing can be said if this improvement could be attributed to green tea extract or not.
Mice receiving a topical application of green teas rich in EGCG lost very few hairs compared to those that were not treated with it.
EGCG manages to slow down testosterone-induced hair loss by extending the anagen phase or active-growth stage thereby slowing down shedding which takes place during the telogen phase.
Supports Hair Growth
Green tea can help foster the growth of healthy hair and can also support its regrowth. The participants were given topical EGCG extract derived from green tea for four days.
After 4 days, the participants experienced significant increases in hair growth activity. The substance seems to stimulate hair follicles and prevents damage to skin and hair cells that may cause loss of hair.
This was found in a study conducted on mice which revealed that only 33% of those who consumed green tea had their fur grow back after six months while none of the mice in the control group showed any improvement.
However, it is not known yet how fast or effective green tea treatments are for hair growth promotion among humans who do not have hormone-related baldness.
Enhanced Nutrient Delivery
Hair is part of a bigger organ system called an integumentary system made up of nails, skins, hairs, and accessory structures.
Your skin is where the blood supply nourishes and feeds your growing mane directly.
A 15-person trial indicated that taking supplements containing this plant’s extracts increased skin blood flow by 29% and oxygen delivery over a twelve-week period (as compared to controls).
Also in the same research, another group drank one litre or about four cups of green tea every day for three months.
This resulted in significantly better water content compared with those who did not drink it at all during this time.
All these nutrients must be delivered through your bloodstream if you want to nudge cluster hairs into their final stages involving considerable lengthening.
Hence they will lose them again unnoticeably once they result from short breathing periods when there cannot be sufficient feedstock arriving into your scalp cells.
Using Green Tea For Your Hair
Many products for your hair use green tea as one of the main ingredients because it helps in promoting growth. You can buy them from most offline or online stores offering hair care products including shampoos, conditioners, etc., as well as in supermarkets.
Below are some ways through which you can use green tea to care for your hair:
Shampoo
Every day, shampoo your hair with a product that has green tea extract. Concentrate the shampoo on your scalp and roots while rubbing gently. This allows the active components to reach the follicles of hair where it will be most beneficial.
Conditioner
Directly apply conditioner or mask having this plant extract over your hair’s roots, lengths, and top ends.
Keep it for three to ten minutes or according to what is stated on the label by the manufacturer of such products so that ingredients can get into the shafts and strands.
Homemade Hair Rinse
Take two cups of boiling water and add 2 bags of green tea. After steeping for 5 minutes then cool off, pour this liquid on your head when bathing is almost complete.
A rinse like this is useful in cleansing an area above the epidermis and pouring some antioxidants directly onto these bulbs.
Drinking Green Tea
This will also include drinking one or two cups (240–480 ml) of pure green tea daily, which supplies antioxidants that are good for one’s body.
While it does not directly strengthen existing hairs, consuming herbal brew helps new ones grown within bulbs.
How To Get The Most Out Of Your Green Tea Products
More people are using green tea-based shampoos and conditioners because they have found them very effective if used properly.
Applications On The Hair Follicles
The blood vessels and the capillaries that carry blood to the hair roots, provide them with oxygen and nourish them.
As soon as hair grows out of the hair follicles, there is no nutrition for it.
RELATED: How Long Does Toner last on hair and Everything Else You Need to Know
This means that green tea drinking or the use of green tea extract in a product will mainly help new hair grow rather than improve existing strands.
Shampoo and Conditioner Usage
When using shampoo or conditioner containing green tea, concentrate on applying it directly to your scalp and hair roots. It helps reach your hair follicles.
Be careful when scrubbing your scalp with a shampoo so that you do not damage the origins and at the same time encourage proper circulation of blood.
Hair Masks and Rinses
Make sure you apply these masks from the root all through to your hair tips if any before rinsing them off.
Leave them on for the time suggested by the product so as to get maximum benefits from its green tea extracts. Regular usage can help keep a healthy scalp and support the growth of new hairs.
RELATED: 26 Popular Blunt Bob Hairstyles and Cuts That Are Hot This Year
These methods include adding green tea into one’s routine of taking care of their hair.
Hence, one can enjoy antioxidant effects that contribute towards better growing healthy hair.
