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Long before rice water went viral on TikTok and YouTube and ended up on Kardashian blogs, the beauty practice had been used for centuries by women in Asia. According to research published in the Journal of Cosmetic Chemists, court ladies during Japan's Heian Period (794 to 1185 CE) used Yu-Su-Ru (a.k.a leftover water from washing rice) on their floor-length hair.
The method was then popularized by a village in China called Huangluo. The Yao women, who inhabit the town, are famous for their long hair that averages six feet long. According to Medical News Today, the Yao women credit their strong strands and dark color to washing it in rice water.