Reducing hair loss associated with weight loss
 

I've lost 50 lbs. since June. Now I'm losing my hair! I went for a checkup on Monday and my doctor agreed the excess shedding is probably due to the weight loss since I'm not premenopausal and my scalp looked ok. My blood work all came back normal. She said it would calm down once I met my goal weight.

But I'm losing sooo much and it's really depressing. I have super long hair, so I'm talking about handfuls a day. I have 20 lbs. more to lose and I'm afraid I'll be bald by then! Besides drinking enough water, eating protein, and vitamins, is there anything I can do to slow it down? And, more importantly, will it all grow back? :?:

I'm going through the exact same thing atm
:( but I still have 70+ lbs to go!


Well I am taking Bari Efa which is fish oil pills, I was told that it will help me, it's been a few months but only notice a little improvement tbh.


Hang in there! hopefully we'll get our beautiful hair growing back soon :)

Hair is made out of protein, you will probably have to google or read each food container to find out how many grams of protein are in each food you consume to make sure you are eating enough of it per day. Iron is essential too.
For example if your ideal weight is 70 kilograms you have to consume 70 grams of protein per day to keep hair growing and also for heart health.

1 egg – has 6 grams of protein
100g cottage cheese – 15g protein
100g cooked meat – 30g of protein
150g fresh fish cooked -42g of protein
100g tin of tuna – 20g of protein
105g tin of salmon – 40g of protein
1 cup of low fat yogurt – 8g of protein
250ml skim milk – 10g of protein
100g red lentils - 25g of protein

My frontal hair was quite see-through from dieting without consuming enough hair growing nutrients. I sought medical help and finally my comb-over parting is back to normal. It took a year for me though.

I lost a TON of hair too right about when I reached my goal, after 6-7months on my dietn& continued into maintenance for a couple of months. My hair grew back completely, but it took a few months of maintenance eating. I remember my relief when I could feel the stubble of new growth on my scalp! Special supplements, eg biotin, inositol & shampoos did NOT help--save your money :) Sometimes cutting the hair or re-styling can tide you over. I actually shopped for a wig.

The condition is called Telogen Effluvium. A physiological shock like a diet can send more than the usual amount of hair follicles into their resting phase. The resting hairs fall out in large numbers as new growth pushes them out. That loss of hair means new hair is on the way, just needs time to grow out.

Somewhere on 3FC is a thread about hair loss associated with dieting. I'll try to find and link it. Apparently ANY restricted CALORIE diet can do this. It doesn't happen to everyone, but it does happen to many.

I'm just connecting to this so I can see when/if Sundove posts the link :)

:wave: BelovedWarrior! Hope this helps! Wishing you All the Best on your upcoming Big Day!

Long post, here is the link from Ideal Protein thread about hair loss.

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/ideal-protein-diet/215794-hair-loss-5.html

The article below, from that thread, says low carb is the culprit but I have read that hair loss can occur on any very low calorie diet.

Avalon1957 (post 65) wrote:

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.

lisa32989 post 68 wrote:
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.

Eat fish.

Sundove - Thank you very much for doing the research. I will bookmark it just in case I need it. I know people can lose hair after a major surgery -- almost like a shock to the system.

IanG - WOW!! You have really put a lot of work into your program ... and without missing an adult beverage of your choice ;) I have a question ... and I'm not certain if this is the place to ask about it, but I don't have instant messenger... so, I don't know where else I would ask this. I notice you mention two products you took/take for your knees. Can you give me more info regarding that and how it helped your knees? Thanks...

Three things.

Glucosamine chondroitin supplements.

Good running shoes, if you run or walk a lot. Try hoka one one.

And oily fish.

5+ miles a day running and no problems.

I should also say that losing weight helps knees a lot. At 281lbs I had serious knee problems that mostly went away at 220lbs without any exercise. But once I started exercising then, they did come back hence the fixes above which have since banished them.

Good luck.

Just to chime in on the knee supp, I second IanG's recommendation!
One of my patient's told me about "Move Free". I am a runner and recently started having issues with my left knee and started taking it.
It takes about a month to really tell a difference, but if I don't take it for a day or 2 now, my left knee really gives me trouble!

As far as the whole hair thing, I started losing my hair by the handfuls about a yr ago. I am convinced I am pre-menapausal although the blood work comes back contraindicating. I have other symptoms too. But, I started taking OTC hair, skin, and nails vitamins and can really tell a difference! I have new hair growing back, longer lashes, and my nails have never looked this well!!

IanG and K9Owner ... thank you! I will check those products out.

K9O- what OTC product are you using for hair... etc? :thanks:

BelovedWarrior: Uhm….I don't have the bottle in front of me, but I get it at Wal-Mart. It's like $12/bottle. I'll get you the name and send it in a PM.

Could you send me a PM as well? Thanks!