Onion Juice for Hair Growth: Does It Work?

 

There are a lot of crazy hair growth trends and rumors on the Internet (and we mean a lot). But have you heard the one about onion juice for hair growth?

Thinking about this home remedy for your own hair care? Before you search “how to make onion water for hair,” let us explain whether there really are benefits of

onion juice for hair.

We’ll tell you if onion oil, extract or water can make your hair grow back and go over proven ways to treat hair loss and encourage hair regrowth.

 

We’ll cut to the chase: Although these bulb vegetables are rumored to be a popular hair treatment to decrease breakage and increase growth, there’s no strong evidence that onions for hair growth are effective.

That said, onions do have a diverse range of health-related benefits.

For example, they’re rich in dietary flavonoids — a group of antioxidants that may be related to a reduced risk of disease. Onions also contain high amounts of dietary fiber, sulfur content and vitamins, such as vitamin C and essential B vitamins. What’s more, they have anti-inflammatory properties and antibacterial properties.

With onions being full of vital nutrients, could eating (or drinking) an onion for hair growth work?

A review of a 2002 study found that an onion juice treatment applied twice a day showed signs of hair regrowth in almost 87 percent of people after eight weeks.

However, this was a very small study done on less than 50 male and female participants dealing with a different type of hair loss called alopecia areata. So even if onion juice is effective for regrowing hair lost due to alopecia areata, this doesn’t mean it’s a good treatment for male pattern baldness.

While diet can affect hair health, male pattern baldness — or androgenetic alopecia, the specific type of hair loss that affects men — is caused by a genetic sensitivity to the hormone dihydrotestosterone, or DHT.

DHT is a byproduct of testosterone — a critical male sex hormone your body produces to give you male characteristics. Your body converts a small amount of testosterone to DHT via an enzyme called 5 alpha-reductase.

The excess DHT your body produces binds to hair follicles and causes signs of balding, such as thinning hair or a receding hairline (when your hairline makes an M shape).

Despite the lack of evidence behind onions for hair growth, could there be other benefits for healthy hair?

One health benefit of onions is their antifungal and antimicrobial properties. Conditions like dandruff are often caused by either oil buildup in hair or a fungus. Theoretically, the antifungal property of onions could help with dandruff.

However, there aren’t any direct studies on the effects of using onion juice on dandruff or other fungal scalp infections.

Maybe your curiosity about what happens when you use onion water for hair is piqued. Or perhaps you want to know what the side effects of onion juice on hair are — strictly asking for a friend, of course.

While there haven’t been many studies looking at the use of onion juice for hair, the review mentioned above listed possible side effects of an itchy rash (dermatitis), redness and onion smell.