We all know how important oils are for healthy hair. But did you know that there are also essential oils for damaged hair? Yes, you can use them to improve hair health.
Although essential oils are mainly used for aromatic therapies, indulging yourself in a hot oil treatment infused with an essential oil has immense benefits for both your hair and your scalp.
Some of these essential oils promote better scalp hygiene, some improve overall hair health, and some do both, plus more! However, not all essential oils are safe to use and not all of them are of the bestest quality.
In this article, I will talk to you about the 7 best essential oils you can use to repair your damaged hair and the correct ways to use each of them. I will also provide links to where you can find these essential oils as some of them can be difficult to locate. I have already done the research to find the most premium quality essential oils so you don’t have to! So, let’s get started!
But… What Is An Essential Oil?
An Essential Oil is a highly concentrated plant extract derived from a steam distillation process, where the true “essence” (scent & flavor) and medicinal properties of the plant it is extracted from is carefully captured.
This is not to be confused with the regular carrier oils we are so familiar with, that are derived from vegetables (or fruit) seeds, nuts and flowers of plants via cold pressing.
The most popular carrier oils are olive oil, castor oil, coconut oil, avocado oil, jojoba oil- you get the drift?
Essential oils are pretty much “magic” oils because they not only have multiple health benefits but they smell phenomenal too! However, since they are highly potent and volatile oils, they must not be used undiluted.
The best way to use them is to dilute them with a suitable carrier oil so that both the essential oil and carrier oil can work effectively to heal the scalp and repair damaged hair.
Use With Caution
Just because something is natural does not mean it is entirely safe for you to use. There are a few risks and potential complications associated with using these magic oils.
Children must not use them and women with certain medical conditions like seizures must also avoid usage of essential oils. Pregnant and nursing women must also take caution and consult with their doctor to see if it is safe for them to use.
Using essential oils directly on your skin, including your scalp can lead to skin irritations or even allergic reactions in some women. The table below describes the difference between the two main kinds of risks associated with essential oils.
SKIN IRRITATION |
ALLERGIC REACTIONS |
Dermatitis |
Severe dermatitis |
Discomfort or burning sensation | Blistering rashes |
Painful tingling | Breathing difficulty |
Redness in affected area | Tongue swelling or narrowing of throat |
If you experience any of these symptoms above, discontinue use of the essential oils immediately and consult your doctor.
Perform A Patch Test
Always do a patch test before you begin usage to see if you have any adverse reactions to the essential oil. The way to do this is to test a small amount of mixture and apply it to a small patch of skin. Best area to do this would be on the under-side of your forearm or on the back of your hand. If you develop a rash or any kind of redness in that area after applying the oil, chances are that your scalp will have the same kind of irritation too.
The Best Essential Oils For Healthy Hair
1. Rosemary Essential Oil
Rosemary improves hair thickness and hair growth due to its ability to stimulate the scalp and increase blood circulation. It also helps to fight against free radicals that cause hair thinning as well as greying of hair.
How To Use: mix 3 drops with your choice of 1 tbsp carrier oil (olive or coconut) and massage into the scalp. Leave in for 10 minutes before washing it out with mild shampoo. Do this twice a week for best results.
2. Tea Tree Essential Oil
Tea Tree has powerful cleansing and antioxidant properties that help unclog hair follicles and increase hair growth. This is commonly found in anti-dandruff shampoos as well.
How To Use: mix 3 drops of tea tree essential oil with 2 tbsp of carrier oil and apply the mixture for 15 minutes before washing it out. Since this essential oil is very light, it is also effective to add it to your shampoo or conditioner for optimum benefits.
3. Peppermint Essential Oil
Peppermint has a cooling sensation when applied to the scalp due to the main component, menthol, that increases blood flow to the area it is applied. This leads to promotion of new hair follicles.
How To Use: Mix 2 drops with 1 tbsp of a carrier oil like jojoba or coconut oil. Massage and leave on your scalp for 5 minutes. Wash off with a mild shampoo and conditioner
4. Lemongrass Essential Oil
Lemongrass is known to effectively reduce dandruff by balancing the oil-producing glands in the scalp, promoting a flake-free scalp.
How To Use: mix a few drops in your choice of carrier oil and massage onto your scalp. Do this every day for best results. You can even add a few drops to your shampoo or conditioner for regular use. Rinse off with water after a good scalp massage.
