Contents:
- What is useful propolis for hair?
- Preparing tinctures of propolis at home
- Methods of using propolis for hair
Bee products have long been used in many fields of human activity, especially in folk medicine. Everyone knows about the amazing healing and nutritional properties of honey, but propolis or bee glue is an equally valuable product of beekeeping. On its basis, alcoholic tincture, suppositories, ointments, and cream are used to treat inflammatory diseases of the digestive tract, skin, mouth, throat, to accelerate the healing of wounds, eliminate symptoms of acute respiratory disease and other health problems.
Propolis can also be found in some cosmetic products for skin and hair care: creams and face masks, hand and body creams, masks, shampoos and balms-rinsers. Tincture of propolis for hair is an effective and affordable means for strengthening and repairing damaged strands, preventing their loss and accelerating growth.
How useful is propolis for hair?
Propolis is a bitter-tasting resinous substance, the color of which can be brown, yellow, dark brown or dark green. It is produced by bees as a result of the collection of sticky substances from the buds of trees in the spring period and their subsequent contact with the secretion of the maxillary glands of bees containing various enzymes. Propolis is used by bees to seal cracks in the hive and protect it from drafts, germs and fungus, regulate the size of the tap, embalming and conservation of foreign insects or small animals that have entered the hive.
Interesting: With one beehive, beekeepers can harvest from 50 to 150 g of propolis. In the beginning, it has a soft consistency in the likeness of plasticine, but when stored gradually thickens, becomes firm.
Propolis has valuable healing properties that have found application in many fields of medicine and cosmetology, including hair care. An important feature of bee glue is that it does not lose its biological activity even with prolonged heating. Its exact chemical composition depends on which trees( poplar, birch, alder or others) were collected adhesive substances, more than 50% is for resinous components and 30% for wax. Propolis found 16 classes of organic compounds, among which more than 100 representatives are biologically active. These include:
- polyphenols;
- organic acids;
- flavonoids;
- essential oils;
- tanning agents;
- amino acids, proteins;
- enzymes;
- fatty acids and their esters;
- minerals( Mg, K, Na, Ca, Fe, Zn, Mn, Cu, P, S, Si, Se, Al, etc.);
- vitamins( B1, B2, B6, B7, A, C, E, P);
- sugar, etc.
The use of propolis for hair is caused, first of all, by its vitamin-mineral and protein composition. It contains most of all these compounds needed to grow, strengthen and maintain a healthy hair shaft and scalp. These are vitamins B, A, E and C, calcium and trace elements such as iron, zinc, sulfur, silicon and selenium. In addition, propolis also has regenerative, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antifungal activity, which allows the use of drugs based on it for the prevention and treatment of dandruff and scalp diseases( ringworm, seborrhea, eczema, psoriasis) and hair shaft.
Propolis preparations for hair are usually prepared from its tincture or the hardest resinous substance. Particularly useful will be their use in the spring, when hair is weakened after winter, and for women who like to often experiment with their curls, exposing them to the daily harmful effects of thermal appliances for styling( irons, hairdryers, curlers, thermalbugs) or staining. The periodic application of propolis tincture for hair in the composition of various products is facilitated by:
- restoring the natural shine of the curls;
- elimination of fatty hair and normalization of the functions of the sebaceous glands of the scalp;
- stop hair loss and increase hair volume;
- strengthening hair follicles and hair shaft structure, increasing its elasticity;
- removes itching and scaling of the scalp;
- return to strands of softness and silky;
- increase the speed of hair growth;
- eliminating dandruff and preventing its subsequent appearance.
Tincture of propolis for hair has some advantages in comparison with ready cosmetic means for hair care. It has a low cost and natural composition, does not contain preservatives, stabilizers, flavors, dyes and other not very useful chemical compounds. The results from its application become noticeable almost immediately, after a few procedures, the hair becomes more well-groomed.
Preparation of propolis tincture at home
Alcoholic tincture of propolis can be found in any pharmacy. It is inexpensive, so it is available for every woman. However, to prepare such a tool without much difficulty is real and at home. The first thing to do is to purchase propolis in its pure form in the market or in specialized stores of people professionally engaged in beekeeping. Beekeepers excrete bee glue, scraping off honeycomb frames and walls of the hive, and then purify the collected raw materials from wax, tree remains, dead bees and other impurities
. Tip: Checking the quality of bee glue is very easy. To do this at room temperature, you just need to stretch your piece in your hands, if it turns out to be soft, and will not crumble, then everything is fine.
Propolis alcohol tincture for hair or other purposes is made in the following way:
- Propolis in an amount of 25 g or more, depending on how much tincture you need to get as a result, grind to a powdery state or rub on a fine grater. If the propolis is too soft consistency, then to facilitate grinding, it is first placed in a refrigerator.
- The resulting mass is placed in a container of dark glass with a hermetically sealed lid, pour 1 liter of alcohol with 70% ethanol and mix.
- Insist the formulation for 7-10 days in a cool place, periodically shaking to mix.
- After expiration of the infusion, the mixture is filtered through several layers of gauze and poured into a container of dark glass, which is put in the refrigerator and stored there for no more than six months, expending as necessary.
Methods of using propolis for hair
Based on alcohol tincture of propolis for hair, masks, lotions and rinses are prepared. Also it can be added in small amounts( 10 - 15 drops per 200 ml) to the already prepared cosmetic products for hair care.
Warning: Use propolis for hair and skin, like other bee products, with caution, since they are highly allergenic. Before using the product on its basis, an allergy test should be performed on a small area of the skin on the inner crook of the elbow, and only if there are no pathological reactions within 12 hours can it be considered safe.
Remedy for fat loss of hair
To eliminate fatty hair use propolis tincture on alcohol in undiluted condition. Every day it is applied to a cotton pad and rubs the roots of hair and scalp, lightly massaging. The course of treatment lasts 1 month, in particularly difficult cases, after two weeks it is repeated.
Hair conditioner
The tincture of propolis for hair, diluted with water or herbal decoction of chamomile, sage or marigold can be used as a means for rinsing hair after washing your head. It is prepared based on 10 ml tincture for half a liter of water or herbal decoction.
Hair loss mask
With intensive hair loss a mask of 15 ml of aloe leaf juice, 15 ml onion and 3 ml of garlic juice, egg yolk and 15 ml of propolis tincture is prepared. All the ingredients are thoroughly mixed and applied from the roots to the ends of the hair. After an hour, rinse off the mask with shampoo and rinse with water, adding lemon juice or a couple of drops of essential oil to remove the smell of onions and garlic.
Anti-dandruff remedy
To combat dandruff, propolis tincture mixed with burdock oil in a ratio of 1 to 2 will help. The mixture is warmed slightly in a water bath and rubbed into the scalp with massage movements. Withstand 10 - 15 minutes, and then wash the head with water and shampoo. Repeat this procedure at intervals of every two days until the problem completely disappears.
About the medical properties of propolis: