Have you noticed that there's more hair clogging up your brush these days? Or you’re suddenly having to pull more hair out of the drain in the shower lately? Maybe you’re noticing multiple strands of hair stuck between your fingers when you run your hands through your hair, or you’ve even noticed your hair looks so much thinner now?
Thinning hair can be a super scary thing to go through, especially when you have no idea of what’s going on. I’ve actually had this question asked a lot of times in clinic and been through this myself. Sometimes it’s a simple cause, other times it’s a little more complex. There are a few reasons why this could be happening to you, so read on to see what could be causing your hair loss, and what you can do about it right now.
Low protein
Hair is literally made of protein, so before looking at any nutrients in particular, are you eating enough protein? If you’re not getting enough protein (or maybe you’re not digesting & absorbing protein properly), it’s going to show in your hair. Aim to fill around ¼ of your plate with protein at each meal, along with protein rich snacks between meals (if you’re hungry). Good quality protein sources include chicken, turkey, fish, eggs, grass-fed red meat, organic tofu, tempeh (avoid soy products if you have thyroid issues), Greek yoghurt and protein powder. You also need biotin (a B vitamin) which works with amino acids to help with hair growth, strength and protection.
If you struggle with bloating after eating protein, you may have low stomach acid. Adequate stomach acid is needed to break down our food properly for absorption. Protein in particular, needs an acidic environment for proper digestion. Antacid medications, low thyroid function, stress, nutrient deficiencies and ageing are just some of the factors that can upset your stomach acidity. If you suspect you have low stomach acid, it’s best to get checked out with a professional before self diagnosing. Your practitioner can then prescribe certain homemade acidic drinks, supplements, or nutrients to help you bring your stomach acid back up to better digest and absorb protein.
Low iodine.
Iodine is one of the most important nutrients for our thyroid. Our thyroid hormones NEED iodine. It’s so common for people to have low amounts of iodine in their diets. So much so, that common foods like table salt, breads and flour have been fortified with this nutrient. And it’s easy to see why, when the richest sources of iodine naturally come from the sea: seaweed, fish, seafood, or from land sources; like egg yolks and dairy. It’s super common for me to see clients that have low intakes of fish or seafood; mostly due to taste preferences and even dairy or wheat/bread (which is fortified) because so many of us feel bloated or sick when they eat those foods. So how can we get more iodine in our diets to support our thyroid? If you can’t eat dairy or wheat, snack on seaweed snacks, make sushi, sprinkle crushed up nori sheets into your meals, make miso soup, include seafood like trout, crab, or prawns (all wild caught) in your diet at least 2-3 times per week and eat the WHOLE egg, including the yolk (not just the egg white).
Low Zinc.
This one also plays in with low thyroid function, but actually has a direct role in the health of our hair and scalp. Zinc supports the growth of hair from the very start with it’s role in cell division and utilisation of protein. Zinc is a pretty common deficiency we see in people who have been chronically stressed, or who have poor digestion (especially low stomach acid), or who simply aren’t eating enough foods rich in zinc. Get your zinc levels checked and look at whether you’re regularly eating zinc rich foods like oysters, shellfish, pumpkin seeds/pepitas, other nuts and seeds, red meat, poultry, legumes, eggs, dairy and whole grains. Zinc is also very important for our hormones, by working against abnormally high androgens (eg. testosterone) and promoting a healthy cycle (which promotes healthy hair!).
Low iron
The thyroid needs iron to do its job, so these two also go hand in hand. Iron is an important component of red blood cells, which deliver oxygen and nutrients around the body, including the scalp and hair follicles. Its important to look at your iron levels to see if low iron is contributing to your hair loss, which is a common iron deficiency symptom. Make sure you’re getting enough vitamin C in your diet to help you absorb iron too. Think foods like kiwi fruit, citrus fruits, tomatoes, red capsicum and strawberries and try to eat vitamin C rich foods while eating haem-iron rich foods such as red meat, poultry, pork, fish/seafood, or non-haem iron found in eggs, dairy, lentils, beans, tofu, dark leafy greens, whole grains or nuts and seeds.
Low vitamin D
Vitamin D is an important immune system regulator, so if an autoimmune condition (particularly alopecia) is behind your hair loss, adequate vitamin D levels may be important. In addition to this, vitamin D helps to stimulate hair growth, including creating new hair follicles. While we need sun exposure to make vitamin D, it’s important to also get your vitamin D levels checked with your Doctor.
