logo
Banana and honey hair mask for dry scalp and faster growth

Banana and honey hair mask for dry scalp and faster growth

Time of India15 hours ago

Hair loss has always existed, but lately, it feels like more of us are noticing thinning strands, dry scalps, and a general lack of vitality. It's not just in your head. Rising stress levels, nutrient-deficient diets, environmental pollution, and harsh grooming habits are all quietly sabotaging our hair health.
The numbers echo this trend: the global hair restoration market was valued at $5.9 billion in 2021 and is projected to more than double, reaching $12.1 billion by 2031. That kind of growth points to one thing—people are searching for answers, and more importantly, solutions.
But sometimes, the most effective remedies don't come in high-tech packaging or clinic visits. They come from the kitchen.
The power of honey and banana
Honey
This natural powerhouse isn't just sweet—it's incredibly nourishing.
Rich in antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, honey draws in and locks moisture, thanks to its humectant properties (substances that pull water into the skin and hair). It also acts as a natural emollient, smoothing down rough hair cuticles to enhance shine and softness. Its antibacterial properties help maintain a healthy, irritation-free scalp.
Banana
Bananas are loaded with potassium, natural oils, carbohydrates, and vitamins that deeply condition the hair.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025
Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List
Undo
They improve elasticity, reduce breakage, and prevent split ends. Bananas also contain silica, a mineral that helps your body synthesize collagen—vital for stronger, faster-growing hair.
Why does this mask work
Combining honey and banana creates a deeply hydrating, scalp-soothing treatment that addresses both growth and dryness.
Promotes hair growth: Nutrient-rich bananas work with honey's antioxidants to stimulate hair follicles.
Improves elasticity: Banana oils restore flexibility to brittle strands, preventing breakage.
Deep moisture: Honey draws moisture into each strand, leaving hair soft and hydrated.
Boosts shine: Smoothened cuticles reflect more light, resulting in a natural glow.
Scalp support: Honey's antimicrobial properties help keep dandruff and itchiness at bay.
How to make and apply the hair mask
To begin with, blend one ripe banana with a couple of spoonfulls of honey until the texture's smooth and creamy. That way, it spreads easily and won't get stuck in your hair. Section your hair and apply the mixture from roots to ends, either using your fingers or a brush — whatever feels easier.
Take a few extra minutes to gently massage it into your scalp; it not only feels relaxing but helps wake up the hair follicles. Once you're done, cover your hair with a shower cap and let it sit for about 20 to 30 minutes.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

What if doctors could practise your surgery on a virtual YOU first? Welcome to the future of Indian healthcare
What if doctors could practise your surgery on a virtual YOU first? Welcome to the future of Indian healthcare

Time of India

timean hour ago

  • Time of India

What if doctors could practise your surgery on a virtual YOU first? Welcome to the future of Indian healthcare

Imagine practising a surgery on a virtual version of your body before doctors operate on the real you. That's not science fiction anymore; it's happening in India. As quoted by TOI, senior heart transplant surgeon Dr K R Balakrishnan now makes a stop at IIT Madras before performing surgeries on complicated heart patients. At the biomedical engineering lab, he works on 3D virtual versions of his patients, also called digital twins. These twins help the doctor and his team analyse blood vessels, muscles and more before deciding the best course of treatment. What Exactly Is a Digital Twin? A digital twin is a computer-based copy of a real-world object or human. It receives real-time data from its original source, helping doctors make accurate medical decisions. The concept first appeared in aerospace engineering, but now it's being used in hospitals too. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Top 5 Dividend Stocks for May 2025 Seeking Alpha Read Now Using sensors and medical test results, doctors can create a virtual model of a patient and try out different surgeries or treatments before doing anything to the actual patient. Digital Twins at IIT Madras Professor R Krishnakumar, who used to design digital twins for tyre companies, now heads the biomedical engineering lab at IIT-M. Quoted by TOI, he said, 'Give us the medical records of a patient, and his digital twin will be ready in 45 minutes. An hour later, doctors can test treatment options on this synthetic patient.' Live Events Sometimes, doctors don't need a full 3D model, a simple graph can help them decide if the patient needs a life-saving device like an intra-aortic balloon pump. According to Krishnakumar, 'Nine times out of ten, the system's decision has been right.' How Surgeons Use Digital Twins Surgeons at JIPMER (Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research) in Puducherry are also working with digital twins. They've created 3D models of the brain to plan surgeries for deep-seated tumours. Neurosurgeon Dr M S Gopalakrishnan, quoted by TOI, said, 'We rehearse surgeries virtually and choose the safest and most effective method before operating.' These rehearsals are done using virtual reality (VR), which helps doctors practise every move and avoid risky areas. Once the plan is ready, it's loaded into a computer-guided system that helps during the real surgery by overlaying the virtual route onto the real-time view of the brain using augmented reality (AR). What's Next in Digital Twin Tech? According to Dr Gopalakrishnan, the next step is for digital twins to give feedback during live surgery. 'If I move a patient's brain lobe in the operating room, the virtual twin should tell me what could happen next,' he said. This level of smart interaction may soon be possible using Physics-Informed Neural Networks (PINN). These allow the twins to be smarter and more accurate, even when data is limited or biological processes are complex. Beyond Surgery: Managing Chronic Illnesses Digital twins aren't just for surgery. In cancer care, doctors use them to test treatments and reduce side effects. In diabetes, they help track sugar levels and suggest lifestyle changes that can even reverse the disease. Dr Arjun Suresh, a general medicine expert, quoted by TOI, said, 'Right now, we treat sugar levels reactively. With digital twins and real-time data from glucose monitors, we can be proactive.' A team led by Dr Rajan Ravichandran is also working on using digital twins to predict kidney problems in diabetic patients. A New Era of Drug Discovery Digital twins are also helping in drug development. They make it possible to run virtual clinical trials and test drug reactions without using real humans. This saves time and money. Some Challenges Still Remain Though the technology is promising, doctors admit it's not perfect. Dr Balakrishnan said, 'There are still issues with data quality, how we use the models, and training people to use them well. Plus, there are ethical concerns about how much influence these tools should have on treatment decisions.' Still, as digital twins grow smarter and more accessible, they may become a routine part of treatment, guiding doctors, saving lives, and making medicine more precise than ever before. Inputs from TOI

