See how Cixi took care of her hair in ancient times

Cixi's bad hair was due to her weak kidney blood

Empress Dowager Cixi of the late Qing Dynasty loved dressing up very much, but because she ate high-fat food, her hair was oily, so her hair not only fell out easily but also lacked luster. In order to find the secret recipe that would allow her to have beautiful hair, Cixi issued several imperial decrees to recruit famous doctors from all over the country to treat her.

The imperial doctors believed that the nutrition of hair comes from the kidneys and blood, and that Cixi's poor hair condition was due to her weak kidneys and blood. Therefore, the imperial doctors began the treatment by warming the kidneys and replenishing the blood, strengthening Cixi's kidney function and replenishing blood and qi, thereby achieving the effect of nourishing hair. At the same time, imperial doctors also developed a number of shampoo and hair care prescriptions to maintain Cixi's hair. Among them are chrysanthemum powder, hair-pinching formula, and formula to keep hair from falling.

Chrysanthemum has a refreshing and cool fragrance. Grind nine kinds of herbs into coarse residue, add starch water, boil it, remove the residue and use the soup to wash your hair. The Empress Dowager liked the scent of chrysanthemums very much. She also often ate snacks made from fresh chrysanthemums. After using chrysanthemum powder, Cixi's oily hair improved greatly.

The recipe for Mintou is to boil eight kinds of Chinese medicinal herbs including chrysanthemum, soapberry, mint, schizonepeta spicate, angelica dahurica, silkworm, patchouli leaves and lindera japonica, let them cool, and then add borneol to make the water for Mintou. When combing your hair, you can use a comb dipped in scalp lotion. After using it for a period of time, Cixi's hair did become softer and more shiny than before. Cixi used the Mintou recipe from the age of 45 until she was in her seventies.

The hair-retention formula is a good hair-washing formula made of simple materials

Use ginkgo nuts, walnuts, and cypress leaves, mash them and soak them in snow water, then use them to comb your hair. Torreya grandis nuts are sweet and mild in nature and can moisturize the skin. Walnuts can nourish the hair and skin. Platycladus orientalis leaves are bitter and cold in nature and have the effect of dispelling wind and cooling blood. They can be used to comb the hair and help hair growth.

Under the internal and external treatment of the imperial physician, Cixi's hair finally showed significant improvement.

The above introduces how Cixi took care of her hair in the past. It is conceivable that the secret recipes of the past are still being passed down and commented on by people today, and similar Chinese herbal medicines are also available on the market today. This shows that the secret recipes of the past are effective, and it is conceivable that they will have the same effects when used in modern times.