3 Best Middle Eastern Hair Treatments for Growing Long, Healthy Natural Hair
by Team CurlyNikki
In parts of the Arabian Peninsula, women have used sidr, the powdered leaves of the jujube tree, to cleanse their hair. There’s also mashat, a traditional botanical blend associated with Yemen and the Gulf, and the long-standing practice of oiling hair before washing. These aren’t miracle growth treatments. But these practices address three things that matter when you’re trying to retain natural hair length: Getting the scalp clean. Keeping hair manageable. Reducing unnecessary roughness during wash day.
And unlike a vague internet recipe involving seventeen mystery herbs, these three products have identifiable ingredient lists.
The Middle Eastern Treatments Compared
| Product | Best For | Watch Out For |
|---|---|---|
| FAYNAN Pure Sidr Leaf Powder | Gentle botanical cleansing | Low lather; rinse thoroughly |
| FAYNAN Mashat Hair Powder | Traditional herbal hair masks | Contains henna; may affect color |
| FAYNAN Botanical Hair Ritual Oil | Pre-wash lubrication | Contains sesame and pistachio |
1. FAYNAN Pure Sidr Leaf Powder
Best for: Women curious about washing natural hair without conventional shampoo foam.
FAYNAN Pure Sidr Leaf Powder contains one ingredient: ground Ziziphus spina-christi leaves.
That’s it. The appeal is an unfamiliar cleansing experience. Sidr makes a soft, low-lather paste rather than the mountains of foam most of us associate with shampoo.
For dense 4C hair, I’d be particularly interested in how easily the powder rinses from the roots. Nobody wants to finish wash day with green particles trapped near the scalp. The brand recommends rinsing thoroughly and following with conditioner. I wouldn’t rely on this alone to remove layers of heavy grease or stubborn styling wax. A conventional clarifying shampoo may be more appropriate for those jobs.
2. FAYNAN Mashat Hair Powder
Best for: A botanical mask with an herbal scent.
Now THIS is interesting.
FAYNAN Mashat Hair Powder contains sidr, henna, amla, and lavender.
The brand describes mashat as a heritage practice in Yemen and the Gulf, where botanical powders are mixed into a paste and used in hair-care rituals.
Unlike pure sidr, this isn’t primarily my pick for getting the scalp clean.
I’d consider it when I want an herbal treatment and don’t mind spending extra time rinsing powder out of my curls.
And there’s one extremely important detail.
It contains real henna.
That means women with gray, highlighted, blonde, or otherwise light-colored hair should not assume it is colorless. Henna may leave a reddish tint.
If you’re growing out your gray, this is the one I’d approach with particular caution.
3. FAYNAN Botanical Hair Ritual Oil
Best for: Women who prefer conditioning before shampooing.
FAYNAN Botanical Hair Ritual Oil combines wild pistachio, black seed, sidr-infused sesame oil, jojoba, olive oil, and other botanicals. I like that it’s designed for a specific job: oiling before cleansing. That makes more sense than automatically layering oil onto already-styled hair every morning.
For coarse natural hair, a little pre-wash lubrication may make strands feel less rough during handling.But this isn’t a leave-in serum, and it isn’t the right purchase for someone who avoids oils altogether.
Important: It contains sesame and wild pistachio, so women with relevant allergies should avoid it.
Which Middle Eastern Treatment Would We Actually Buy?
I’d choose sidr if I wanted to experiment with botanical cleansing. Mashat if I wanted a traditional herbal mask and was comfortable with henna. And the oil if my biggest problem was rough-feeling hair before wash day. You don’t need all three.
In fact, I’d rather see a woman choose one product that solves her actual problem than spend $100 recreating an elaborate beauty ritual she won’t maintain.
The secret isn’t that Middle Eastern women discovered a magical growth ingredient. It’s that these traditions remind us hair care can be intentional, practical, and beautifully simple.
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