Can Onion Juice Stop Hair Loss?

Onion juice is a known remedy for hair health, specifically for hair loss. It’s been used for decades as a home treatment.

Onion juice for hair care

Onion juice is a known remedy for hair health, specifically for hair loss. It’s been used for decades as a home treatment.

Considering using onion juice for your own hair care? Read up on the remedy to make sure it will benefit your particular hair health and care routine.

Why use onion juice for hair?

Onion juice may be effective for hair loss in some instances. It may also restore luster and shine. Onion juice could also prevent premature graying of hair and treat dandruff.

Here’s a full list of the claimed benefits of onion juice for hair care:

alopecia treatment

inflamed, dry, or itchy scalp

hair loss

dandruff

thinning hair

dry or brittle hair

prematurely graying hair

scalp infection

Does onion juice for hair loss work?

Science shows that there are many ways onion juice can help with hair loss. For one, onions are high in dietary sulfur, a nutritional element our bodies need.

Sulfur is found within amino acids, which are components of protein. Proteins — and especially keratin, which is known to be sulfur-rich — are needed for growing strong hair.

When added to the hair and scalp, onion juice can provide extra sulfur to support strong and thick hair, thus preventing hair loss and promoting hair growth.

The sulfur from onions may also help promote collagen production. Collagen in turn helps the production of healthy skin cells and hair growth.

It’s also believed that onions may boost circulation. Applying onion juice to the hair and scalp could increase blood supply to hair follicles, which in turn improves hair growth.

There have been studies on how onion juice prevents hair loss, but not on its other benefits.

A 2002 study attempted to put onion juice’s hair loss science in action. The group who washed their hair with onion juice experienced more hair growth than those who washed it with tap water. Men also appeared to experience a greater benefit than women.

However, the study is over a decade old, and not all subjects completed the test. More research is needed into how onion juice works and if its benefits are significant. Nevertheless, many more recent studies and reviews of natural hair loss treatments reference the study as reliable evidence that onion juice can be helpful.

On the other hand, onion juice shouldn’t be considered a cure for hair loss conditions like alopecia or pattern baldness. It can help stimulate and protect the growth of current hair, but it’s not known to reverse any hair loss-related illness.  

How do you use onion juice for hair?

Many people have developed simple instructional home treatments to apply onion juice to their hair.

Some people may avoid using onion juice for their hair due to its strong smell. For this reason, some have suggested simple recipes to help curb the onion smell.

What should I know before using onion juice?

Using onion juice for hair is mostly safe. If you have an allergy to onions, you shouldn’t use onion juice on your hair.

Even among those who are not allergic, onions can be quite caustic to the skin. Side effects may include redness and itching, depending on how potent a concoction you make. Mixing onion juice with an emollient like aloe vera or coconut oil may prevent this.

Don’t use onion juice as a cure for alopecia or other hair loss issues. For some conditions — such as alopecia — the only successful cure is a hair transplant. The same applies to baldness.

Also, certain medications can increase a person’s sensitivity to onion juice on the skin (such as aspirin). If you’re concerned about interactions, do a skin test first, or talk to your doctor.