Low fat diet
Our cells need fats for healthy membrane structure and to promote strong, shiny hair. Fats also aid in the absorption of our fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E & K) which are important for hair growth. Fish oil in particular, has been found to promote hair growth and hair strength. Ensure you are meeting your 2-3 servings of oily fish per week, such as salmon, trout, snapper and sardines, plus focus on other healthy fats in the diet such as avocado, olive oil, olives, nuts and seeds. Fats are also super important for healthy hormones, which are another important factor to hair loss.
The oral contraceptive pill (OCP – birth control).
The synthetic hormones in the OCP mimic or are very similar in structure to our natural hormones; but they’re not the same. As an example, the progestins in the OCP have an androgenic (eg. testosterone is an androgen) effect in the body, and they can trigger hair loss in women who are genetically predisposed to hair loss (important: because hair loss doesn’t occur in all women on the pill), by reducing the size of the hair follicle itself. Throw inflammation into the mix and the hair follicles are much more prone to reducing in size. If this is something that you suspect has contributed to your hair loss, it would be a good idea to speak to your Doctor (and don’t stop taking any medications before you speak to them).
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)
A feature of PCOS is high androgens, which can change your body’s hair distribution by decreasing hair growth on your scalp and increasing body hair, including facial hair. While hair loss doesn’t necessarily occur for everyone in PCOS, those with a genetic predisposition to follicle sensitivity to androgens may experience more hair loss. Certain nutrients such as zinc are important considerations for high androgens and working with your practitioner to manage your PCOS is important for addressing hair loss. Not only this, blood sugar issues which are characteristic of PCOS raise insulin, leading to a rise in androgens >> hair loss.
Low thyroid function
This one is a little more complex, but it’s actually pretty common. Low thyroid function can occur for multiple different reasons; stress and nutrient deficiencies included. Have you been feeling more tired lately? Could sleep for hours but still feel tired when you wake up? Is your skin dry, or flaky? Do you get cold hands and feet? Has your weight been a little harder to shift, or have you noticed the weight increasing? These, along with thinning hair are just some of the symptoms of low thyroid function. If this sounds like you, its important to get yourself checked for low thyroid function. If you can, try to get your T3, T4, reverse T3 and thyroid antibodies checked, along with the standard TSH levels as low thyroid function can still be present with a normal TSH result.
Stress & HPA Axis Dysregulation ('Adrenal Fatigue')
As a simple example, stress increases cortisol levels, which in turn may reduce progesterone by using up essential nutrients required for progesterone production (such as vitamin B6), and the body may also USE progesterone to make more cortisol. Progesterone helps to block the effects of androgens to protect the hair follicle. Maybe you’re not feeling stressed mentally or emotionally, but perhaps you’re going too hard with the dieting and exercise. Consider whether you need to tone things down to reduce activation of your stress response. Too much activation of the HPA axis may lead to dysregulation of this cycle (aka Adrenal Fatigue) and result in abnormally high cortisol levels.
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Dry hair:
While this might seem super obvious, sometimes we’re so overwhelmed with feeling worried about our hair loss that we focus too much on what the worst case scenario problem could be, that we forget to start with the simple things first. Dry hair can come simply from a change in weather; heat, humidity, cold weather; wind to even spending a lot of time in air-conditioning, the ocean or the sun. Maybe you’ve just switched shampoo or conditioner and it’s not quite as nourishing? Have you been using a hair straightener more often, or have you accidentally increased the temperature on it? Have you been using hairspray then running a straightener through your hair multiple times afterwards? Dry or damaged hair is more prone to breakage and it can break further up the hair shaft, causing the appearance of thinning hair (plus more hair in your brush, shower, floor, everywhere!). It could just mean you’re due for a trim or a deep conditioning treatment to get your locks nice and smooth again to prevent breakage.
There are many other intricate factors to consider with hair loss or thinning hair, such as heavy metal toxicity, hormone imbalance, chronic inflammation, oxidative stress or even particular nutrient deficiencies that can drive the conditions mentioned above, just to name a few. Remember to never self-diagnose and always seek professional medical advice from your Doctor if you are concerned about your health and hair loss.
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