Doing Yoga For Hair Growth: Connection Explained
People shed 100 to 150 hair strands a day and it’s completely natural. But what if this number creeps up much higher? It’s a red flag for hair loss. While today, there’s no shortage of treatments for hair recovery, many still turn towards time-tested practices for real, lasting results. *Enter yoga for hair growth*
You must be thinking, “Yoga for muscle tone or losing belly fat makes sense. But what’s it got to do with my hair?” A common question that we hear often. Don’t worry, we have decided to answer it today!
In this blog, Ekattva Yogshala will explain the relationship between yoga and hair loss, telling how it contributes to improving strands’ health. Before diving into the mind-body connection, let’s look at the reasons that led you here in the first place - those sneaky causes behind hair fall.
What Causes Hair Loss?
Hair fall strikes millions across all ages. It often triggers a wave of questions and worries. Some notice a sudden thinning all over their scalp. Others a gradual retreat of their hairlines. But their question is often the same - what’s really causing this?
Although losing strands is part of the natural cycle, excessive shedding points toward underlying issues worth understanding. Here are the most common causes of hair loss in men and women:
Genetics: Ah, the greatest culprit… Hereditary hair is commonly referred to as male or female pattern baldness. This condition runs in families and tends to follow a predictable pattern. If your uncle or dad had faced hair loss, you may notice hair thickness and hairline position changing with time.
Hormonal changes: It’s true - hormonal changes in your body could also be the reason behind hair fall. It can be seen mostly in cases of pregnancy, menopause, childbirth, and thyroid issues. These modifications disorient the normal hair growth process, which at times causes an apparent shedding or thinning to occur.
Stress: Your hair growth phase may get interrupted by physical or emotional stress. Forcing an increased number of hair follicles into a shedding state. Traumatic events, chronic tension, and anxiety are powerful contributors. Making stress management essential for healthy strands.
Poor nutrition: Diet plays a crucial role. But deficiencies in iron, protein, or necessary fatty acids often show themselves as drowsiness and excessive weakness. Denying your hair roots the much-needed nourishment due to crash dieting or neglecting balanced meals can also make them fall.
Medical conditions: Hair follicles can become a target of many different disorders such as alopecia areata, scalp infections, and autoimmune diseases. This results in patchy or diffuse loss of hair. It can also be impacted directly by any medications you could be using for controlling high blood pressure, depression, or cancer.
Hair care habits: Heat styling products, undergoing harsh hair treatments, tight ponytails, braids - all these might make you look cool for a moment but they also pull and damage your precious strands. Causing their breakage and leading to loss over time. Over-washing and lack of scalp care are also silent culprits.
Environmental factors: Just like your skin, your hair on the scalp is prone to pollutant exposure, UV rays, and seasonal changes. These can sap its health, weakening both roots and strands. Hard water and humidity can also have a negative effect (like increased shedding) on sensitive individuals.
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How Yoga Can Help With Hair Growth?
By addressing scientific factors that underpin hair growth cycle, yoga can help men and women tackle hair loss. You must be wondering what these factors are about. The biggest way is by improving blood circulation to the scalp. Certain yoga asanas, especially inversion upside-down ones or bends, make the oxygenated blood reach the hair follicles. Providing them with the nutrients they need to grow and be in a healthy condition.
This increased circulation of blood not only feeds the hair roots but it also assists in the removal of toxins that may slow down the growth. Another important point is that yoga decreases stress. As a we said before, chronic stress is a major culprit. It can lead to hair loss conditions like telogen effluvium. You significantly reduce cortisol - a stress hormone - that can weaken hair follicles and slacken growth.
Practitioners who perform yoga daily have reported reduced levels of stress and inflammatory responses. This ancient practice also supports hormonal balance. It stimulates the endocrine glands. Thus, promoting greater hormone synthesis and regulation.
These physiological processes combined (better blood flow, less stress hormones, and hormonal balance) create an internal environment favorable for hair maintenance and regrowth.
What Yoga Asanas to Perform for Hair Growth?
Here are some effective yoga asanas for restoring the hair cycle:
Adho Mukha Svanasana
Also called the downward-facing dog pose, practitioners have to form an inverted V. While sounding so simple, it can actually improve blood flow to your scalp. Thus, energizing hair follicles. Adho Mukha Svanasana’s benefits don’t end there. You can also relieve tension in your neck and shoulders. These actually are major stress points that can inhibit hair growth.
In order to perform it, you need to follow these steps:
Start on your hands and knees. Now slowly lift your hips high.
Straighten your legs and press your heels toward the floor
Keep your head relaxed between your arms. Hold the position for 15-30 seconds and breathe deeply.
Ustrasana
Next up on our list is Ustarasana a.k.a camel pose. We bet many readers have heard about it. For those who haven’t, let us tell you that this pose can open your chest and stretch your throat, stimulating your thyroid gland. Not to mention, you can promote better blood flow to the scalp and nourish follicles. Two for the price of one!
Consider following these steps to perform ustrasana for restoring hair growth:
Kneel on the ground with knees hip-width apart.
Arch your back and reach your hands to your heels.
Keep your neck extended without strain. Hold the position and repeat 2-3 times.
Sarvangasana
Ah, the queen of asanas! Sarvangasana is an inversion that reverses gravity. Hard to perform but once you master it, you will be pumping fresh, oxygen-rich blood to your scalp. Supporting thyroid health is another good part of it. You can balance hormones essential to maintaining hair vitality.
Here are the steps to engage in this yoga pose for hair loss:
First, lie on your back.
Now lift your legs overhead, support your lower back with your hands, and straighten your body vertically.
Hold the pose with controlled breathing. Then gently come down.
Uttanasana
Another effective yoga asana for restoring hair growth cycle. Standing forward bend soothes your nervous system to reduce stress-related hair fall. It also improves digestion. You must be thinking how does this help. Let us tell you that having a sound digestive system makes it easy to absorb pivotal vitamins and minerals like biotin, iron, and zinc. All of these improve hair strength.
To perform uttanasana, you need to consider these steps:
Stand with feet hip-width apart.
Bend at the hips and let your torso and head hang down freely.
Keep knees slightly bent if needed. Breathe deeply while holding the position.
Practicing it regularly will refresh your scalp and promote hair follicle health.
Join Ekattva Yogshala’s Yoga Retreats For Hair Growth
There, we told you everything about the deep connection between yoga and hair health. We hope now you’re ready to reap the science-backed benefits of this ancient practice for hair growth. But wait, where can you experience this transformation? Ekattva Yogshala offers a range of thoughtfully curated retreats, both online and on-site in Rishikesh.
Each program delivers authentic teachings led by highly experienced yoga teachers. We are alliance certified. Meaning, we adhere to rigorous standards to ensure every session meets international quality and safety benchmarks. By enrolling in our retreats, you will not just nurture your hair and well-being but also gain a holistic yoga experience. The kind that addresses body, mind, and even emotional roots of hair loss.
Got any queries to ask? Send them to info@spiritualpunditz.com and have them answered by our yoga experts.
Here are popular retreats offered by Ekattva Yogshala:
Online meditation classes in India
Online pranayama course classes
