Cardi B Calls Onion Juice the Secret to Her Luscious Locks

Cardi B shared one of her beauty secrets with fans last week when she revealed that adding onion juice to her hair wash routine helps her achieve her luscious locks. In her now-viral August 13 Instagram post, the “Bodak Yellow” rapper wrote:

“My last 2 washes I been boiling onions and using the water to wash my hair,” she captioned the post. “I used to do this 6 years ago when I started my healthy hair growth journey. I stopped cause I got really lazy.” And the proof was in the gorgeous photo she posted of her long, healthy-looking hair.”

And the pics don’t lie. Her hair is gorge. But I wasn’t exactly ready to run to the grocery store to buy a bag of onions for my bathroom. So I had to ask, is washing your hair with onion juice really a thing?

According to a study by the Journal of Drug Delivery and Therapeutics, onion juice was found to nourish the hair follicles, moisturize the hair and scalp and the big one – promote hair growth. High sulfur content is what gives onion juice its anti-inflammatory properties. And although there isn’t hard evidence to support it, there is some anecdotal evidence that the antioxidants and sulfur in onions can help reduce gray hairs.

According to Naturally Curly, red onions are the best choice for your hair because they contain the most sulfur. Start by adding a peeled and chopped red onion to your blender. Then put cheesecloth over a bowl and pour in your mixture. They suggest using a spoon to push down on the onion so you don’t miss out on any of the juice. Then use a spray bottle or color bottle to apply the mixture to your scalp. Despite the smell, you’ll need to let the juice sit on your hair under a plastic bag for 30 minutes to an hour to work its magic. Finish the process by rinsing out the onion juice, and follow up with your favorite shampoo and deep conditioner.

Ok, so onions taste great, but we can all agree that the smell is not so nice. No matter what onions do for your hair, you’re probably wondering if this new routine will have you going around smelling like a salad. According to the folks at NaturallyCurly.com, that produce aisle perfume is nothing that a few drops of your favorite essential oil can’t fix. They add that a couple of rounds of shampoo will get rid of the smell and that the end result makes it all worth it in the end.