Lina says: I was very happy to read your post about coconut oil in Ojon penetrating hair. I have been using it for a while and feel my hair is stronger than it used to be. I’d like to keep using coconut oil and I want to add olive oil to make my hair shiny but I`m worried that mixing the two oils will stop the coconut oil from penetrating. Is it ok to mix two oils on my hair? Thanks for all of your helpful information – you’ve kept me from wasting money on over-hyped products.
The Left Brain provides an oily update:
Thanks for your kind words, Lina. Yes, studies have shown that coconut oil actually penetrates the hair to help make it stronger. And as it turns out, olive oil also has penetrating properties. Scientists at the Textile Research (J. Cosmet.Sci 52, 169-184, 2001) tested Olive oil, Avocado oil, Meadowfoam seed oil, Sunflower oil, and Jojoba oil. Their results showed that straight chain glycerides like olive oil easily penetrate into the hair. Polyunsaturated oils , like Jojoba oil, are more open in their structure so they don’t pass through the layers of cuticles very well.
What does that mean in plain English? Olive and Avocado oils penetrate all the way into the hair shaft. Meadowfoam seed oil partially penetrates, and jojoba and sunflower oils don’t penetrate at all. They’re very superficial and don’t really provide any practical benefit. Kind of like Ryan Seacrest.
And to answer your question: mixing coconut and olive oils shouldn’t be a problem. In fact, it’s possible that the olive/coconut oil combination might even penetrate hair better. I won’t bore you with the details, but it has to do with mixed micelles. I’d start with a 50/50 mixture and see how that works for your hair.
IMPORTANT NOTE:
Sara, one of our sharp-eyed readers, caught an error in this post that we want to bring to your attention. The J. Cosmetic Science article cited in this post is incorrect because it doesn’t refer to all the oils discussed in this post. When this post was written we had another reference that contained data on more types of oil. Therefore, without having that original reference, we would be poor scientists if we definitively said only these types of oil penetrate hair. Our intent was to make sure you understand that there are differences in how oils penetrate hair and that you should be careful not to be tricked into paying more for oil treatments that are based on oils that don’t really work. We apologize for any confusion this might have caused and we thank Sara for bringing it out our attention.
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I wouldn’t be bored with the details! Please do tell. =D
I co-sign with Sandra. Pretty please???
Wait! Did they just slip Ryan Seacrest of American Idol fame into one of their answers?
Is this a peek into the Brainiacs’ TV viewing life?…lol
LOL at the Ryan Seacrest comment…haha…
Could you tell us what other oils, or kinds of oils, are ‘straight-chain glycerides’ and which ones are polyunsaturated? (Does this have to do with how jojoba oil is actually technically a wax?) What about safflower oil or canola oil, or shea butter – which categories are they in?
(OK, so that was three questions for the price of one.)
I’d like to ask Lina what brand of coconut oil have you been using for your hair, or what brands have you other readers been using? There is alot of different types out there and I’d like to try one, but would like some recommendations. Thanks!!!
=/ I don’t think any particular brand matters, as long as it’s 100% coconut oil, and not something that says it’s coconut oil, but lists mineral oil in the ingredients list. I personally use Spectrum virgin coconut oil, but I think I’ll be getting refined coconut oil once this jar is used up. I’m getting a little tired of the smell. I also want to try Tahitian Monoi oil (which is fractionated coconut oil that has had Tiare flowers soaked in).
I wonder if fractionated coconut oil works the same as regular coconut oil.
Anyways, I’m guessing it’s the oleic acid in olive and avocado oil that makes it hair-penetrative (since oleic acid is the main fatty acid in those oils), so I figure anything that’s a majority of oleic acid will work for hair (like camellia oil, sweet almond oil).
o.o; Please correct me if I’m wrong.
For Debbie: Here’s a recommendation for a conditioner with coconut oil that I just found a few days ago at my local grocery store: Organix Nourishing Coconut Milk Conditioner. (It’s a cream colored bottle with a gold cap.) It lists coconut oil as an ingredient and was also a great deal! The price was $6 for 13 ounces AND hanging on the cap was a rebate coupon from the manufacturer that said, “Try this product for free!” Simply by filling out the coupon and sending in the receipt, the purchase price is refunded!!! It smells wonderful and has a rich creamy feel to it. I love it!
