I've never thought much about my scalp. Aside from the occasional subconscious scratching or vigorous shampooing, it's kind of… there. A necessary but often overlooked skull covering.
But the humble scalp is the focus of an increasingly popular wellness trend: elaborate Chinese- and Japanese-inspired treatments at so-called head spas. At these businesses, visitors receive a scalp analysis followed by head and neck massages and repeated deep cleansing. Observing with your eyes the inner workings of the scalp, an otherwise forgotten part of the body, and satisfying its needs through wonderful hydrotherapy treatments, has led to the #headspa hashtag gaining attention on Tiktok for over a year now. . In a viral video from a Los Angeles-area head spa, a towel-wrapped influencer claims it will “change your life.”
I was intrigued. That's how I found myself sitting in a living room chair in Cai Xiang Ge, or “CXG,” in San Gabriel, with a practitioner running a small digital camera through my hair. I was faced with a 250x magnified view of my scalp on a nearby screen. And what I saw looked like a mysterious underwater forest of kelp, with dark, swaying stems growing in a bright, fluffy field dotted with red spots. It looked like something out of a science fiction movie. Oh.
Deborah Vankin undergoes a scalp examination to determine the direction of her treatment at Cai Xiang Ge Master Spa.
The process was embarrassingly revealing. I happen to have an oily scalp with a bit of dandruff, CXG owner Ning Chen told me. “And you see these red parts? You're not getting enough sleep. Stress,” she said.
But there is also a strange pleasure in closely examining dirty scalps. As humans, we are nothing if not fascinated by our own bodies, whether it's picking at a scab, picking at a canker sore, or popping a pimple. (You know you have). The shock factor of scalp treatments is integral to their appeal, according to Sara Hallajian, a Santa Monica-based trichologist and hair loss and scalp specialist at Âme Salon.
“It's about, 'Oh, let's look at your dandruff closely and how dirty your scalp is before and how clean after,' because it's not something you see with the naked eye,” Hallajian said.
After the close-up of my scalp, Chen took me to a dimly lit room with several spa beds and traditional Chinese harp music. The birds sang along to the soundtrack as he put a robe on me and laid me on the bed. At one end was a shampoo sink and at the other was a footbath filled with warm water infused with Chinese herbs. It was early February, and I generally appreciate the rituals of renewal this time of year, as cliché as it may seem.
The $135 Royal treatment relieved that itch. For 90 minutes, CXG's Alyssa Nevins repeatedly scrubbed my scalp and washed my hair as part of a six-step process. The aromatherapy head massage was a dry one, in which Nevins rubbed tea tree oil into my scalp, leaving a tingling sensation. and He then applied an electronic device similar to a cephalopod, whose multiple arms removed the strain. This was followed by four shampoos, each with a head and neck massage.
Highlight: Nevins left me lying there for 10 minutes with a circular, waterfall-shaped device that bathed my head and neck in herbal-treated water. He was wearing a heated eye mask, my head was tilted back, and my face was engulfed in plumes of steam. Fine jets of water massaged my neck and shoulders. It was heavenly; I almost fell asleep. I also had a collagen-boosting hydrating facial, an herbal hair steam, and a conditioning hair mask.
Deborah Vankin receives a collagen-boosting, hydrating facial during her 90-minute Chinese scalp treatment at Cai Xiang Ge.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
The experience ended in the living room, with tea and sweets and an “anti-hair loss treatment.” Nevins sprayed an herbal serum all over my scalp. He then used a high-frequency scalp therapy device to disinfect my pores, a treatment the spa claimed would strengthen my hair follicles.
Head spas claim that scalp treatments promote circulation and detoxify, soothe and hydrate the skin, all of which helps prevent dandruff, itching, dryness, inflammation and hair loss. I wasn't sure if that was true or not, but it sure beats injecting my own plasma into my scalp at $1,500 a session, another recently trendy beauty treatment aimed at promoting hair growth.
