Medifast and hair loss - 3 Fat Chicks on a Diet Weight Loss Community

Stormcrazie · 02-06-2008, 11:48 AM

Hi Everybody,

I was digging around and saw somethings about lots of hair loss while using mf.
Lot more then normal..... ALOT
I just regrew my hair after a bad experience with chromium supplements.

Has anyone noticed this side effect, does anyone know if mf contains chromiun?

My order comes in Friday and I was so looking forward to ripping it open and getting started now I am having serious second thoughts.
I have already dealt with being a women with VERY thin hair and I just can't do that again....I just can't

Help!!

Floprieto · 02-06-2008, 11:52 AM

I completly understand ur concern... I am losing way more hair than before... I haven't really been losing more now that i am on Medifast though. My advice to you is to take hair and nail supplements. I bought mine on QVC and i love it. My hair is a lot fuller and stopped falling off so much... Please let me know how that goes for you!

Clue0983 · 02-06-2008, 01:24 PM

I did OmniFast through a doctor. It is the same as MediFast. Just be sure to take a good multi-vitamin and potassium. Potassium is CRITICAL for proper brain function with that program.

I once heard that MSM is good for hair and nails as well. I would also suggest having a couple of days a week where you substitute chicken or lean steak for two of your packet meals.

Suzanne 3FC · 02-06-2008, 02:02 PM

Biotin is supposed to be good for hair. I noticed a few people on the official medifast site had mentioned thinning hair, and that biotin helped it.

suesully · 02-06-2008, 02:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Suzanne 3FC

Biotin is supposed to be good for hair. I noticed a few people on the official medifast site had mentioned thinning hair, and that biotin helped it.

I agree. I haven't had any hair loss problems & I've been on Medifast for over a year. It was a real concern for me as my hair is very fine & thin & I don't have much to lose! I take Biotin supplements (from CVS) as well as used the Vitatress by Nexxus line of hair products several times a week (they contain collagen & biotin). I also paid attention to the Quick Start Guide's daily Fat recommendations (important for gall bladder health as well as skin/hair) & used olive oil for my fat as much as possible.

I looked at the Nutrition Guide download available on the MyMedifast site (you can download it as well as a ton of other helpful things) & the Medifast meals have 20-30% Average Daily Value of Chromium in them. Centrum contains 125% ADV of Chromium so this does not seem to be excessive at all. When you took Chromium supplements in addition to your regular food you may have been getting quite a high amount of it & perhaps that caused problems for you.

Seeing as you do not take a mult-vitamin when on Medifast, perhaps this won't be a problem. You could call Medifast & speak with their Nutrition Support staff for more info & help on this.

suesully · 02-06-2008, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Clue0983

I did OmniFast through a doctor. It is the same as MediFast. Just be sure to take a good multi-vitamin and potassium.

Hi Christi! Medifast does not recommend taking a multi-vitamin while on the program as their meals provide all those vitamins/minerals & to take additional ones like in a multi-vitamin would put you way over the top in your daily counts. That is esp. important with the fat-soluble vitamins like A & D...too much of those can be toxic.

Many people do take additional supplements like EFAs (fish, flax oil), Biotin, probiotics such as Acidophilus Pearls, etc. I also take cranberry supplements. These types of supplements support the program & add some vital nutrients that are not on plan (yogurt, fruit, etc.)

oshvay · 02-07-2008, 10:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stormcrazie

Hi Everybody,

I was digging around and saw somethings about lots of hair loss while using mf.
Lot more then normal..... ALOT
I just regrew my hair after a bad experience with chromium supplements.

Has anyone noticed this side effect, does anyone know if mf contains chromiun?

My order comes in Friday and I was so looking forward to ripping it open and getting started now I am having serious second thoughts.
I have already dealt with being a women with VERY thin hair and I just can't do that again....I just can't

Help!!

This is my second time on MF, 22 years ago (when it was shakes only) and recently since 10/4. I certainly had no hair loss problems in '85 and I haven't noticed any change during the past four months.

brookelizabeth · 02-07-2008, 10:47 PM

My hair was falling out when I was dieting on my own and not taking vitamins but it's stopped since starting MF. I was just talking about it to someone at work.

michelle127 · 02-25-2008, 08:11 PM

I have THICK hair that is almost down to my butt. My husband loves it - I HATE it!! I wish I lost some hair, but nope it's ALL still here.

valley · 05-09-2008, 08:00 AM

I did Medifast for 2 months and lost a huge amount of hair. It was to the point that I could not wear my long hair up in a ponytail because it had receded a full half inch. I went to my hair dresser and without saying a word to her, she asked me if I had been dieting or on medication.

I also had terrible constipation and my energy level bottomed out after the first 2 weeks.

Now, I followed the program to a tee. I did not cheat one single time. I drank my water and followed all of the advice from nutrition support but nothing helped. At the Medifast forums, everyone is so upbeat...you feel almost guilty if you have a complaint...but there's really no support for anyone who has real problems on the program. The LAST thing they will ever tell you to do there is stop using Medifast! They said my hair loss was hormonal...but come on...it didnt start happening until I went on the program.

