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Herb library · Herb · Eclipta prostrata (syn. Eclipta alba)

Bhringraj

A small, weedy plant of wet ground whose leaf juice has long been rubbed on the scalp in India to darken hair and make it grow; it is a named ingredient in Ayurvedic hair oils. A small trial found lower blood pressure in men who took the leaf powder; there is no study of it on its own for hair in people.

Traditional use

Dutt's 1877 compilation from Sanskrit medical works records that the Sanskrit names bhringaraja and kesaraja were shared by this plant and Wedelia calendulacea, the one then preferred in medicine, whose leaves physicians used as a tonic and for cough, headache, skin diseases and baldness. The leaves of both plants were used to dye gray hair and to make hair grow, and the fresh juice of this plant's leaves was rubbed on the shaven scalp for that purpose; he also quotes an account of its leaves being rubbed into tattoos for a deep bluish-black color. Kirtikar and Basu (1918) add that Sanskrit medicine used it chiefly as a tonic for an enlarged liver and spleen and for chronic skin disease, and that in Bombay drops of the juice with honey were given to newborns with catarrh. Today it is sold in multi-herb Ayurvedic hair oils.

What studies show

  • Limited

    Blood pressure: one 60-day pilot trial in 60 men with mild high blood pressure reported that blood pressure and cholesterol fell and urine output rose in the group taking 3 grams a day of dried leaf powder, compared with placebo. It was a small pilot study.

  • Insufficient

    Acid indigestion: a trial in 22 people in India (15 took bhringaraja tablets for 4 weeks, 7 took rice-powder tablets) reported fewer symptoms. It was very small and not blinded.

  • Insufficient

    Hair growth and gray hair: the hair-growth research on bhringraj itself is in rats. The one trial in people tested a multi-herb hair oil, so it cannot show what bhringraj adds.

Be careful of

Cautions

  • InteractionIn the one trial in people it lowered blood pressure and increased urine output. If you take medicine for blood pressure or a water pill, ask your clinician before taking it.
  • NoteIn a 2009 report of severe liver injury in a woman who took several Ayurvedic products for vitiligo, a "Brahmi" tablet containing Eclipta alba or Bacopa was rated a possible contributor, though another herb was the main suspect. Stop and see a clinician if you notice yellow skin or eyes or dark urine.
  • PregnancyNCCIH advises talking with your clinician before using Ayurvedic products while pregnant or nursing.
  • NoteSome Ayurvedic preparations include metals. The FDA warns that this makes some Ayurvedic products potentially harmful, and a 2015 survey found high lead or mercury levels in some of the supplements tested.
  • Ask a clinicianTalk with a clinician or pharmacist before using this if you take prescription medicines, are pregnant or breastfeeding, or are giving it to a child.

From the old books

What herbals and dispensaries of the past printed. History, in their words.

“The fresh juice of the leaves of Eclipta prostrata, is rubbed on the shaven scalp for the purpose of promoting the growth of hair.”
Udoy Chand Dutt, The Materia Medica of the Hindus (1877), p. 183. See the page of The Materia Medica of the Hindus, p. 183 (opens in a new tab) · Read the full passage from The Materia Medica of the Hindus, p. 183
“In Sanskrit medicine it is principally used as a tonic and deobstruent in hepatic and splenic enlargements, and in various chronic skin diseases. There is a popular opinion that the herb taken internally and applied externally will turn the hair black.”
K. R. Kirtikar and B. D. Basu, Indian Medicinal Plants (1918), part 1, p. 687. See the page of Indian Medicinal Plants, part 1, p. 687 (opens in a new tab) · Read the full passage from Indian Medicinal Plants, part 1, p. 687

Sources

  1. Diuretic, hypotensive, and hypocholesterolemic effects of Eclipta alba in mild hypertensive subjects: a pilot study (2007) (opens in a new tab) · NIH · read September 25, 2026
  2. Fundamental approach in the management of Drava Bahula Amlapitta with Bhringaraja (Eclipta alba) (2011) (opens in a new tab) · NIH · read September 25, 2026
  3. Severe hepatotoxicity by Indian Ayurvedic herbal products: a structured causality assessment (2009) (opens in a new tab) · NIH · read September 25, 2026
  4. Hair growth promoting activity of Eclipta alba in male albino rats (2008) (opens in a new tab) · NIH · read September 25, 2026
  5. An Integrative Approach of Neeli Bhringraj Polyherbal Hair Oil in Clinical Evaluation of Androgenetic Alopecia (Khalitya) and Premature Hair Graying (2026) (opens in a new tab) · NIH · read September 25, 2026
  6. Eclipta prostrata (L.) L. (Asteraceae): Ethnomedicinal Uses, Chemical Constituents, and Biological Activities (2021) (opens in a new tab) · NIH · read September 25, 2026
  7. Ayurvedic Medicine: In Depth (opens in a new tab) · NCCIH · read September 25, 2026

Reviewed September 25, 2026.