Removing the Oil. Stick to regular shampoo to avoid drying out your hair and scalp. Take a hot shower and apply shampoo evenly through your hair. Rinse out the shampoo to flush out the excess oil and remove the residue from your hair and scalp.
There are no exact guidelines for how long you should leave castor oil on your hair. Leaving it in too long can actually dry out your hair and scalp, so it's best to wash it from your hair after two hours or so. Many hair care experts recommend using castor oil no more than once a week.
Some stylists suggest applying warm oil to the hair before shampooing, but I don't recommend this. Wash your hair to ensure that it is clean before you apply any oil to it. Warm the oil. Pour castor oil into a pot or bowl.
Moisturize Hair First
Before using any emollient (i.e. hair oil or butter), you always want to make sure that your hair has been wet first (i.e. your hair that has been moisturized first). Emollients don't “moisturize,” they simply “seal” moisture in. So the best way to use castor oil is on wet hair.
Although you can apply castor oil to dry hair, dampening your hair may help the oil absorb better. A quick way to dampen your hair is to fill a spray bottle with water, and spray just your scalp. Your hair should just be a little damp, not dripping wet.
I recommend coconut because it can penetrate deep into the hair. You can add a few drops of your fave essential oil, too, to make your tresses smell amazing. Apply a few drops of castor oil, or the mixture you created with it, all over your hair 4 to 8 hours before washing your hair to give it time to penetrate.
Leave the shower cap on for at least two hours. This gives the oil enough time to penetrate the scalp, hair follicles, and hair shaft. After two hours, wash your hair with shampoo and conditioner.
Leave the oil in for a minimum of 15-20 minutes. You could also leave it on overnight. You will need to shampoo multiple times to get rid of the oil. You may also condition your hair with a commercial conditioner 30 minutes before you take a shower.
Give castor oil some time to weave its magic Ideally, you should allow castor oil to sit on your scalp and in your hair for at least for half an hour. In fact, you can even leave it on overnight, washing it the next morning. This will give the oil ample time to do its work.
Another way to remove castor oil from the hair is to use some conditioner. Apply your favorite conditioner to your damp hair and leave it on for about 3-5 minutes. Then, rinse it out with warm water.
Being very astringent in nature, castor oil can cause irritations to the skin. This could further lead to dryness, sensitivity, and even loss of hair and that's clearly not something you would want.
Castor oil is great for hair regrowth and thickening
That is also why it is so popular as an eyebrow, eyelash, and beard serum—to promote hair growth in such areas. It's also great for those who have fewer hairs on their head and want to stimulate more growth overall.
How long does it take castor oil to work? Castor oil typically causes a bowel movement to occur in 2 to 3 hours. However, it may take up to 6 hours to work for some people. Due to the delayed effects of castor oil, avoid taking it before bedtime.
If you want to try combining coconut oil and castor oil into a treatment for longer, more luscious hair, you can easily make a DIY conditioner in your kitchen. Combine one part melted coconut oil with one part castor oil. Mix well. Apply mixture in the shower after shampooing.
There's no right or wrong way to apply castor oil to your hair—some people like to leave it on overnight, while others like to massage it into their scalp.
"Castor oil will not grow hair," says Perry Romanowski, a cosmetic chemist and the author of Beginning Cosmetic Chemistry. "There is no evidence for it and no scientific theory supporting that it would work. So yes, it's a total myth."
Many people use castor oil as a natural hair treatment. This is because castor oil has moisturizing properties, which could help lubricate the hair shaft, increasing flexibility and decreasing the chance of breakage ( 20 ).
Place the castor oil pack on the area to be treated. For example, for constipation or other digestive problems you'll likely place it over your stomach area. Place a small plastic sheet over the castor oil pack. This helps to heat it and press it against your skin.
Normally castor oil has a shelf-life of up to one year. It is said that cold-pressed castor oil can also be used for five years. When castor oil is sealed and packed properly, it can be used effectively until its expiry period and maybe sometimes longer than that.
It has a high content of ricinoleic acid that can enhance the blood circulation in the scalp, which strengthens the hair follicles and helps with hair loss.
Castor oil is a safe, affordable, natural home remedy that has been used for years to treat a variety of conditions, including hair loss. While there haven't been scientific studies that prove that castor oil can regrow hair, it's a low-risk remedy that may help you get thicker eyebrows.
Both of our hair experts recommend cold-pressed castor oil. “Cold-pressed castor oil can be used on the hair shaft. However, black castor oil should be applied only to the scalp,” explains Dr. Hill.