Tea and light snacks are offered after cleansing and before blasting at Cai Xiang Ge.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
The claims made by head spas are “fundamentally correct,” said Dr. Carolyn Goh, a dermatologist at UCLA Health. “A deep cleansing and massage can help with circulation and reduce inflammation. My first recommendation for anyone suffering from hair loss is to cleanse their scalp. But if you have psoriasis or eczema, it won't help you. I also warn you that if you are sensitive and use essential oils, you may develop an allergy.”
The treatment stimulates acupressure points on the head, particularly one called bai hui, where the so-called meridians are located, according to Dr. Ka-Kit Hui, director of the UCLA East-West Medicine Health Center. “That can help people with insomnia, anxiety and headaches. “It’s expensive, but relaxing.”
Scalp treatments have been an integral part of wellness culture for centuries in many parts of Asia, including China, Japan, Vietnam and Korea.
In China, head spas are so common that “there is one on every street,” Chen said. They became popular here in Los Angeles around 2020 and have proliferated in the last year and a half. Now, Chen says, there are about two dozen in the Los Angeles area, and “about four new ones have opened nearby in the last two months alone.” Most of them are in San Gabriel, Temple City, Arcadia and Rosemead, centers of Asian communities. In addition to CXG, other popular local spas include Yang Si Guan in San Gabriel, Tou Dao Tang in Temple City and M Head Spa in Rosemead, all of which opened in the last year and a half.
Ning Chen, owner of Cai Xiang Ge, at the reception of her main spa.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
Chen said his flagship spa helped start the trend in Los Angeles when CXG opened in mid-2021. CXG plans to expand to Beverly Hills over the next year.
Like many top spas, CXG caters to one-time visitors and members who visit weekly or bi-weekly to relax and maintain scalp health. Chen's clientele was initially 70% Asian and 30% non-Asian; for summer 2023, it was the opposite, which she says is due to social media promotion.
Chinese scalp treatment videos on social media are popular among seekers of ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) in which certain sounds promote tingling, goosebumps and other relaxing sensations.
In person, the ASMR experience is even more pronounced. Throughout the treatment, repeated sounds of brushes, shampoo foam, and splashing water are heard. This was especially evident at Tou Dao Tang when I visited.
Tou Dao Tang originated in China, where it has more than 9,000 stores. But in the fall of 2022, the company opened its first US store in Temple City. It plans to expand to Glendale later this year. Openings are also in the works for Tustin, Las Vegas, San Francisco and New York.
“It's the new thing,” manager Hannah Lin says about the growing popularity of scalp treatment. “And people want to try something new.”
My scalp analysis, performed by Sherry Zhu of Tou Dao Tang, again suggested oily skin, dandruff and lack of sleep, as well as a possible nutritional deficiency, Zhu said. The latter was suggested by a few pale hairs.
The subsequent $108 Classic Scalp treatment was a five-step process. It was especially massage-oriented, with repeated scalp massages, combing and cleansing for 90 minutes, and included five teas or “herbal soups,” each with different organic herbs. The rounds of tea washing respectively focused on detoxification, rejuvenation and stress relief, nourishing and soothing, repairing PH balance and preventing hair loss.
These treatments have become so essential for some Tou Dao Tang clients that members often keep their own combs and brushes in the spa, labeled with their names, for practitioners to use when they visit.
Deborah Vankin receives a Chinese scalp treatment at Tou Dao Tang Head Spa.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
A close-up of Deborah Vankin's impeccably clean scalp after her treatment at Cai Xiang Ge.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
Deborah Vankin after her treatment with Cai Xiang Ge, which ended with a blowout and blowout.
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
“In China, the head spa is very popular,” Lin said. “We wanted to bring it to the U.S. and let people know our culture.”
The main spas I visited were very different experiences. CXG's surroundings were especially luxurious, with multicolored lighting, aromatherapy and a warm foot bath, while Tou Dao Tang's homemade, organic “tea bath” washes seemed more sensible. Both left me feeling absolutely cleansed and relaxed, so much so that at Tou Dao Tang, I accidentally floated out the door without paying. (I called again later and took care of the bill).
After both treatments, my hair was shiny and extra soft for days.
Needless to say, the itch I had for a sense of renewal had calmed down enough.
