Breakage Vs Hair Loss
It can be hard to tell if you’re dealing with hair breakage or hair loss.
Hair loss is a widespread problem that affects 56 million Americans to some degree. While hair shedding is a part of a healthy hair growth process, abnormal interruptions to the natural hair cycle can cause uncommon hair shedding and hair loss.
So you might be asking:
Is this part of normal hair shedding?
Is it abnormal hair loss?
Or, is it breakage?
Here are a few signs you might have hair breakage:
Essential Vitamin Supplements Stop Hair Breakage
Whether it’s due to age, hormonal changes, everyday stress or over-styling, women’s hair can become damaged, and can suffer breakage or excess shedding. Vitamins for hair loss help to maintain healthy and conditioned hair and scalp by supplying essential nourishment. This helps maintain the best possible environment for healthy hair growth, and reduces hair damage and hair breakage.
Zinc Deficiency Hair Loss
Zinc is an essential mineral that is involved in various parts of cellular metabolism, protein synthesis, and general immune function.
Zinc deficiency can cause hair loss, diarrhea, and eye and skin conditions.12
Having enough zinc supports cellular replication and the hair growth. Studies suggest that those experiencing some forms of hair loss have low zinc levels, and supplementing with zinc may contribute to hair growth.13
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Best For Hair Breakage: Phyto Phytophanere Dietary Supplement For Hair And Nails
Kill three birds with one stone thanks to this French nutritional supplement from Phyto, which claims to promote fuller hair, stronger nails, and radiant skin. In a clinical study, 90% of users said they noticed their hair was stronger after using the product for three months â and some users even reported substantial eyelash growth while taking the biotin-filled formula.
To buy: $48
Can Supplements Or Vitamins Grow Women’s Hair
Inevitably, as they age, most women will suffer from some type of hair loss or thinning. In fact, the average woman will lose anywhere between 100 and 150 hairs per day. Of course, no one wants to be able to see their scalp through their hair, and even those with minimally thinning hair may want longer, thicker, or fuller hair, which we traditionally think of as more attractive.
Commercials and the media promote supplements and vitamins as the ideal solution for hair growth and improvement, but can supplements or vitamins grow women’s hair, and do supplements help with a thinning head of hair? As it turns out, it’s not all just wild claims. Here’s the breakdown. Do women hair supplements on the market contain vitamins and minerals for healthy hair? In short, yes, but you have to be very careful what you get. Many companies try to sell “magic” pills to promote hair growth and health. But unfortunately, many of these substances are backed by unsubstantiated claims. Even ones claiming to be ‘natural’, can contain ingredients that may actually detract from, rather than add to, your hair’s health. Don’t purchase from an unverified source or from a retailer making far-fetched promises. Instead, opt for a reliable, legitimate supplement such as Viviscal, which contains ingredients of natural origins and is drug-free.
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Best Vitamin For Women’s Hair Growth
Dosage: 4 capsules
Nutrafol takes into account women’s hormones, stress, lifestyle, metabolism, nutrition and aging when creating vitamins. It knows that women’s hair goes through a lot. In addition to the women’s vitamins, Nutrafol also has vitamins for women postpartum.
Each bottle of Nutrafol contains vitamins A, C, D, biotin, iodine, zinc and selenium. In addition, there are 1,680 mg of Nutrafol’s Synergen Complex and 530 mg of Nutrafol Blend.
The women’s vitamins contain more vitamin C than the men’s but less mg of both the Synergen Complex and Nutrafol Blend. The women’s Synergen Complex contains more collagen than the men’s, as well as more keratin in the Nutrafol Blend.
Save 10% if you opt for a monthly subscription through the Nutrafol site.