5. Lavender Essential Oil
Lavender helps to promote hair growth and the wonderful aromas from this essential oil are well-known to reduce stress. The antimicrobial and antibacterial properties it possesses, further improves scalp health.
How To Use: add several drops of lavender oil into 3 tbsp of carrier oil of your choice and apply directly to your scalp. Massage for 10 minutes and wash off within 30 minutes with a mild shampoo and conditioner. Do this several times a week for best results.
6. Ylang-Ylang Essential Oil
Ylang Ylang stimulates sebum production in the scalp, saving hair from becoming dry and brittle. It improves not only the texture of the hair but prevents further hair breakage.
Those with oily scalp should not use this essential oil as it may make their scalp even more oily.
Note: this oil has a very heady, strong smell that some people might not be able to tolerate well. In this case, wash off immediately.
How To Use: Add 2 drops of this oil to 1 tbsp of warm carrier oil of your choice. Massage and leave in your scalp for 30 minutes before washing it out. You can wrap your head with a warm towel for best results.
7. Sweet Almond Essential Oil
Sweet almond oil helps hair to regain its lost luster and thickness by maintaining hair’s lipid balance and nourishing and protecting it from further damage.
How To Use: mix 2-3 drops of sweet almond essential oil with your choice of 1 tbsp carrier oil and massage to your scalp for 10 minutes. Wash the hair within 1 hour with a mild shampoo and conditioner.7
Essential Oil Benefits For Hair
I can continue this list and find more essential oils that have great benefits for your hair and so can you. There are countless of them out there and each has their own unique properties that help to improve hair’s growth, strength, shine, and or texture. What is best about these oils is that they are at an affordable price point and come with very little side effects. Not to mention, they are quite easy to use.
Always make sure you purchase from a reputable seller and choose a high quality or medical grade essential oil. Essential oils made from chemical processes are not considered true essential oils. This is why it is imperative to know the way these oils are made. The ones I have listed above are all linked to 100% pure and certified organic sources.
Which essential oils are you going to include in your hair care regimen?
I would love to hear from you so please do feel free to leave your thoughts and feedback below!
17 Responses
Thank you so much for this highly informative article! I will be the first to admit that my hair has fallen out over the past couple of years, mainly due to me not taking proper care of it (I should be ashamed of myself. Haha). I definitely want to improve my hair’s/scalp’s health and grow my hair back out again, and essential oils sound like a great way to assist in that endeavor. You do an excellent job of describing what essential oils are, their benefits and risks, as well as which ones work best for repairing damaged hair. I have saved your site, and will definitely share it with my family and friends. God bless you!
Thank you so much for taking the time to read and I am glad you found it informative! Don’t feel bad at all about not taking proper care of your hair.. we have all been there! but the good thing is its never too late ?
Hi Sacha, thanks a lot for sharing these great tips to improve scalp health with essential oils. I love essential oils and have been using them in a defuser for the last year or so. My favourite is orange and lavender. I was reading the other day in an article to add some drops to a pillow for a good night rest, I really love to incorporate the oils in different elements of my life.
I definitely going to try out your suggestions, I am just wondering about the coconut oil. As we are in winter, my coco oil is set now. Do I lightly warm it to make it liquid to mix the essential oil in? What is the best way to liquefy the coconut oil you reckon?
Thanks a lot for sharing your suggestions, I am excited to go and try it out.
Best wishes.
Jude
Hey Jude, Thank you for leaving your thoughts ? I have never tried orange and lavender essential oils but I can just think of how amazing they will smell, individually and in combination!!
Adding them to a pillow seems like a unique idea as well and would love to try that out sometime -Thanks!
As far as warming up coconut oil goes, the best way I would suggest would be to fill a small bowl with warm water (hot top water is also fine) and then add your jug/jar/bottle of coconut into it, keeping the lid on. Within minutes, you will have warm melted coconut oil that you can easily scoop out in a spoon. Another way you could warm this oil up is by using a coffee mug warmer (these are quite trendy these days). Add a few spoons of solid coconut oil in a mug and place it on this mug warmer. You will have melted coconut oil that is also warm in a matter of minutes as well. You can do both of these tips with any oil actually. Try not to warm any kind of oil in the microwave though as the heat and the radiation from it strips the oil of all its beneficial properties.
