How Diet Affects Hair Loss – Healthline

Hair loss is a common condition known as alopecia in the medical field.

It has many known causes, including (1, 2):

• genetics
• hormonal dysregulation
• hypothyroidism
• tension on the hair
• trauma
• infection
• chemotherapy

Hair loss can also be caused by diet-related factors, such as nutrient deficiencies and supplement use (3).

This article explains how diet can affect hair loss.

Hair is made up of two main structures — the hair shaft, which is what you see, and the hair follicle, which is hidden underneath the skin. Hair grows from the hair follicle (4).

Hair typically grows at a rate of 0.35 mm per day. The scalp sheds about 100 hairs per day, which can increase with hair care practices like washing and brushing (5).

Hair follicles are highly active and sensitive. In fact, hair follicle cells are among the most rapidly dividing cells in your body, so it’s no surprise that nutrient deficiencies can negatively affect hair growth (3).

Iron

Iron deficiency is the most common nutrient deficiency in the world and can cause hair loss (3).

This condition is related to a type of hair loss known as telogen effluvium (TE), a type of hair loss characterized by a disruption in the normal hair growth cycle. This leads to excessive hair shedding and hair loss (5).

Researchers are still studying how iron deficiency causes hair loss, but it appears to disrupt hair growth by diverting iron stores in the hair follicle to other areas of the body (6).

Some studies have shown that people with hair loss tend to have lower iron levels in their blood and hair compared with people who don’t have hair loss (7, 8).

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Source: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/how-diet-affects-hair-loss