Does Castor Oil Make Your Hair Grow Faster?

Generally speaking, there isn't much scientific evidence to say whether or not castor oil will help your hair grow faster, and some beauty professionals maintain that it has more of a placebo effect than anything. An oil rubbed on the scalp or into the hair has little significance in the areas of the body where hair growth is generated, which is largely internally. Being a purely external application, castor oil has limited effects on hair. However, it is a staple in some parts of the world, particularly in parts of Asia and India, in cultures known for long, thick hair. This can partially be attributed to the genetics of those particular peoples, but many there believe that castor oil helps with the general state of their hair.

Castor oil does indeed have many beneficial applications, including the removal or lightening of scars and blemishes, and also acts as an anti-fungal agent. This may help to explain why it is known to help with the growth of eyebrows and eyelashes, or with patchy beards among men. Often a minor fungal problem can prevent the growth of hair in these areas, and as castor oil helps to eliminate the fungus, so the hair there can grow more freely.

Castor oil also works quite effectively as a lubricant for the hair. Natural lubricants that our body produces have a difficult time reaching any length of hair below the shoulders, generally speaking. The oil helps to maintain a healthy amount of lubrication and assists in keeping hair from getting tangled. All of these factors may have helped contribute to the notion that castor oil can help promote hair growth, when in fact there is little real evidence to suggest that it does so. Often a person experiences improvement of their hair's general state as a result of using castor oil, and mistakenly applies that same idea to the rate of hair growth, when in fact it may simply be the general improvement of other areas that leads them to believe this. This is in effect, a placebo. You believe something will work because you have been told that it will do so. Our minds have a great effect on our bodies. One example of this is that stress or anxiety can actually lead to a loss of hair, a slower rate of growth or to unhealthy hair in the form of limp or greasy locks.

So, when using castor oil, be well aware that it does indeed have some merit as a hair product, but those effects are limited. Essentially the rate of hair growth is something that is determined by internal factors in our body, such as vitamin deficiencies or nutrition, and addressing these matters first may lead to more success in terms of hair growth.