If you’ve been anywhere near Tik Tok recently, you may have come across videos touting rice water as an incredible method you can use to help boost your hair growth.
If you are experiencing hair loss or you’re looking for hair loss solutions to improve the appearance of your hair, rice water sounds like an easy way to create a home hair treatment. And there are plenty of videos on TikTok and other video sharing sites like YouTube that provide instructions on how to do it. Truth be told, though, people have been using rice water on their hair for years. Some records state that rice water was commonly used among women living in the Heian period in Japan, which lasted from 794CE to 1185CE. So, rice water as a hair treatment has been around for centuries.
But does it work?
That’s what we’re going to focus on in this article, but first, let’s see how you can make rice water.
Choose One of Three Methods for Making Rice Water for Your Hair
The first – and easiest – method is simply to soak a cup of rice in water. Rinse it first and then add two or three cups of water to the rice. After around 30 minutes, you can strain the rice to get your rice water.
The second way of doing it is to boil the rice. Use around two cups of water to every cup of rice. Cook the rice, strain the water, and let it cool before using.
Finally, if you want to go all the way, you can try the fermented rice water version. This doesn’t involve cooking; instead, you need to add two cups of water to a cup of uncooked rice, let it soak for around a half hour, and then strain. You then need to store the water at room temperature for up to two days but no longer. Once the water begins to smell, you’ll know fermentation has taken place. You can then refrigerate the water to use within the next few days.
What’s in Rice Water?
The water takes all the nutrients out of the rice, so you’re getting a mix of vitamins and minerals along with something called inositol. This is a carbohydrate, and if there was ever a ‘magic ingredient’ in rice water, this is as close as you’ll get to one. Studies suggest that inositol may help repair damaged hair, and it tends to stay put even after you rinse your hair.
It also seems to have protective properties, especially as the proteins present in rice water are too large to go into the hair itself. This means the water provides a protective shield on the outside of the hair strand… and that may explain the appearance of thicker hair people have noticed when using this technique.
One of the things inositol does is to create a smoother surface on each hair strand. Many people have noted they experience far fewer tangles and knots in their hair when using rice water treatments, so this is worth thinking about. It also appears to improve the elasticity of the hair, which may decrease breakages and split ends.
How Often Should You Use Rice Water on Your Hair?
Since it is so easy to make, you’d be forgiven for wondering if it would be okay to rinse your hair in this stuff every day or two. However, sources suggest that a weekly rinse would be about right. It’s possible to get too much of a good thing, and overuse could lead to its own problems.
You shouldn’t expect overnight miracle results either. It may take several weeks to see results, and even then, it’s important to understand what you are seeing. The rice water can add a coating to your hair that creates the illusion of improved thickness. However, there is little evidence that your hair will get longer through using this treatment. If you see videos on TikTok claiming that your hair will grow longer more quickly using rice water, don’t believe it. One source claimed a growth rate of three inches in a month, and there’s nothing that will result in that, not even a cup of fermented rice water.
To learn more about proven hair loss treatment options, contact the team at Unique Hair Concepts for a complimentary in-center consultation.