Pros of Nutrafol Women:
- Vitamins cater exactly for women and women’s hair issues
- Contains all of the essential vitamins for hair strengthening
Cons of Nutrafol Women:
- You have to take four capsules a day
What Ingredients Should You Look For In Hair Supplements
Since your hair and nails are primarily made of keratin, the compound MSM is an especially ideal ingredient to help improve the appearance and feel of hair, as it helps your body maintain it. “To help with dry skin and scalp, essential fatty acids found in avocado and oily fish, like salmon, are helpful. In vitamin form you are looking for Omega-3 rather than 6 or 9,” adds Sey.
In addition to MSM and Omega-3 acids, ingredients like vitamins A, C and E, saw palmetto, ashwagandha, hydrolyzed collagen, biotin, keratin, and magnesium can also be helpful in the regrowth process. While some vitamins can be useful to those in need of extra nutrients to encourage scalp health and hair growth, professionals advise that your body will naturally eliminate excess nutrients it doesn’t actually need. “Vitamins usually only work if there is a deficiency in the first instance,” says Sey. “If the body is balanced, then those surplus vitamins are not useful, and in the case of water soluble vitamins like biotin the excess comes out in your urine. Ideally, it is best to get your vitamins from your food.”
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Vitamins To Stop Hair Breakage
3 Vitamins to Stop Hair Breakage
Hair breakage can start out of nowhere, and it can be incredibly discouraging . Fortunately, by making small adjustments to your diet, you might be able to help stop and prevent severe hair breakage and thinning.
Vitamins play an essential role in keeping your hair strands strong and healthy. Below are three powerhouse vitamins you should take to prevent hair breakage and excessive hair fall. Well also give you some additional healthy hair diet tips. Keep reading for the best vitamins for hair breakage!
How We Selected The Best Products For Thinning Hair
When selecting products for hair growth, we spoke with dermatologists and spent hours combing the web for the best and most effective products. After taking all of our options into consideration, we determined which to feature based on a few key criteria as recommended by dermatologists: key ingredients, form, and lifestyle habits.
Once we narrowed down our options, we compared each treatment’s benefits to its price tag. While some choices on our list may be more expensive, we wanted to give a wide range of options that would fit all needs and budgets. Based on all of these factors, we compiled this list of the best OTC hair growth treatments.
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Best For Fast Results: Ouai Hair Supplement For Thinning Hair
“These supplements have all you need,” says Dr. Hamdan. “They contain all the important vitamins and minerals, as well as amino acids and silica.” Also good? You just need to take one of these hair growth pills a day, and the packaging is convenient for travel.
One Sephora shopper said they noticed major growth after just 17 days of use. “My hair started thinning when I hit my 21st birthday, and I’ve always been complimented for my thick long hair so it made me really insecure. Luckily, this product has actually been making a difference,” they wrote. “I can see baby hairs growing in some of my bald spots. The length of my hair has grown longer, too.”
Are Hair Growth Vitamins Safe To Take
Most vitamin and mineral supplements are considered safe for healthy adults. However, many people are able to meet their nutrient needs through diet alone, and taking supplements could cause you to overconsume some nutrients .
Its important to consult a healthcare professional before starting any new supplement, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medications.
Choosing a product that has been third-party tested will also help ensure that the product you buy contains what is listed on the label.
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How Do I Know If I Have A Vitamin Deficiency
Vitamins and minerals do play a role in hair health, and vitamin deficiency can be behind hair loss. There are quite a few signs that can give clues if someone has a severe vitamin deficiency. To get a better idea, Herrmann broke down a few common deficiencies and what they may cause. According to Herrmann:
- Vitamin C deficiency: This causes hair-splitting, bleeding gums, nosebleeds, poor wound healing, and problems fighting infections.
- Niacin deficiency: Can cause a scaly rash on sun-exposed skin, headaches, vomiting and diarrhea, fatigue, and depression.
- Vitamin A deficiency: This can cause dry skin, dry eyes, night blindness, delayed growth, and breakouts.
“Vitamin deficiencies can be detected through blood work. They are uncommon except in those following strict diets, including vegan diets,” Herrmann explains. “Vegans may need to supplement to make sure they obtain adequate amounts of vitamins that come from animal products. Also, strict sun avoidance can put someone at higher risk for vitamin D deficiency.”
