The Ultimate Debate To Oil Or Not To Oil?

Is oil good or bad for your hair? We dissect this deeply ingrained hair ritual and give you the lowdown on whether oil’s well or not.

- Shweta Vepa Vyas

Your grandmother swore by it, but your current hairstylist tells you otherwise. When it comes to oiling your hair, clearly the opinion is divided, which leaves you decidedly in a lurch. Should you be relying on age-old wisdom or new-age research? We decided to investigate, so without further ado, read on to know what we found.

THE GOODNESS OF OILING

To cut a long story short, oil essentially benefits the hair in two ways—first up, and the most obvious, is that a good hair oil delivers nutrients directly onto the scalp. More so, if it’s well-heated, as it allows for better penetration. Secondly, a good head massage gives your blood circulation a boost, and all that extra blood rushing to your scalp will further nourish the hair.

Celebrity hairstylist Hiral Bhatia, who regularly works with Bollywood celebrities such as Sonam Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra and Alia Bhatt, is no stranger to the different myths surrounding hair oil. “Oil is not something that damages the hair—it is not bad unless you only oil your scalp and massage well. What damages the hair is the removal of certain types of oil,” she states. Hiral firmly believes that a massage with a light oil is beneficial. “A lot of oils available in the market are way too thick and sticky, which makes their molecules too large to enter the hair or scalp. These, in no way, benefit the hair. However, there are also a lot of oils that are non sticky and way lighter too. Massaging your scalp with these or adding a drop or two of these on your hair is good.”

Of course, we’d all unanimously agree that the best part about oiling is undoubtedly the massage. A head massage is extremely relaxing and can help release all that pent up stress, which ultimately contributes to your hair health in the long run.

THE BAD EFFECTS—IF ANY?