Avocado oil is one of the richest sources of nutrition for hair. This oil also happens to be among the very strongest sources of good fats, vitamins, and minerals for the scalp and hair.
Besides, one of the main reasons avocado oil is used is its deep moisturizing and hydrating effects. The oil works magic in hair growth and minimizes breakages because it is enriched with biotin, antioxidants, and fat-soluble vitamins.
Let's look at the benefits of using avocado oil and how you can include it in your hair care regime.
1. Moisturizes Hair
Avocado oil is excellent at giving your locks some serious moisturizing. It contains a high percentage of monounsaturated fatty acids, which ensures it will quench your hair's thirst through good moisturizing from the inside by penetrating shafts deeply. This oil can both nourish and smooth out brittle or dry hair strands.
Applied regularly as a deep conditioning, the oil can help avoid split ends and fight dryness. It will moisturize your hair so well that it will stay healthy and alive even through rough weather or repetitive styling.
2. Tames Frizz
This oil is light in composition and very good for people with a lot of frizz and uncontrollable hair. It smoothes the cuticles of hair without weighing it down.
Avocado oil helps moisturize and lock the hair cuticles to retain moisture inside the hair rather than letting it out and frizzing. This huge amount of vitamins and nutrients makes your hair softer and more manageable for styling. In this way, avocado oil benefits the hair.
3. Boosts Hair Volume
Avocado oil increases hair volume by making hair look thicker and fuller. It's light enough that people with thin or fine hair can add some oil to their hair without weighing it down.
It will be able to provide you with full and lively locks if you apply this oil regularly. This way of having thick and heavy hair is completely natural, and you should not rely on those thick and sticky styling products for hair.
4. Improve Scalp Health
The oil moisturizes the area of the scalp which helps in hydration and cure dryness and flakiness. These are two major reasons that may irritate a scalp prone to having dandruff. Avocado oil moisturizes the scalp, which can sustain strong and healthy hair growth.
Massage avocado oil into your scalp to encourage blood flow to the scalp area. It makes sure that hair follicles are getting everything they need to thrive for healthy growth.
5. Balance Oil Production
Avocado oil works miracles in scalp oil regulation for both dry and oily scalps. The light and non-greasy composition guarantees the much-desired moisture to ensure the proper moisturization of the scalp without clogging pores or adding more oil.
Regular use of this oil will help to control oil output greatly by improving the overall health of your scalp. It will also contribute to counterbalancing the oil produced by your scalp by cleansing it.
6. Prevents Hair Loss
This rich nutrient oil improves general hair health and can prevent baldness. Avocado oil assists the blood flow to the scalp and nourishes it, thus creating all the conditions needed for hair development.
Avocado oil can be massaged into the hair as an excellent leave-in conditioner or even scalp treatment with continued use. That indeed helps reduce hair loss to a great extent. Since it can act at the root of follicles, strengthening and enriching them is quite safe and avoids hair thinning issues.
7. Natural Styling Aid
This oil is one of the best natural enhancers for various styling applications. Its features like light, smooth, and moisturizing, help in adding smoothness and controlling frizz in your hair. It makes your locks sleek without using greasy or artificial treatments.
Daily use will give the appearance of healthier hair and add some natural shine. Avocado oil can be used in your styling regime to achieve great-looking hair because of its nourishing and protecting properties.
8. Restores Damaged Hair
It effectively restores damaged hair from chemical and thermal environmental damage. Avocado oil contains vitamins and antioxidants that help in the rebuilding process of the cuticle layer of the hair, which gets regularly damaged.
Massage avocado oil into the hair to fill in cuticle gaps that have grown too rough. This will reinstate the smoothness of the natural texture by enabling hydration and softness. The best avocado oil for hair is cold-pressed and organic, which ensures it is pure and retains all its beneficial nutrients.
9. Provides UV Protection
UV radiation may result in different types of damage, such as dryness, loss of color, and breakage. Avocado oil will protect this since it contains vitamins E and D that make the oil function like a sunscreen to the hair in fighting against solar-induced damages.
Avocado oil forms a reflective barrier to UV rays and prevents them from getting inside the shaft of the hair. It also avoids the fading of the natural color of the hair, making it shiny and healthy.
10. Detangles Hair Easily
Avocado oil acts as a completely natural detangler that removes the knotted and entangled hair without damage. The hairs can smoothly glide over each other because of its silky nature, which reduces the friction on the hair.
