Beauty

6 Natural Ingredients Used by Ancient People Before Shampoo Existed

In the past, before the existence of shampoo and conditioner, how did people wash their hair?

23 December, 2023

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Coconut Soap

In the past, people used coconut soap to wash their hair. It can remove oil and keep the hair clean and shiny.

First, clean the coconut soap (dried) and soak it in boiling water until soft. Then grind the soaked coconut soap thoroughly. The third step is to cook the crushed coconut soap in water, add some brown sugar, simmer until thick, then turn off the heat and store for later use.

Many parts of the coconut tree are used in daily life as well as in medicine. Among them, the fruit is often chosen to make a hair wash solution for hair loss treatment. Ripe and aged coconut fruits with dark brown color usually contain the highest amount of saponins.

In addition, to preserve more saponins in the coconut fruit, you can expose it to sunlight. This also makes it easier to roast the coconut and enhances its fragrance.

Plant Ash

Plant ash, commonly found in the remains after burning straw, is useful in hair care. Put the ash in water, stir well, wash the hair, and rinse with clean water. This method can also effectively remove oil from the hair. The method was widely used in the past.

Gotu Kola Leaves

Harvest the gotu kola leaves, clean them, remove any damaged or insect-infested ones, cut the remaining fresh leaves into small pieces, wrap them in thin fabric, then put them in warm water, rub and squeeze them vigorously.

Rice Water

In the past, people liked to use rice water to wash their hair when they couldn’t find coconut soap or gotu kola leaves.

Rice water contains some amino acids and proteins. After these substances come into contact with and are absorbed by the hair, the hair becomes smoother, darker, and shinier. Of course, don’t forget to rinse your hair with warm water at the end.

Bean Bath

Bean bath is a dry powder made from soybean powder and some medicinal ingredients. It can not only be used for hand and face washing, but also for hair washing and bathing.

However, due to the complex process of making the bean bath and the additional medicinal ingredients, the cost is relatively high. It is only used by the aristocracy, not the common people.

Di Tu

This is a product made from betel leaves, sugar, and fragrant ingredients in a certain proportion, then ground together and heated to form “Di Tu”.

In addition, they often use a thick comb to comb their hair every day to remove oil, dust, and even lice. They also wear wigs to keep the hair clean for a long time, so they don’t need to wash their hair frequently.