LOL! We'll be a bunch of skinny people with mullets - a new trend!

LOL!

lolol
well everything else from the 80's is back so why not!!

Low Carb Diets & Hair Loss
by Julia Michelle (Demand Media)

Low-carb diets limit carbohydrate intake by removing foods such as bread, rice and pasta from the diet. These types of diet may also remove many fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Depending on the type of diet chosen, participants may consume large quantities of protein-rich foods, such as meats, eggs and dairy to compensate for the missing carbohydrates. A possible side effect of a low carb diet, according to After 50 Health, is hair loss. To understand how a low carb diet might cause hair loss, one should be aware of what hair is and how it grows.

Hair Structure

Hair is composed of two parts: the strand and the root. The root is a small bulb of living tissue that sits below the surface of the skin inside a pocket called a follicle. The follicle provides the root with nutrients and oxygen through a network of tiny blood vessels. The strand is the visible part of the hair and is non-living tissue. The strand is made of long chains of a protein called keratin and has three layers: the medulla, cortex and cuticle. The cuticle is the outer layer of the hair, it resembles layered scales and protects the cortex and medulla from damage.

Hair Growth

Hair has two growth phases: The anagen phase and the telogen phase. During the anagen, or growth, phase the hair grows steadily for two or three years. During this phase, the hair can grow as much as 1/2 inch per month, depending on heredity and other factors. During the telogen, or resting, phase the hair stops growing for up to three months. Approximately 10 percent of all hairs go into resting phase, while the remaining 90 percent stay in the growing phase. At the end of the resting period, the resting hairs go back into the anagen phase, where new hair starts growing and pushes the old hair out of the follicle.

Dieting and Hair Loss

If the dieter consumes far fewer calories than the body needs, or removes crucial nutrients, this creates stress. According to Dr. Michael Eades, the stress from restrictive diets causes more follicles than normal to go into the telogen (resting) phase. This may be because the body does not have enough calories, or nutrients, to support the growth phase. Once the stress has passed, the growth phase starts again and new hairs push out the old. If a large percentage of the hair was in telogen (or resting/dormant) phase, this results in sometimes significant hair loss. Sometimes, per Dr. Eades, the hair loss can occur months after the dieter begins eating normally, when new hair growth begins to push out the old dormant hair. This type of hair loss is called “telogen effluvium.”

Low-Carb Diets and Hair Loss

Carbohydrates are calorically dense, and removing large quantities from the diet also removes a significant source of calories. These types of diets may also create vitamin and mineral deficiencies, depending on the severity of the restriction. For example, Phase 1 of the Atkins diet allows several salad greens but only allows 20 g of carbohydrates a day — 300 g per day is the typical recommended amount. Because the number of allowed carbohydrates is so low, dieters may not consume enough fruits and vegetables to provide enough nutrients.

Conclusion

The body uses carbohydrates for energy to fuel all the processes in the body. Low-carb diets rob the body of its preferred fuel, forcing it to break down fat for energy. Additionally, these diets restrict calories by removing several foods from the diet. The combination of caloric and nutritional restriction puts the body under stress, which can cause the loss of hair.

Thanks for the GREAT information Avalon!

Seitan:
That article was one opinion. I have actually found other info that the hair loss could be more about fat consumption or just overall calorie consumption. The jury seems to be out on the exact cause but it is not necessarily just due to carb restriction.

I left a longer response to your cross-post on the daily thread.

Thanks for that info Seitan, I never even considered a weave and at the point in hairloss where even in a ponytail my scalp can be seen in front. My hair was never thick to begin with and I have seriously been extremely worried about this.

I went on Maintenance the first week of November and then began losing hair. I've kept my weight steady but the hair loss has continued.

Found this info just this evening:
http://healthyliving.msn.com/health-...ng-your-hair#1

Hope it helps someone. I'm clinging to their statement regarding #15, dramatic weight loss. They indicate that after about 6 months it reverses itself. Only 2 more months to go I guess.....

I was losing my hair from weight loss (not IP), and found that switching to Nizerol shampoo really helped. It's an anti-fungal shampoo but the active ingredient as a side-effect helps counteract the androgen imbalance (caused by losing a lot of estrogen-producing fat) which can trigger hair loss.

Now I regularly use Nizerol because I'm post-menopausal and that led to thinning hair. Once again, switching to Nizerol has helped. Google nizerol with hair loss. It's a well-known phenomenon. There are other shampoos with the same active ingredient (keotoconazole), but I've found them to be more expensive.

Lost 30lbs on IP last year. And lost a lot of hair. A year later I have gained back 10lbs. I still needed to lose 10 so now up to 20 on the chopping block. I have decided to do IP for 2 weeks for a jump start and then just calorie watch using my Fitnesspal App. After the first two weeks on IP I never lost anymore than a pound or two a week. Sorry but the hair loss on this plan just wasn't worth it for me. And I did take Omegas... And Biotin... And Hair and Nails formula. Still lost a wack of hair. My neighbor lady is wearing a wig now from all the hair loss while on IP. I am not criticizing anybody for being on this plan because I love a lot of the recipes and the people here, but I simply WILL NOT go through that hairloss again.

Btw... I had lost 20 lbs years ago with no hair loss... Exercise and healthy eating. Just sayin...

Hm... I've lost 116 lbs on IP with no hair loss. Guess it's different for everyone.

Hair loss could be connected to soy and a thyroid reaction
 

Just adding my 2 cents, but after losing 60 lbs on medifast I began to lose hair along my scalpline as well as from my eyebrows. It turns out that, for some people, having too much soy can trigger a thyroid problem which results in hair loss. The protein in all of the medifast food is soy. Other than that, I felt fantastic while on that diet! If any of you also see hair loss in your brows, you might consider seeing an endocrinologist to check your thyroid.

I'm six weeks into maintenance and still loosing hair like crazy. It makes me so sad because I use to love my hair! The hair loss began about four months into the diet (I was on P1 for 9 months total) and there has been no noticeable slowing down. Hoping I see an end to the hair loss soon.

Any other maintainers who continued to lose after phasing off? How long until the massive shedding stopped?

I lost a ton of hair as I began maintenance. I wish I could recall the timing, but it did grow back fully in a matter of months. It has something to do with the cycle of hair growth. Hang in there!