Rice Water; Origin and History
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| Rice Water for Hair |
Let's have some tidbits about its origin and history of use.
The use of Rice Water dates back to the Heian period (794-1185 AD) in Japan. The Japanese women used to rinse their hair with rice water which contributed to hair length equal to their height.
This trend was revived by the Yao women in China in a village named Huangluo Yao. They were famous to have 6 feet long and shiny hair. When asked about the secret, they revealed the use of rice water for washing their hair.
How does rice water help your hair?
Rice water is rich in several vitamins, antioxidants, and minerals that help boost hair growth and reduce dandruff.
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| Benefits of Using Rice Water for Hair |
It helps your hair in the following ways;
It strengthens your hair and makes them shinier. So bye-bye to dull boring hair!
It reduces the friction between hair so they won't look frizzy.
The B-vitamins in rice water help to prevent dandruff by locking in the moisture and nutrients in the hair roots.
It boosts the growth of new hair follicles. Say hello to healthy and long hair.
Rice water contains antioxidants that are said to treat cell damage. So it slows down the graying of hair.
How to make rice water?
Rice water is the leftover starchy water you get when you soak the rice in water before cooking them.
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| How to Make Rice Water for Hair |
So the easiest way to make your rice water is to soak one cup of white rice with one and a half cups of water and leave it for about 30 minutes or an hour. Then strain the rice in a separate bowl or cook them. And pour the rice water into a spray bottle.
*Note: before soaking the rice in water, don't forget to wash them properly because you surely don't want to use dirty water on your hair.
Once you have your rice water, it is your choice to use it the way it is or prepare fermented rice water.
Most Chinese women recommend using fermented rice water as it shows better results than the simple variant.
How to prepare fermented rice water?
Remember the rice water you got in the spray bottle after soaking the rice?
Let it sit at room temperature for about 12-24 hours. The process of fermentation will occur and TADA!
You’ve your fermented rice water with loads of vitamins and antioxidants that would help boost your hair growth.
P.s. You can also add lemon or orange zest in your Rice water too! Since sometimes you might feel your rice water smelling really strong. So adding the zest would neutralize the aroma of rice water and also helps in better fermentation.
Does rice water go bad?
Yes! Rice water does go bad.
So you’ve to make sure that when you prepare your rice water after fermenting it, store it in a refrigerator. Otherwise, it may go bad within 2 days.
Keeping it in a refrigerator helps you store the rice water for 7-8 days. After that, throw that batch and prepare a new one!
How to wash your hair with rice water?
Every person has their own way to wash their hair with rice water.
What I do is that I apply rice water 20 minutes before washing my hair and gently massage the water into my scalp. And then shampoo my hair and apply conditioner. And the results are amazing!
Many people tend to use rice water after shampooing their hair and skip using the conditioner.
So it depends on you, how you want to do it. There’s no specific rule. Do as you please.
The reason for applying Rice water before shampoo is that I feel otherwise it might leave some kind of smell in my hair so it really freaks me out. So I prefer to use it before shampoo.
As far as the time for keeping the rice water in your hair is concerned, it depends on your hair condition.
Let’s say your hair is way too frizzy and dull. Let the rice water stay in for 30 minutes or so.
If you think your hair can’t take that much protein or you’re trying this for the first time. Leave it on for 15 minutes and then wash it off. If it feels good, you can keep it for 20 minutes the next time you wash your hair.
Remember, don’t leave rice water in your hair longer than 30-40 minutes. It might make your hair brittle.
Always wash off the rice water. Never let it stay. Excess proteins can damage your hair rather than benefiting them.
How often should you use rice water in your hair?
It depends on how many times you wash your hair in a week.
If you wash your hair 3 times a week. It’s okay to apply rice water for 15 minutes every time you wash them.
If you wash your hair every day, don’t use rice each time. Use it after a gap of one or two days.
Also, you don't have to change your hair washing schedule to use rice water. Just keep in mind to take the rice water with you before taking a bath. And then keep it back in the refrigerator.