“Castor Oil” – The Culprit of Acute Hair Felting/Matting

11228

11228

Well-Known Member
Has anyone experienced a milder case of matting that they can trace back to castor oil? I have been dealing with matting and I thought it was because I needed protein since the tangled part felt mushy and took a long time to dry. Since I read this study however, I think my exclusive use of black castor oil may be a contributing factor

From NCBI
In our case, castor oil with coconut oil was applied on long hair and washed with warm water, resulted in electrostatic attraction of contiguous hair fibers. The higher viscosity and sticky consistency of castor oil would have attracted the hair fibers. When the hair was washed with warm water, the hair fibers have aligned in parallel, which glued and sealed the hair into one single bunch
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11228 said:
Coconut acts like a protein for me as well and I just can't stand the smell of it.

While that case is rare, I thought there is some merit given the consistency of castor oil.
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But that can be easily alleviated by using LESS castor oil (a little goes a long way) AND applying to damp hair.
 
Maybe depends on how much you apply and how often, also what other products you use on your hair I use caster oil /JBCO sparingly as it's very thick you don't need much at all as it coats the hair.
 
11228 said:
Coconut acts like a protein for me as well and I just can't stand the smell of it.

While that case is rare, I thought there is some merit given the consistency of castor oil.
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Took this from a website:
Coconut oil does not contain proteins itself, it is composed of approximately 50% lauric acid which helps restore and strengthen the protein structure of your hair.

I would try using it more sparingly and careful what else you are using on your hair.
 
lorr1e1 said:
Took this from a website:
Coconut oil does not contain proteins itself, it is composed of approximately 50% lauric acid which helps restore and strengthen the protein structure of your hair.

I would try using it more sparingly and careful what else you are using on your hair.
Click to expand...

The only oil I currently use is castor oil. I won't stop despite this one person study. I am not sold that it is the cause of my hair ailment.

I also use pink oil sparingly if you consider it an oil.
 
MilkChocolateOne said:
My daughter's hair matts and her strands stick together like velcro if I use products that are too heavy for her hair.
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Is her hair fine? Mine is and I have a lot of it. I have to pump my hair with protein to strengthen it.

The best thing I did for my hair is introducing Olaplex into my regime
 
The years that my hair was in its best condition (from 9 to 5 years ago), to a point people remarked on it, I used castor oil those years. Other things varied. Minute amounts usually.

Even on your feet, putting on straight castor oil will result in a drier and uncomfortable feeling. If you mix some with other things, oils or creams, it will work much better at softening. Likely it'll make those other things more effective. Wheatgerm oil is another strong one that gives the desired effect when diluted, not when used straight..

Castor oil is potent, it's to be used carefully. Can compare it to blush, in makeup. And it can be bad for acne-prone people. Needs caution there too. Not touching the scalp/facial skin, nor left on too long.

This may have been mentioned on another thread, I don't know, but if you do any 'chemical' (stronger, like hair dye) thing to your hair, castor oil can have an unexpected, 'stripping' effect.
When I used it straight on my hair, and washed it out, the dyed hair colour would be noticeably faded, compared to when I used any other oil or mix of oils.

Castor oil made the difference, it seems to have a 'pulling' effect (which may be, considering how it has been used topically for centuries by doctors, including during the World Wars, for under-the-skin issues like stomachaches, bruising).
 
11228 said:
The only oil I currently use is castor oil. I won't stop despite this one person study. I am not sold that it is the cause of my hair ailment.

I also use pink oil sparingly if you consider it an oil.
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Omg people still use lusters pink oil that stuff is terrible. Stick to the caster oil on its own but use it sparingly.
 
bzb1990 said:
The years that my hair was in its best condition (from 9 to 5 years ago), to a point people remarked on it, I used castor oil those years. Other things varied. Minute amounts usually.

Even on your feet, putting on straight castor oil will result in a drier and uncomfortable feeling. If you mix some with other things, oils or creams, it will work much better at softening. Likely it'll make those other things more effective. Wheatgerm oil is another strong one that gives the desired effect when diluted, not when used straight..

Castor oil is potent, it's to be used carefully. Can compare it to blush, in makeup. And it can be bad for acne-prone people. Needs caution there too. Not touching the scalp/facial skin, nor left on too long.

This may have been mentioned on another thread, I don't know, but if you do any 'chemical' (stronger, like hair dye) thing to your hair, castor oil can have an unexpected, 'stripping' effect.
When I used it straight on my hair, and washed it out, the dyed hair colour would be noticeably faded, compared to when I used any other oil or mix of oils.

Castor oil made the difference, it seems to have a 'pulling' effect (which may be, considering how it has been used topically for centuries by doctors, including during the World Wars, for under-the-skin issues like stomachaches, bruising).
Click to expand...
It should not make the hair dry as its a conditioning agent and softens it like any oil does. I use JBCO on it's own. May depend on what type of hair you have and the condition of it. .
 
lorr1e1 said:
It should not make the hair dry as its a conditioning agent and softens it like any oil does. I use JBCO on it's own. May depend on what type of hair you have and the condition of it. .
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it can make the skin feel tight and dry if applied by itself, not the first time, but if done regularly.
example, apart from aforementioned: lipsticks and glosses with castor oil high up in the ingredients and proportion not balanced out well enough, are often very drying, though in the moment lips look and feel glossy and hydrated, even plumper. Must tinker with items to get a lipstick base that has it in the right amounts, but it's so effective even so, that most companies use it.

It isn't drying of course, but because of its thickness, seems to act like Saran Wrap (explains the 'felting' mentioned in OP) on my fine, high-porosity hair...so it becomes almost brittle-feeling.
With better spreadability it works for me - in combination with more 'unctuous' feeling oils, or items like conditioners.
The higher ratio of lauric acid, may be good for some, but for people like me, who found coconut oil didn't work well, castor oil may not either, on its own. Still I cannot use it on scalp (used to but got irritated skin and breakouts) even if mixed with other things, though I found (when I ignored the cons) that my hair seemed to grow faster. Hell, it can even make your facial hair grow faster if you just use it on one part of the face, straight! LOL
 
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