I was just saying to my husband that I need to get some more oils from the health food store. My list has now grown by 2!
do we just work the oil throughout the hair and leave it in or rinse it out?
Hey i need help to, my hair is platinum blonde and it was in great condition for a long time, then i went to the salon to do some high lights and the person destroyed my hair, now is braking and really really dry, I tryed all i could kerastase oils, kerastase creams, l’oreal renew c, everything but nothing seams to give me back my hair how it use to be, it gets better for 2 days then it starts to ask for help and i have to wash it again…
Now im starting to get scared i might be mixing to many products, i wanna try the olive oil, or avocado oil, or even some one told me mayonaise but i get scared is that to much?
how shoul i use it? after shampoo?
in dry hair? should i conditioner after?
please help me all do whatever i can i just dont want to cut off my long blonde hair.
I just read this article and this is great info. The only thing is, where do you find coconut oil. I live in Waco, Texas and would like to know where to find this.
Your help is appreciated. Thanks
Hello, Faith, many online merchants sell coconut oil, I prefer the unrefined oil that keeps all its goodies intact, you may find it at Fromnaturewithlove.com, gardenofwisdom.com, natureswildchild.com to name a few.
Unrefined coconut oil has improved my hair tremendously, you won’t regret it. Happy oiling!
isabel,
definitely try the coconut oil. It should help limit any further breakage; it’s helped mine a lot.
Also, if you feel your hair needs to be washed everu two days then do it, that’s not excesive IMO. Just use a good gentle shampoo and follow with a very moisturizing conditioner. Some people skip shampoo and just rinse and condition- this is more gentle and won’t strip the hair as much.
And try not to use heat on your hair or comb/brush it too much. Styles like buns or braids are gr8 for giving your hair a rest.
But what about castor oil?
In some regions it has been the most widely used oil for hair treatment.
Coconut oil has been proven to be more effective. That doesn’t mean castor oil doesn’t work. It just doesn’t work as well.
I hope this is not too old to ask for more information. I would like to know more about the mixed micelles please. And is there a place I can find out about more straight chain glycerides oils please, I’ve googled but have not results. I’d also like to know about shea butter that people seem to rave about, does that penetrate the hair shaft at all please. I’m full of questions, thank you so much for this website
Thanks
Okay, so it won’t hinder cocunut’s beneficial properties to mix it with olive oil because they are similar in the respect you are talking about. But what about mixing cocounut or olive with other stuff. Will the other stuff sort of “get in the way”. That is, if you mix coconut with, say, castor oil or something, will you have made the coconut ineffective?
what about mango and almond oil? those are the ingredients in oils I just bought today for my hair ( they are combined in a Loreal product and they smell awesome. Now I’m thinking I should have just bought coconut oil.
I’ve been using virgin coconut oil for the past 6 months now. I use it as internal food consumption and for external usage as well. I’ve tried other brands, but recently the one i’m using now is called Bencoolen. Not only do they sell Virgin Coconut Oil, they are selling many personal care products ranging from shampoo, facial skin care to body lotion with Virgin Coconut Oil as their main ingredient. I found that their hair shampoo, conditioner, and the therapy leave-on conditioner are very good. Do give it a try and visit http://www.bencoolen.com.my to see their range of products.
Is there coconut-oil in coconutmilk? I have very dry hair but when i use a can of coconutmilk as a special treatment (yes, the one you use for cooking) my hair gets soft, smooth and silky.
I just soak my hair with coconutmilk, wrap it in plastic, put a towel around it and leave it in as long as possible (min. 30 minutes)
Afterwards i wash with a mild shampoo and Voila! smooth and silky hair….
So, I noticed that avocado oil is in one of my favorite deep conditioners(redken) and have had this theory in the back of my mind for a while: couldn’t i just buy some avoado oil and add it to my regular(cheap) conditioner?
This post has given me some hope… i would appreciate some professional feedback on my theory
I’m trying to use all (or nearly all) natural products on my dry, brittle hair. Can someone tell me if using regular cooking coconut oil is okay? I saw a large can of 100% coconut oil in the baking section of Walmart. The ingredients say: coconut oil. That’s it, nothing else. Pure coconut oil.
I’ve been adding a little of this to my coconut milk moisturizer.