Parkinson's disease: NOT your brain; study reveals your ears might hold clues to early signs of the disease
Parkinson's disease: NOT your brain; study reveals your ears might hold clues to early signs of the disease

Time of India

time3 hours ago

  • Time of India

Parkinson's disease: NOT your brain; study reveals your ears might hold clues to early signs of the disease

Parkinson's disease is a progressive neurological disorder that primarily affects movement. It is characterized by the degeneration of nerve cells in the brain, specifically those producing dopamine, a neurotransmitter crucial for coordinating movement. This leads to a range of symptoms, including tremors, stiffness, and slowness of movement. While there is no cure, treatments and therapies can help manage symptoms and improve quality of life. Globally, Parkinson's disease (PD) affects millions. A study published in The BMJ in March 2025 projects that 25.2 million people will be living with Parkinson's by 2050. But what if we can detect Parkinson's disease with an easy hack? No scans, no invasive tests – imagine being able to early diagnose Parkinson's with a gentle swab of your ear. Recent research reveals that earwax – or cerumen – may carry subtle chemical signals pointing to Parkinson's disease (PD) long before traditional symptoms appear. By analyzing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in earwax and feeding that data into artificial‑intelligence systems, scientists have achieved detection accuracy as high as 94%. This promising approach could offer an easy, non‑invasive, and cost‑effective screening method. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo Read on to know more. What does the study say? The new research, published in Analytical Chemistry , has found that volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in earwax could carry chemical signals of the neurological disease. The work builds on earlier findings suggesting that Parkinson's subtly alters body odor, through changes in sebum, the oily substance that naturally moisturizes our hair and skin. The problem with trying to analyze sebum on the skin is that its exposure to air and the external environment makes it less reliable for clinical testing. Scientists led by a team from Zhejiang University wanted to take a look at earwax, which is better protected. The researchers took ear canal swabs from 209 study participants, 108 of whom had been given a Parkinson's disease diagnosis. By charting differences in earwax composition between people with and without Parkinson's, four VOCs stood out: ethylbenzene, 4-ethyltoluene, pentanal, and 2-pentadecyl-1,3-dioxolane. As the researchers mentioned in their published paper, "Early diagnosis and intervention are crucial for Parkinson's disease treatment," adding, "This study proposes a diagnostic model… that analyzes VOCs from ear canal secretions." According to the scientists, those VOCs can be altered by inflammation, cell stress, and neurodegeneration in the brain. With the right tests, the team hypothesized that subtle signals for Parkinson's could show up in the ears. These could potentially be used to identify Parkinson's in the future, acting as a foundation around which tests can be developed. First, though, this same analysis needs to be run on larger groups of people over longer periods of time. Earwax: An unexpected diagnostic window Earwax, medically known as cerumen, is more than just debris – it contains sebum, an oily secretion from skin glands, along with waxy fatty acids and dead skin cells. Sebum's chemical composition reflects our skin's metabolic activity. Earlier studies found that people with Parkinson's often emit a distinctive musky odor, traced back to sebum on their skin, caused by inflammation, oxidative stress, and neurodegeneration. Yet, skin-mounted sebum exposed to pollution and humidity can muddy chemical signals. Enter the ear canal – a more protected environment. Wax from the ear canal remains sheltered, making it a more stable source for detecting sebum-based chemical markers. The findings: Four key VOCs The team, led by Hao Dong and Danhua Zhu at Zhejiang University, collected earwax samples from 209 participants –108 diagnosed with Parkinson's and 101 healthy controls. Using advanced separation techniques (gas chromatography–mass spectrometry and GC with surface acoustic wave sensors), they analyzed the chemical makeup of the samples. Out of hundreds of detected VOCs, four stood out – chemicals whose levels consistently differed in Parkinson's patients: Ethylbenzene 4‑Ethyltoluene Pentanal 2‑Pentadecyl‑1,3‑dioxolane Statistical analysis showed these chemicals were significantly altered in Parkinson's patients. These differences likely stem from underlying processes in Parkinson's: neurodegeneration, systemic inflammation, oxidative stress, and changes in fat metabolism. Enter AI – with 94% accuracy Detecting these VOCs is only one part of the equation – interpreting them demands precision. The researchers built an Artificial Intelligence Olfactory (AIO) system using two methods: A support‑vector machine trained on GC‑MS data. A convolutional neural network (CNN) trained on GC‑SAW sensor data. The CNN-AIO achieved 94–94.4% accuracy in differentiating Parkinson's from non-Parkinson's samples, with an impressive receiver‑operating‑characteristic (ROC) area under the curve (AUC) of ~0.98. This highlights the system's potential as a reliable early­-screening tool – fast, inexpensive, non‑invasive, and amenable to low-resource medical settings. As per the researchers, "The AIO-based analytical system underscores its potential for use in bedside medical diagnostic devices, aiding in earlier and more effective treatment for Parkinson's disease patients." The findings could also help the ongoing study to understand how Parkinson's gets started and how it might be stopped. Identified VOC changes could possibly be used as a chemical fingerprint, identifying other changes happening because of – or perhaps leading to – the disease. Why early detection matters: Currently, Parkinson's is diagnosed based on motor symptoms – tremors, muscle rigidity, slowed movement – when significant neurological damage has already occurred. Conventional diagnostic methods, like brain imaging or dopamine transporter scans, are expensive, time-consuming, and not always precise Earlier detection through earwax offers three big benefits: Preventive timing: Intervene sooner to potentially slow disease progression and preserve quality of life. Accessibility: Ear swabs require minimal training and equipment, less costly than imaging. Consistency: Earwax sebum isn't easily contaminated, unlike skin sebum. An affordable, objective test could change the landscape for millions of people worldwide. What's ahead: The next steps? Wider trials across multiple centers and demographics to confirm whether this test is robust in varied populations and stages of Parkinson's, develop bedside protocols using rapid GC-SAW sensors and AI for real-time screening, and explore biological pathways linking VOC changes to cellular processes, which could illuminate PD's origins and potential therapeutic targets. Researchers Dr. Hao Dong and colleagues emphasize the need for multi-center trials, involving diverse ethnicities and disease stages, before real-world use. As per Dr. Dong, from the Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, "The next step is to conduct further research at different stages of the disease, in multiple research centers and among multiple ethnic groups, in order to determine whether this method has greater practical application value. " Speech may be clue to early mental decline

