Let’s face it – we love our food and we love our hair. The great thing is that food can do great things for our hair, just like it can do for our nails and skin. When you notice that your hair looks a little bit unusual, you might want to reconsider your diet. What we eat and our habits (like smoking for example which cuts down the amount of biotin in your blood) affect our entire body in many ways and not just our stomach and tongue. Our hair, just like our nails is made out of the protein called keratin so it is logical that similar choices affect them both equally. With all that being said, here are some foods and vitamins and their roles in the health of your hair.
Carrots
It helps you with losing weight but it also helps you with reducing and almost eliminating hair loss. Carrots affect the strength of your hair and speeds up the growing process. If you eat carrots on a daily basis, your hair will grow faster, it will be much shinier, and it will be less damaged. It will be enough just to drink one glass of pure carrot juice a day or eat one carrot a day and you will see the results in no time.
Proteins
Hair is made out of proteins so it is totally normal that when you are lacking them, you will start losing hair. Don’t worry, if you are a vegetarian, meat is not the only protein-based food. There are beans, spinach, tofu etc. Foods with amino acids actually create keratin – cystine, which is also very good for your hair. Foods like pork, broccoli, red peppers are full of it.
Sugars
You already know that sugar is bad for you and you shouldn’t be eating it in the first place. Not only does it makes you gain weight and makes your skin greasy, it also causes your blood sugar to spike. When that happens the insulin starts to pump and levels of androgen are raising. Androgen is a male hormone which can sometimes make your hair follicles shrink.
Eggs
Probably one of the best foods to prevent hair loss. They are full of proteins and we all know how much we need proteins. One egg has from 4 to 7,2 grams of protein which makes it one of the best treatments for your hair. If you are not a fan of eggs, you can make egg masks which will work the same as if you ate them.
Iron and zinc
These metals are the most important substances in our bodies. They affect the formation of healthy follicles and hair growth. You should eat red meat (which is filled with iron and zinc) at least three times a week. For the ones who don’t eat meat, there are some replacements like soya and lemon (which is filled with vitamin C which encourages iron absorption).
Vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin D
Vitamin A can be found in fish, dairy products and animal liver. It is good for your hair because it forms a thin layer of tallow on the root of the hair, which saves it from damaging. But be careful, when this vitamin is consumed in ultra-high doses, it can lead to hair loss. When it comes to vitamin C, a regular and healthy person would need approximately 60 milligrams of it per day, while smokers and people who are exposed to a lot of stress need at least 2 grams of it per day. You can find it in pepper, lemon, kiwi, green vegetables, green walnuts, potato etc. It is great for the immune system, as it is a great antioxidant, and it is fabulous for our hair also. If we lack vitamin C, our hair will become dry and the ends split. Men and women who are consume a lot of vitamin C have strong, healthy and luxuriant hair.
Vitamin D can be found in fish oil, herrings, yeast, sardines and other sea fish, eggs, avocado, butter and beef. Daily doses are always combined with vitamin A. Vitamin D helps your hair to grow and even if it enters your body through the food, it needs sun exposure for at least 10 minutes to be „activated“. If you are on a diet or you’re simply not a fan of all these groceries above, you need to start using hair vitamins as an equal replacement for them.
Walnuts
They accelerate the growing process like nothing else. Not only are they filled with omega – 6 acids, but they are also full of iron, zinc and vitamins B1, B6 and B9, healthy fats and many proteins. If you eat them on a daily basis, your hair will be healthy and strong as long as you are consuming them. But be careful though. Walnuts also have selenium inside of them, which is a mineral known to cause hair loss for people who have too much of it in their organism. The point is, one or two handful of walnuts a week is perfectly enough.
That would be it. Be careful what you are eating and take care of your hair and your nails. It is not that hard to eat right and it can only do you good.