Coconut oil has been lauded as a great cooking oil because of its healthy ratio of fats and high smoke point, but it can also transform your beauty routine. Full of healthful oils and antioxidants, coconut oil is particularly helpful for your hair. Whether you tend to have oily hair or dry, frizzy locks, coconut oil can make your hair shiny and radiant with health.

What Makes Coconut Oil So Healthy?

Coconut oil is produced from the “meat” of the coconut (Marina et al., 2009). The oil is white when in its solid form, but it melts when it is heated above 76 degrees Fahrenheit. In its liquid form, it is a rich, colorless oil. Good quality coconut oil smells just like a coconut, although versions that have been bleached or refined may lack this distinctive smell.

Coconut oil is full of saturated fats, making it surprising that it is lauded as a health food, since saturated fats most people associate this fat with high cholesterol and poor cardiovascular health. One reason for this discrepancy is that most of the fatty acids in coconut oil are medium chain fatty acids, which tend to be healthier than long chain or very long chain fatty acids (Marina et al., 2009). The exact ratio of specific fatty acids depends on the source of coconut oil. However, following are the most common medium chain fatty acids in this type of oil (Organic Facts, 2015):

  • Lauric acid, comprising 45 to 52% of the oil
  • Myristic acid (16 to 21%)
  • Caprylic acid (5 to 10%)
  • Capric acid (4 to 8%)
  • Caproic acid (0.5 to 1%)

Coconut oil also contains linoleic acid, linolenic acid, and oleic acid, which are healthy unsaturated fats (Organic Facts, 2015).

Common Hair Problems and Their Causes

Hair should have a natural shine and glow, resisting tangling and matting. Unfortunately, a combination of dietary factors, lifestyle choices, and poor hair care can lead to less than healthy hair.

One of the most common hair complaints is that hair becomes too dry. Straightening or blow-drying can sap moisture from the strands of your hair. This causes them to become brittle, making them more prone to breaking or split ends.

Other people have a problem with oily or greasy hair. Although the scalp naturally produces an oil called sebum, some people have sebum production that goes into overdrive. This causes hair to look limp, greasy, and lifeless. Despite being an oil itself, coconut oil may help your hair from becoming too greasy.

How Coconut Oil Helps Hair Health

When we use shampoo to clean our hair, it actually strips away its naturally protective moisture. This can cause the outer layer, or cuticle, of the hair to become dry. When the cuticle pulls back from the hair strand, it causes split ends.

One of the reasons that coconut oil is so healthy for hair is that it is 94% fat (Organic Facts, 2015). The fats in coconut oil can penetrate each strand of hair, restoring lost moisture. In particular, the medium chain fatty acids are good at restoring lost moisture to hair. Coconut oil can even protect your follicles from heat or other damage, meaning that the very roots of your hair will be more healthy.

Coconut oil is also brimming with beneficial vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that can restore health to lackluster hair. For example, coconut oil is high in vitamin E, vitamin K, zinc, and iron (Self Nutrition Data, 2015). These vitamins and minerals have been shown to improve scalp health, increase oxygenation of hair follicles, and promote hair strength and health.

Finally, coconut oil is a natural antibacterial and antifungal substance (Marina et al., 2009). This prevents the development of bacteria on the scalp that can weigh hair down from its roots.

Using Coconut Oil for Hair Care

There are many ways to use coconut oil for hair care. One of the best ways to begin is with a moisturizing hair mask (Dr. Axe, 2016). This is particularly helpful for people with dry or damaged hair. While in the shower, take a small dab of coconut oil (perhaps 1 tablespoon) and rub it between your hands. Smooth the coconut oil through your hair from roots to tips. Massage your head with your fingertips to work the coconut oil into your scalp. Then, leave the mask on for 5 to 10 minutes before rinsing your hair. Adding a drop or two of essential oils to the coconut oil may help to fight bacteria or fungi while simultaneously adding a pleasant aroma to the hair mask.

Interestingly, coconut oil can also help people with greasy hair. For greasy hair, mix a small amount of coconut oil with a few drops of lemon juice and an equivalent amount of grapefruit juice. Before shampooing, apply this mixture to your scalp, rubbing it into the scalp before working it through your hair to the very tips. Let it sit for a few minutes before shampooing your hair as usual. This will prevent the shampoo from clinging to your hair, dragging it down and making your scalp more greasy.