Gen Z shows more interest in SIPs, but millennials prefer protection tools like health & term insurance: Survey
Gen Z shows more interest in SIPs, but millennials prefer protection tools like health & term insurance: Survey

Time of India

time3 hours ago

  • Time of India

Gen Z shows more interest in SIPs, but millennials prefer protection tools like health & term insurance: Survey

India's Gen Z is more inclined toward investment tools like SIPs (Systematic Investment Plans) and stocks, while a higher percentage of Millennials prefer protection tools like health and term insurance, highlighted a survey by Insurance aggregator Policybazaar. The report also noted that Gen Z still lagging awareness and understanding of insurance products. According to the findings, 19 per cent of Gen Z reported investing in SIPs, compared to 14 per cent of Millennials. Stocks were also more popular among the younger group, with 15 per cent investing in stocks, as against 13 per cent of Millennials. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Elegant New Scooters For Seniors In 2024: The Prices May Surprise You Mobility Scooter | Search Ads Learn More Undo However, when it comes to protection tools like insurance, Gen Z seems less involved. Only 19 per cent of Gen Z considered purchasing term insurance, much lower than 35 per cent among Millennials. The report stated "Gen Z focuses more on investment tools like SIPs and stocks, while a higher percentage of Millennials prefer protection tools like health and term insurance" Live Events The survey, conducted in May-June 2025 on 4,620 respondents across India, compared the insurance awareness and investment habits of Gen Z (18-28 years) and Millennials (29-43 years). Health insurance , however, is the most considered insurance product for both groups, 61 per cent of Gen Z and 63 per cent of Millennials have either purchased or thought about purchasing it. A major gap is seen in confidence levels. While Gen Z feels relatively confident in their understanding of health insurance (32 per cent very confident), they lack similar confidence in term insurance. In contrast, Millennials showed greater confidence in understanding term insurance products. One positive trend among Gen Z is their belief in buying insurance early. About 78 per cent believe that the ideal age to get health insurance is before 30, compared to 44 per cent of Millennials. Similarly, 72 per cent of Gen Z feel term insurance should be bought before the age of 30. The survey also found that both generations prefer online sources to learn about insurance. Gen Z leans heavily on YouTube (46 per cent) and shows a growing interest in using generative AI, while Millennials rely more on Google Search (40 per cent). Still, half of all respondents said they weren't taught about insurance in school. Yet, 85 per cent of Gen Z and 75 per cent of Millennials believe it is important to teach insurance concepts at the school level. While Gen Z's early investment habits reflect financial awareness, the gap in insurance education and understanding shows there is still a long way to go in building a financially secure and insurance-aware generation.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store