The reference cited is incorrect. That paper compares only coconut oil and mineral oil. Can you please let me know the correct reference? I have been looking for information on this topic for some time, but I have not yet found any direct comparison of the hair penetration ability of jojoba with other oils. Thanks in advance!
Can you tell me if Macadamia nut oil penetrates hair? I’ve studied and found that it mimicks the essential oils that our bodies make to protect our hair shafts. I would like to mix macadamia nut oil with avocado oil and use on my hair and I plan on trying coconut oil soon.
Thanks.
i make my own 100% coconut oil…..if you have freshly grated coconut, squeezed the milk out….add a little water if you need to…then boil till all the liquids evaporated and whats left is the oil….if you dont have grated coconut, you can use coconut milk in can and just boil/cook them ’till you get the oil.
These posts make me laugh (in a good way). I’m from India and for years my parents tried to get me to use the natural hair products that is so widely used back home. In fact, my grandparents brought pure coconut oil (I think it may have even been made with their home grown coconuts
)with them every time they came to visit. Unfortunately, I insisted on ‘experimenting’ to find the best shampoo and conditioner that would make my hair healthier. Of course, a year or so of my ‘experimentation’, I came back to good old natural (and by that I mean honest to goodness natural) coconut oil.
My scientific findings: My parents tend to be right…
If you’ve noticed many Indians have very healthy, shiny hair. Of course some of this is helped by straightening and chemicals, but you can’t have everything, can you.
=P
As Kim said, the reference is wrong. The work cited here is from a neutrogena patent. The patent information is not peer reviewed. Please correct this post as I have actually seen it appear on two other major blogs.
To find the patent http://www.freepatentsonline.com/EP1518537.html
To see the paper http://journal.scconline.org/pdf/cc2001/cc052n03/p00169-p00184.pdf
Actually, jojoba oil contains almost exclusively of monounsaturated fatty acids and no polyunsaturated ones at all. So some of the facts in the blog posts are obviously wrong – either jojoba oil penetrates hair well, or the theory that in this context monounsaturated fatty acides are good and polyunsaturated bad does not correspond to reality.
On the site of From Nature With Love, we can read that jojoba oil is the closest to the composition of sebum and very lightweight.
I am using olive oil as a leave-in on wet hair and the next day, my hair feels dry and frizzy. Where is the moisture gone ?!!!
I found that parachute coconut oil works well for my hair! its 100% pure coconut oil. many people in india use coconut oil in their hair.
I went to this website and this blogger really helped me to understand oils http://www.HairCareDiaries.blogspot.com
Very nice blog thanks for information. please visit by blog:-http://caretobody.blogspot.com
That Ryan Seacrest comment was golden. good work
Can we use olive oil, avocado oil & jojoba oil together as a mixture to stop hair loss, trigger hair re-growth & for removing dandruff? Eagerly awaiting your response.
me apne baalo me 5 tail mix karke lagati hu coconut oil,castour oil,olive oil,almond oil,aur sarsa ka tail kya in pancho tal ko mix karke lagane se baalo ko kuch nuksaan to nahi hota na plz mujhe bataiye?
This blog is a joke. Beauty brains? Your reference only mentions mineral oil and coconut oil. Any references on olive oil and avocado oil??? Or did you just make this up?
It would have been really nice if the article providers answered the questions in the comments. Left Brain responding to only one random question suggests that perhaps the knowledge isn’t available.
I second what Jo Somebody has said. Can someone from the Beauty Brains please answer the questions?
Hi Alima, I would suggest you not to use so many oils together without getting proper information on all of them. Try out different oils (preferably one at a time) for 2-4 weeks & then keep a record of your hair condition at the time of using each oil & after a few months you’ll be able to judge which oil is best suited to your skin & hair. I would also suggest not to use more than two carrier oils at one time. One more thing, usually locally produced oils work best for people since their skin & hair get acclimatised accordingly. Hope this helps.
Hi..I noticed that someone said the Walmart brand of coconut oil is okay to use…IMO it is not real..although it says “pure”. Once you try and smell “unrefined, virgin” CCO , you will see that it’s not the same. There is absolutely NO aroma with Walmart brand…and when melted, it’s yellowish unlike the virgin brands that are clear when melted…ahhh it smells heavenly! And your hair will love it..Try it. You won’t be disappointed!!