Add a little avocado oil to your hair after washing it. You will experience pain reduction and an easier combing experience by applying avocado oil daily. It also has moisture aides that help in the softening and reduce hair breakage.
How To Use Avocado Oil for Hair?
Using avocado oil for hair care is a simple process that can help you reap its many benefits. Here’s what you’ll need to get started:
• Heat Protectant
Avocado oil is known to be a natural guard against heat damage. Before using heat appliances such as a straightener, curling iron, or blow dryer, apply this oil over your hair. Your hair strands get coated with this heat-resistant oil which will form a protective layer over the hair from the heat.
This will never dry or make your hair brittle because it acts as damage shield against heat damage. It seals in moisture to ensure your hair remains well-moisturized, even after undergoing scorching heat.
• Shiny Finish
Avocado oil makes it easy to have healthy and charming hair. Apply a few drops to the palms of your hands and lightly massage the strands of your hair, which will help your hair shine without becoming oily.
This oil nourishes the hair and makes your overall look healthy and shiny by reflecting the light. It is also good for hair growth because it provides essential nutrients and vitamins that nourish the scalp and strengthen hair follicles.
• Moisturizing Spray
Shake well a spray bottle containing a small amount of water, then add a few drops of avocado oil. Lightly spritz in your hair by focusing more on the dry areas. Avocado moisturizing spray oil will nourish your hair throughout the day.
This spray will further moisturize and cool the hair by making it more manageable and shiny. The oil's nourishing properties help maintain a glossy and healthy appearance.
• Smoothing Flyaways
Avocado oil will add a professional touch to your haircut by smoothes flyaways. Apply the tiny amount of avocado oil lightly to the sections of your hair with the most noticeable flyaways and iron out those strands.
Since avocado oil is not greasy, it's great for smoothing hair without added weight. This oil softens the hair cuticle, which results in considerably less frizz and fewer flyaways in the hair.
• Hot Oil Treatment
Using a hot oil treatment is definitely one of the best ways to get some deep nourishment into the locks and make them soft and shiny. Just warm up a couple of teaspoons of this oil gently in a micro oven. Be cautious not to let it get too hot as it can cause burns to the skin. Massage freely into your hair by coating each strand evenly from the root down to the end.
It strengthens the follicles and improves your hair's overall structure by giving it a silken, smooth, and manageable texture.
• Color Treatment
Including avocado oil in your color treatment regime keeps your hair healthy because it retains the moistening abilities if you applied to the hair before it's colored and creates a protective layer. Its nourishing properties lock in color and make it last longer.
Avocado oil can be added to a dyeing process and makes it feel soft and much more manageable. It is also used to condition and manage its health.
• Dry Scalp Treatment
Avocado oil is said to be a good moisturizer and is excellent for dry scalps. First, warm a couple of tablespoons of this oil in the microwave for about 2 minutes and massage the warmed oil into your scalp using light fingerprint motions.
Since it enhances circulation, dryness is removed from the skin which helps the oil to be easily absorbed into the skin.
• Hair Mask with Egg Yolk
Eggs are excellent sources of proteins and vitamins and contain important hair nutrients. In a bowl, beat one egg yolk and mix well two tablespoons of avocado oil into it until it is quite thick and creamy.
Massage this mixture into clean and damp hair from the roots down through the ends. This helps moisturize the skin, nourish the hair, and boost overall health.
• Hair Serum
You could even use avocado oil as a natural hair serum. Rub a couple of drops between your fingers and lightly apply to the ends of your hair and any frizzy parts.
This will strip the grease and leave only the shine in your hair while reducing flyaways and frizz.
Choosing an Avocado Oil
Knowing the differences between the avocado oils below will help you choose the best according to your needs and demands.
• Refined Avocado Oil
Refined avocado oil is processed to rid the oil of impurities and extend its shelf life which comprises some heating and filtering.
Most of the healthy ingredients are absent in cold-pressed oil, which does not make this oil very appropriate for skin and hair treatment compared to cold-pressed oil.
• Unrefined Avocado Oil
It is green in color and has a rich and nutty smell. Unrefined avocado oil retains most of the nutrients that are excellent for the skin and the health of the hair same as cold-processed oil.
This oil deeply nourishes and moisturizes dry or damaged hair with a high percentage of fatty acid content.
• Extra Virgin Avocado Oil
This oil contains healthy vitamins and fats that can improve hair quality. Extra virgin avocado oil is extracted using cold pressing to ensure that it is of the highest quality and full of nutritional value.