Hope this helps and I hope you love using the essential oils on your hair as I mentioned!
Good Luck!
Sasha <3
Thank you for the information. Anything for the falling hair? and are these oils available in India?
No problem, Prav !
Yes, these oils are definitely available in inda. In fact, the links I have provided do provide deliveries all over the world.
As far as hair-fall is considered, please check out my other post about natural ways to stop hair thinning. You may find a few useful tips here .
Thanks a lot for this suggestions Sacha, I will follow op your suggestions and enjoy my treatment now. Have a great day. Jude
Hi Sasha,
Thanks for the list of the essential oils you mentioned in this article. I am a big fan of shampoos that has tea tree oils. The feeling after washing hair is supremely refreshing, and it also keeps my hair smell good every morning.
I like the way you suggest that we could test the essential oils on the under-side of our forearm, and this is the same when we are not sure a product we just buy to put on our face, skin, and hair. I would love to try Peppermint and Lemongrass oils for the next time, and I hope it also brings refreshing feelings.
Cheers,
Matt
Hey Matt,
I totally agree with you- my scalp always feels clean & refreshed after a tea-tree oil shampoo wash ?
Yes, Do try shampoos that have peppermint or simply add peppermint essential oil to your fave shampoo and you will feel an amazing cooling sensation all over your scalp with using it. You will love it!
Don’t forget the patch test if it is the first time you are trying peppermint or lemongrass essential oils.
All the best,
Sasha
I love using essential oils for many things, and I have found using 20-30 drops of lavender to 16 ounces of water is an awesome and safer flea and tick protection for my dog than chemical-loaded products on the market.
Just thought I would share this,
Jeff
Hey Jeff, this is sooo great to know that essential oils help with tick protection in pets too! Thank you for sharing this useful information 🙂
Hi Sasha!
Really liked your article. I already use essential oils to create a certain energy and scent that improves relaxation. I use a vaporizer for that.
Since a couple of weeks I’m doing a bit of research about naturally skin and hair care products. I stumbled upon the Curly Girl Method where they use a conditioner for washing your hair. Do you have any advice on that? Can you use essential oils for that matter too?
What essential oil is your favorite to apply on hair and how often do you use that?
Kind regards,
Catherine.
Hey Catherine,
I am glad you enjoyed my article 🙂 Using essential oils in diffusers has great health benefits as well- Thanks for sharing!
You can definitely add a few drops of essential oils to your fave Curly Girl Method conditioner and this will improve the overall quality of your hair, with an added bonus of great smelling hair too! Since with a Curly Girl Method, all you are using are conditioners to wash your hair, you want to make sure these conditioners are organic and top-quality. Adding essential oils to these natural conditioners will turn them into power-packed must-haves for smooth, sleek, moisturized hair.
My favorite essential oils are lavender and tea-tree. Sometimes, I will combine the two in my conditioner for added hair-benefits. If I am using them in my hot oil masks, then I usually prefer to use olive oil or coconut oil as my choice of carrier oil. After applying the mixture, I like to wear a showercap for 10 mins so the oils penetrate deep into the shafts of my hair. I like to do this once a week but if my hair feels super dry and frizzy, then I will do it twice a week, with a couple days of gap in between so the hair can rest.
Hope this helps 🙂
Cheers,
Sasha
I’m going to try using the rosemary oil right now. I never knew it had so many benefits. Thank you so much for this amazing post so other can benefit from it too.
My only question is, is the rosemary safe in pregnancy or when you are trying to get pregnant?
Wishing you all the best
Habib
Hey Habib, I am so glad you liked my post about essential oils 🙂
As far as using rosemary essential oils during pregnancy is concerned, I would STRONGLY suggest NOT to use it as it may stimulate menstruation and also cause miscarriages. It is best practice to talk to your doctor whether essential oils are safe for use during pregnancy. Thank you for this extremely important question!
Cheers,
Sasha
Hi. Can any of these essential oils be combined or should they be used separately?
Hey Sabrina, you can combine up to 2 of these essential oils as long as you also combine them with a carrier oil (ex of carrier oils: olive oil, castor oil, coconut oil, etc). Here’s a list of my favorite carrier oils that repair hair, for your convenience.
Do not use essential oils on their own as they are quite potent and make sure to always check for allergies first! Hope this helps! 🙂