Losing hair badly - picture

sweetnlow28 · 07-12-2010, 08:05 PM

I have read a couple threads mentioning thinning hair. I know I need to a see a doctor but I don't have one right now, hopefully soon. I wanted to post my issue here in case anyone can recommend anything. I am SO worried about my hair. I started losing it almost a year ago. At first I thought it was the hair dye, so I stopped dying it. Then I thought it was my blood pressure medication because those meds can do that. I switched to another medication but it didn't help. This was back when I had a doctor but he wasn't very efficient. I had blood work done and my thyroid was fine.

I have been off my blood pressure meds for months now. I take vitamins including iron and a b complex. I did dye my hair once lately but this was after more than six months of not doing it at all with no change so I figured, what the heck, its falling out anyway. I am sure its not the dye but I am not going to do it anymore just in case. I am not sure what to do at this point. I lose quite a bit every day in the shower and its really getting noticeable. I need to find a doctor and see whats going on! Can weight loss cause hair loss this bad. I eat at least 1400 - 1500 cals every day including healthy fats etc.

Wow, I didn't realize it was that bad until I took the pictures!

nelie · 07-12-2010, 08:32 PM

My suggestion would be to get to a doctor. I know some people have reported hair loss but it isn't a given. I personally never had hair loss issues and I've always followed a fairly low fat diet.

ringmaster · 07-12-2010, 10:53 PM

I'm a little hesitant to recommend anything, because it might be a medical issue (hormones, PCOS, thyroid..even though you said yours was checked).., that said, my hair has thinning issues (even before losing weight) and I don't have a doctor at the moment so I manage it on my own. vitamins have helped.. 5000mcg biotin, MSM, fish oil and an all in one hair,skin, nail vitamin. I also have had some decent success with Indian Ayurvedic herbs and hennaing my hair have helped it thicken up... not 100% but enough so my scalp isn't as see-through as it was before. Just some suggestions, of course do your own research before trying anything. Hope yours gets better!

Thighs Be Gone · 07-12-2010, 10:56 PM

Lori 259 advises using Biotin. I also had hair thinning when I was about 50 pounds down. Luckily, it has all but stopped. My hair is almost as thick as ever. See your doctor but I know this is a common thing for those losing substantial weight. Chances are, your hair will return when the weightloss slows.

lauralyn · 07-13-2010, 08:55 AM

Hair loss can be caused by lots of things but I do recommend getting your ferritin level checked...it is the stored iron level in your body and it is a better test than the regular iron level test. Your regular iron test could be perfectly normal while this other one can show you as enemic. This is what caused my hair loss years ago btw and once I got my iron level taken care of it started improving soon after.

Also, it can take up to 3 months for the hair loss to slow or stop once you find the reason behind it so don't give up after a few weeks.

Get all of your hormone levels tested and your Ferritin level.

Take a good multi vitamin and there is a really informative site if you PM me I will give you that may help. There are lots of great women on there who can help you possibly narrow the cause down and give moral support.

Suzyszoo · 07-13-2010, 12:45 PM

I too had drastically thinning hair after about 40 lbs lost. I was afraid to comb it, wash it, because of all the hair that would left in my hands. Freaked me out.

I was told to try biotin, a good prenatal vitamin, fish oil, vitamin e and vitamin b's.

It's not uncommon to lose hair after a big weight loss. Or a stressful incident.

My hair has stopped falling out and is growing back thick again. Whether it's the vitamins, or my belief that they will help (lessens the stress) it's working.

sweetnlow28 · 07-13-2010, 03:37 PM

Thanks for the replies

I may have a doctor available in a couple weeks. A doctor I had years ago will be taking patients soon. I will keep my fingers crossed. Thanks for all the suggestions. I really hope it is just weight loss related and not something serious. My B vitamin complex has biotin in it but I am not sure its enough. I think a good step will be to have blood work done asap when I get a doctor. I will mention the ferritin and hormone levels to her.
Thanks again

Fressca · 07-13-2010, 04:08 PM

Something else I've heard is good for thinning hair - although I can't confirm - is chlorophyll (I think it may be a good source of iron).

HeyChelle · 07-13-2010, 04:13 PM

Definitely check with a doc. Hyper and Hypo thyroid issues can also cause hair loss. Hugs! Hope you find a solution soon.

K-boogie · 07-14-2010, 12:40 PM

When I first started losing weight my hair thinned out ALOT (I was doing very low carb). I started taking 5000mg Biotin and increased my carb intake and it is thicker and longer now.

I really hope the doctors are able to find what the problem is and hopefully it is just a side effect of weightloss. Please keep us posted and good luck to you.

fatmad · 07-14-2010, 09:13 PM

sometimes too, thinning hair is a genetic issue. Oddly too, having shorter hair helps. If there is any pressure on hair, (like ponytail weight, even elastics, ) that can pull at delicate roots and add to the thinning, so consider a short cut for the summer. The disadvantage is that this might show the thinning more, but may reduce the thinning. A good hairdress may help.
And thats a good treat to yourself for the weight loss you have accomplished.

likedmesmaller · 07-14-2010, 11:56 PM

2 years ago, I had sever hair loss. I was eating very low carb, but taking vitamins. I had lost 60lbs by that point. I stepped out of the shower and the drain was clogged, I was shocked to find huge patches of hair had washed out of my head!

I was told its was a vitamin deficiantcy, I didn't change my eating habits for my problem, I was told that it could have just been the stress on my body. I different diet, loosing the weight quickly, even normal stress.

It did come back in, If I remember right, if fell out steady for over a month. I learned to wear hats. . . lol! It did streighten itself out though. A doctor may be a good way to go, just to check everything out. Try to massage your scalp regularly, stimulates hair growth. New hair should grow in as soon as the growth cycle starts again.

Sorry thats not immediate help, I don't think anything can help you tonight.

likedmesmaller · 07-15-2010, 12:02 AM

I just googled HAIR LOSS WITH WEIGHT LOSS and come up with alot of info. It seams to be very common from bodily stress to vitamin deficiancy. Even multi vitamins can't fix everything.

Read up on it, there are other reasons for hair loss, but weight loss seams to be the guilty culprit. I would still consult a dr about it though. I think your loss is abit excessive, but everybody handles things differently.

Good luck!

going2bskinny · 07-27-2010, 03:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Suzyszoo

I too had drastically thinning hair after about 40 lbs lost. I was afraid to comb it, wash it, because of all the hair that would left in my hands. Freaked me out.

I was told to try biotin, a good prenatal vitamin, fish oil, vitamin e and vitamin b's.

It's not uncommon to lose hair after a big weight loss. Or a stressful incident.

My hair has stopped falling out and is growing back thick again. Whether it's the vitamins, or my belief that they will help (lessens the stress) it's working.

Can you tell what all the brands are of the vitamins you are taking I would really like to try them see if it works for me.

going2bskinny · 07-27-2010, 05:01 PM

My hair is thin on the top you may have pcos should get yourself checked for that too.