Q: My Hair Isn’t As Thick And Full As It Once Was Is There A Supplement For Hair Growth That Can Help
A: If you experience hair thinning because your diet is lacking in a specific nutrient, addressing your deficiency through supplements may help restore healthy growth. However, you want to avoid just choosing any random daily multi-vitamin on the shelf, as a more targetted approach may be best, according to pros. Before diving in, be sure to consult your healthcare provider for the necessary bloodwork or other testing needed to determine the best hair growth supplement for you.
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Best For Stronger Hair: Moon Juice Superhair Daily Hair Nutrition
Looking to grow thicker, stronger hair? Consider these supplements from Moon Juice. On top of ingredients like biotin, kelp, and plant extracts to help hair grow stronger and more lustrous, this product is infused with adaptogens to help relieve stress. “I’ve tried hair/nail supplements in the past but to no avail. This product is nothing short of incredible! My hair feels thicker and softer since I’ve been taking SuperHair. Another bonus is that it replaces my multi-vitamin and I am feeling more energy,” raved one happy customer.
To buy: $60
Vitamins To Transform Your Dry Damaged Hair Into Perfect Glossy Locks
Keeping your hair healthy and beautiful requires proper nutrition. Certain key vitamins are especially important.
Does your hair need some love? Healthy, shiny hair is about more than just the shampoo and conditioner you use. What you put into your body matters just as much as what you put into your hair, and vitamins and supplements are a crucial hidden weapon in the fight for healthy, shiny hair.
However, when it comes to transforming your hair from damaged to dazzling, not every vitamin is equal. Here are six of the best vitamins you can take for great hair health from the inside out.
Vitamin A is critical for cell growth, and may help your hair grow faster.
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How Do Hair Loss Vitamins Work
A well-balanced diet helps you to maintain overall health as well as healthy hair. According to the Eatwell Guide, a healthy diet is made up largely of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, with smaller amounts of protein, beans, dairy products, and oils. Crisps, candy, biscuits, and other sweets and snacks should be eaten sparingly.
However, eating a healthy diet is easier said than done! With all the stresses of daily life, it can be tricky to eat the wide variety of foods that your hair follicles require to grow hair. Thats why, in many cases, hair loss is the result of a poor diet or a nutritional deficiency.
The good news is that hair loss vitamins work by supplementing your diet with all the vitamins and minerals your hair follicles need for healthy hair growth. They help to fill in the gaps of your diet so that your hair growth never suffers.
However, hair loss supplements can only effectively nourish the hair follicles when they are formulated with the best hair loss vitamins. To learn the best vitamins for hair loss, keep reading!
Best Budget: Sports Research Biotin With Coconut Oil
A great budget-friendly choice, these vegan soft gel supplements are infused with organic coconut oil to prevent hair breakage from the inside out. They also contain 5,000 micrograms of growth-promoting biotin, which was recommended by some of our dermatologists and has been clinically shown to improve hair and nail growth in individuals who have an underlying condition that prevents normal growth.
The $15 product has a whopping 37,000 perfect ratings from Amazon shoppers, many of whom included before and after photos of their hair growth to show that the product lives up to its claims. One user said they were “amazed at how well this worked” after suffering from thinning hair for six months, while another said it “really helps with thin hair” and continued: “I could not believe the difference in my hair. It was thicker and fuller. My hairdresser noticed without saying anything. She is now recommending to all who complain of thin hair.”
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Biotin Or Vitamin B Keep The Scalp Healthy
Biotin is the B vitamin responsible for keeping your scalp primed and in perfect condition for healthy hair growth. Is it a great vitamin for hair breakage? Well, a deficiency in this nutrient can result in a dry, itchy scalp and weak, dehydrated and easily-breakable hair. If your hair is prone to looking thin, dry or brittle, you may be lacking in biotin. Dry or lacklustre skin can also be an indicator that you need to start taking a supplement.
