Eating lemons and using lemon juice can be good for your hair as they have a strong dose of hair healthy vitamin C which helps the production of collagen (which builds keratin to produce strong hair), and the juice from lemons works as a natural lightener when combined with sunlight for people with blond and light-brown hair.
Lemon juice is also a common additive in shampoos because it can help reduce dandruff with its antifungal properties including both Malassezia furfur and seborrheic dermatitis, and it helps remove buildup to give a shiny and healthy appearance, including the removal of excess sebum.
One lemon (84 g) without the peel has these hair healthy nutrients:
- Vitamin A - 18.5 IU
- Vitamin C - 44.5 mg
- Dietary Fiber - 2.35 g
- Folate - 9.24 ug
- Potassium - 116 mg
Combined together, these nutrients can lead to a healthy scalp, promoting hair growth, protection from pollutants and UV damage, and the citric acid in the juice helps your hair both from a cleaning and lightening standpoint.
Reducing Hair Loss and Helping Hair Growth
A healthy scalp and follicles are able to grow hair to their full potential, whereas unhealthy scalps and follicles may slow down or stop producing hair altogether. Vitamins C and A, along with the folates found in lemons and lemon juice help your body keep follicles and skin healthy.
Vitamin C works with your body to produce collagen tissues that go to your skin, connective tissues, and hair. It works with your body to produce keratin which is the building block of hair.
In addition to building hair, the antioxidant properties help fight off ozone gasses and pollutants that lead to oxidative stress and damage keratinocyte stem cells. And vitamin C works with the iron in your blood to deliver oxygen to your scalp and follicles so they can “breathe”.
Much like vitamin C, folates found in lemon have a role in DNA synthesis which includes the formation of keratin to form hair. Vitamin A works similar to C in that it helps with growing cells to produce hair, and works to produce sebum which keeps your scalp moist so it can protect itself.
But be careful, too much Vitamin A can cause hair loss just like selenium as this study and this peer reviewed article show. And potassium helps to feed hair follicles the nutrients they need so they can produce hair.
A Natural Hair Lightener
The citric acid in lemon juice works as a way to open the hair cuticles which allows the sun to penetrate the inside and oxidize the melanin. Melanin is what gives hair its color.
The oxidizing of the melanin is what helps to lighten blond and light brown hair naturally with lemon juice, and is a form of sun bleaching. However this likely will not work on darker hair colors, and citric acid is an acid, so it could inhibit hair growth. Be cautious when using it.
If you have medium-dark or dark hair it may not be easy to lighten your hair with lemon juice and sun exposure. In fact, spritzing lemon juice and water on your hair may leave it with streaks of orange, so it may be best to stick with traditional hair bleaching and coloring options.
Now that you know the healthy hair benefits of lemons and lemon juice, here’s some ideas to help you get enough into your diet.
Start by squeezing a couple wedges to add flavor to a glass of water or tea. Fresh lemon juice can be fantastic in a sauce or marinade, and tastes even better with a sprinkling of raw walnuts and fresh berries when used in a vinaigrette for salads.
Lemon with a bit of pepper or garlic can be its own flavoring for a healthy chicken dinner with asparagus or a spinach salad. Spinach is another healthy hair food.
Lemon and lemon juice can help you grow healthy hair by working to produce protective oils and remove excess from your scalp when used as a cleaning agent, bring oxygen to your follicles, and produce the building blocks of keratin which form the hair itself. If you’re interested in more healthy hair content, subscribe to our blog by entering your email below.