Therefore, the extra-virgin oil would be suitable for uses associated with hair and skin issues. The color is very green and dark because of its strong flavor.
• Organic Avocado Oil
Organic avocado oil is extracted from organically grown avocados without artificial fertilizers and pesticides. It is extracted by cold-pressed or unrefined methods which will give the oil its most natural and purest form.
This type of avocado oil is perfect for those who wish to consume the product in its most natural and eco-friendly way possible.
Opt for what you need
Therefore, the type of avocado oil to be consumed depends on the purpose for which it is used. Unrefined and extra virgin avocado oil would be best as it would retain maximum nutrients.
While organic avocado oil is lightly processed which helps to keep the original nutrients and robust taste of the avocados. Meanwhile, refined avocado oil is heavily processed removing its nutrients and flavor.
Extracting Process of Avocado Oil
There are many processes for extracting avocado oil. Here are some of the most popular methods including expeller pressing, hot pressing, and solvent extraction:
Hot Pressing
• It is the process where the avocado is first cooled and the temperature is maintained when the oil is rendered from the fruit. This is then followed by cooking the avocados and then centrifuging or simple physical pressing.
• Maximum oil yield with minimum loss of aromatic flavors and nutrients at a higher temperature.
• Normally used in large-scale production where nutrient retention is not as crucial compared to efficiency.
Expeller Pressing
• Expeller pressing is a mechanical process using a screw press for the extraction of avocado flesh oil. The avocados are heated before pressure to receive maximum oil from the fruit.
• The process produces relatively high-quality oil with good nutrient retention.
• These nutrient-rich expeller-pressed oils are applied to the scalp for proper healthy hair development.
Solvent Extraction
• This is processed through the dissolving and extraction of oil from avocado with the use of solvents such as hexane.
• It produces large quantities of oil that is likely to leave chemical residues and cause some loss in nutrients.
• Generally used for large-volume applications in the manufacturing process and helps cost cutting.
Can We Make Avocado Oil at Home?
Yes, you can make avocado oil at home, but it is time-consuming and requires specific equipment for the finest quality. Here is the basic step to produce avocado oil at home:
Select Hass Avocados
Choose those avocados that are hass, which will directly impact the yield and quality of the oil.
Prepare and Mash the Avocados
The avocados will need to be washed off for pesticides and dirt. Cut them in half and remove the flesh.
Transfer the avocado pulp to the blender or food processor which will release every single drop of the oil present in the pulp.
Heat the Mixture
Now pour the mashed avocado into a heat-resistant skillet or pan over low flame. Leave it on the stove for ten to fifteen minutes to release its oil.
Ensure to be cautious not to overheat so that the mixture does not burn or cook.
Extract and Separate the Oil
Allow the mixture to cool a bit after heating. Then, pour the avocado mixture into cheesecloth and press down with a spoon or spatula and squeeze out all liquid possible.
Now, let this liquid settle for some hours. The heavier avocado pulp will go down while the oil will rise up. Carefully scoop off the oil at the top.
Store the Oil
Store it in a cold and dark place to prevent oxidation and preserve freshness after pouring the extracted oil into an airtight container.
Storing Home Made Avocado Oil
Proper storage maintains and preserves maximum nutrition and freshness. Following are some ways of preservation for homemade avocado oil:
Vacuum Sealing
• Vacuum sealing prolongs the life of the oil and decreases oxidation by eliminating air from the storage.
• This will be attributed to a better shelf life without turning rancid which is perfect in case you are about to store it for several months.
Small Portion Storage
• It's also good to split it up into other portions and keep them in different containers rather than the whole lot in one. This way, you will expose it to air only when you open a small portion at a time.
• The smaller volumes certainly extend the life of the remaining oil because less oil is exposed to air whenever it is used. This method also allows thawing in case the oil is frozen.
Avoid Metal Containers
• You should not store avocado oil in metal storage containers and reactive metals like copper and aluminum. The oils react with the metal content, which can result in changes in the color and flavor of the oil.
• You can be sure that you're not consuming oil with a metallic taste when it is stored and dispensed from non-metal containers.
Check for Spoilage
• Checking avocado oil frequently will ensure that it is still good and safe for use. Avocado oil exposed to heat and light will gradually lose its taste and smell.
• This will help you ensure to use of fresh and high-quality oil for better results.