Clinical studies have demonstrated that supplementing with biotin not only leads to stronger, more resilient locks, but also to increased speed of hair growth and improved thickness and shine.
Medically Endorsed Hair Loss Treatments
In the UK, only two hair loss medicines are actually endorsed by the medical community, and have been proven to treat hair growth.
Prescription tablets:Finasteride
The most effective treatment for male pattern baldness is Finasteride . This prescription treatment is not available on the NHS, but you can order it through affordable services like our own LloydsPharmacy Online Doctor. Finasteride has been proven to stop hair loss in 90% of men with male pattern baldness.
Medicated foam/lotion:Minoxidil
Minoxidil is a lotion or foam that is applied to the scalp every day as an effective hair loss treatment. It is not as effective as Propecia, but has still been proven to stop hair loss and promote hair regrowth in 60% of men with male pattern baldness. Minoxidil is available without a prescription, through high street pharmacies or supermarkets. You can also order it online from our website.
References
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How Does Biotin Help Hair Grow
Biotin is a B-vitamin complex sometimes called Vitamin B7 . Your body naturally produces it in the intestines, and it is also found in foods such as dark green leafy vegetables, nuts and egg yolks.
Biotin deficiency can cause hair loss. Biotin promotes hair growth by renewing the hair follicles that are already growing. Biotin supplements in your diet can result in thicker, fuller and healthier looking hair. The daily dose of two tablets of Viviscal Extra Strength vitamin supplements for women’s hair growth contains a total of 240 mcg of Biotin , which is 80% of the average adult’s recommended daily value .
Short Pieces Of Hair Throughout Your Head
Hair loss would present itself as areas of sparseness on the scalp because your hair is falling out from the root. Whereas with breakage, the hair is still in your scalp, but it has broken at some point on the hair shaft, making it shorter than the rest of your hair. Little “baby hairs” is a sign of breakage.
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Vitamin D Deficiency Hair Loss
While the main role of vitamin D is to maintain healthy levels of calcium and phosphorous in the blood, research shows that vitamin D has important roles in hair growth.7 Vitamin D plays an important role in maintaining immune health. Immune systems can sometimes attack the bodys own hair follicles, causing poor growth and hair loss. Some of these autoimmune conditions include alopecia areata and alopecia totalis. Supplementation with vitamin D can help blunt inflammatory responses that impair hair growth.
Vitamin D is synthesized endogenously when your skin is exposed to UV rays from the sun. This means that you probably dont need vitamin D supplementation if you spend a lot of time in the sun. Since vitamin D aids hair growth, if you arent outside much or its during the dark days of winter, consider investing in a sun lamp or taking a vitamin D supplement.
Vitamin D is not found in many foods naturally, though beef liver, salmon, and eggs are good sources of vitamin D. Most of the vitamin D in the average American diet comes from fortified foods, including milk, breakfast cereals, and some brands of yogurt, orange juice, and margarine. The two most important forms of this vitamin are D2, which is obtained from plant foods, and D3, which is made by animals and by the skin when exposed to sunlight. Most supplements contain vitamin D3.
Take These 7 Vitamins If You Want Longer Thicker Hair
Thick hair can signify good health. This is why having hair loss could be concerning.
Sean Jackson
Sean Jackson is a creative copywriter living in Florida. He’s had work published with Realtor.com, theScore, ESPN, and the San Francisco Chronicle. In his free time, Sean likes to play drums, fail miserably at improv and spend time at the beach.
According to the American Academy of Dermatology Association, it’s normal to shed between 50 to 100 hairs daily. However, if you’re experiencing more hair loss on a regularly, other factors could be the cause. Hair loss can result of genetics, medical conditions, stress and vitamin deficiencies.
Diet plays a crucial role in developing healthy hair. If you severely lack essential nutrients such as vitamin A, C, D, E, zinc, protein, fatty acids and Biotin, it can lead to hair loss.
With a proper diet, you could have thicker, healthier hair. Keep reading to find out what vitamins are the best for hair growth.
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