I finally said enough is enough and stopped on my own, even after a ton of people told me "dont give up!!!"

IMO, any respectable company that cares about the health of its clients would not keep encouraging a person to stay on a program that is causing severe hair loss and constipation....I took the flax oil they told me to take, even took laxative they suggested, I took Biotin and rubbed rosemary oil onto my scalp twice a day...nothing worked...but "dont give up!!". After being gone for awhile, I went back and searched again...Nutrition Support has come up with a copy and paste answer for hair loss problems..."could be a medical problem", "a fungal infection" etc..."most Medifasters who have severe hair loss were not following the program properly"....makes me mad. Anything to keep you buying their stuff.

Different programs work for different people. Medifast was not for me. If it works for you with no programs then thats awesome but it put my body into starvation mode and my hair fell out in huge amounts....not just me but a ton of other women too!

Listen to your bodies, ladies! And read the forums there...search for hair loss and read just how many women have had the same problem. I'm not saying, "dont do the program" All i'm saying is that if you see that your hair is starting to fall out, STOP the program and dont let anyone else tell you "dont give up!!" Its been over a year now and I still have not been able to regrow what I lost in those 2 months on Medifast! It was a hard lesson learned for the 13 pounds that I lost. I switched over to low cal after that and lost just as much as I was losing on MF. Talk about regrets!

This poll says it all. Out of 270 people polled at their own forums, 150 of them have experience hair loss while on this program. Thats more than HALF of the people polled!!:
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=25971&

Other threads with hair loss issues:

http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=40938&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=40661&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=42369&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=43049&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=39005&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=40222&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=40223&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=39398&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=35318&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=34082&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=30397&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=32824&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=31510&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=31432&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=29587&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=31433&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=31094&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=27557&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=25965&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=25963&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=25154&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=21321&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=23069&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=21303&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=18517&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=17548&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=13156&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=11343&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=10932&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=9536&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=8880&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=8320&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=7734&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=4107&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=7734&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=4107&
http://mfboards.mymedifast.com/showthread.php?t=6751&

amazingplatinum · 05-10-2008, 03:56 PM

Valley- I remember when I was a teenager- I went on nutrisystem and lost 60lbs and almost all my hair. So I do understand that problem very well. But like you said, valley, different people experience different things. My heart sooo goes out to you for your hair loss and I am glad you are seeing success now.

valley · 05-10-2008, 08:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by amazingplatinum

Valley- I remember when I was a teenager- I went on nutrisystem and lost 60lbs and almost all my hair. So I do understand that problem very well. But like you said, valley, different people experience different things. My heart sooo goes out to you for your hair loss and I am glad you are seeing success now.

Thank so much *hugs* I did stop the program before I got to the point of bald spots so it could have been worse. I was just so disappointed that there was no real advice and there was a total denial that it was caused by the program. Sometimes all you want to hear by the experts is that "this program is probably not for you"...but you want to lose the weight and you see it working for others so you try to stick with it thinking that your hair will get past the "stage" that its in.

I look at it as a good lesson, though. I think its important for Medifasters to know that this is a serious problem for many people on this program. People need to have all the information so they can make the BEST choices for themselves. But if this works for you then thats awesome...and best of luck to you all!

And I just noticed....none of my earlier links are working now!

They all worked fine earlier today when i tried them. Sorry bout that...if anyone wants to see where I got them from, just to go the Medifast forums and type "Hair Loss" into the search field.

HeavenScott · 02-25-2009, 01:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brookelizabeth

My hair was falling out when I was dieting on my own and not taking vitamins but it's stopped since starting MF. I was just talking about it to someone at work.

Hair loss can be avoided by the useage of Amino acids and B vitamins which are useful in helping hair grow strong and fast. With only one half an inch of hair growth per month being the average, every little bit helps.

Beta-carotine will also help with hair growth. As the body demands it, beta-carotine will turn into vitamin A, which is known to help maintain growth and bone development, strength around nerve fibers, and promote healthy skin, nails, and hair. Use Green and yellow vegetables as well as fruits which are known to house beta-carotine.

zay · 02-25-2009, 04:28 PM

People, hair loss is due to rapid weight loss NOT Medifast. Some people are more prone to have this as a side effect of rapid weight loss, some not. Hair loss happens on other diets too. There are some supplements proven to help reduce it. Also, there is no danger in losing hair...its dead anyway.
Medifast is a great program and has helped so many when other plans haven't.

voluptuous6 · 02-26-2009, 01:01 AM

I have just gained some of my hair back after losing quite a bit. I took nettle capsules. Non-toxic, just feeds your body what it needs to grow hair, better skin, and nails. It also helps my eczema. When my nails get brittle, I try to get one SF jello in a day, too. It's allowed as a snack on Medifast. HTH!