On many occasions, I have blogged about proper nutrition and hair care aiding in the prevention of hair loss. Some of this I’ve talked about before but I think it bears repeating. Others is new information that I like to pass along.

Some of what we know about the hair is that it grows in cycles. Some follicles rest while others are shedding and growing. As you age, re-growth eventually becomes so fine that you can’t see it. The unfortunate statistic is that over 25 percent of women over 50 will lose more than half of their hair.

Hair loss can be passed down from either parent’s side. In all likely hood, if you father is bald, you could end up with hair loss issues as well. For the female, the thinning usually occurs throughout the crown area.

Pregnancy, illness, divorce or any other major stressors can cause you to shed all of you “resting” hair. Usually this will happen from 2-6 mounts after the event, although, in these situations, the hair loss is usually temporary and will most likely grow back naturally.

Other contributing factors for hair loss which we’ve also discussed, include protein deficiencies caused by extreme dieting which can also make the hair dry and baby-fine, while tight hairstyles such as ponytails, can put so much tension on the hair follicles that they are ripped out. Once gone, there is nothing left to product new hair.

It is important to keep your hair hydrated and to style it gently. Repetitive stress such as brushing and blow drying can cause damage and break the hair. While clean hair is a good thing, too much shampooing can strip it of nutrients needed for healthy growth. Hot air strips the hair strands of moisture so minimize your use of a hair dryer. The chamois towels we sell at Fantasia are fabulous because they pull most of the moisture out of your hair so it requires very little blow drying.

Last, but not least, here are some foods that can help prevent hair loss:

• Chickpeas have zinc and vitamin B-6 which are needed for healthy hair. Zinc helps build hair protein and works well with vitamin A. A lack of either of these causes dandruff which can contribute to hair loss.
• Almonds are a great source of protein, iron and vitamin E. They reportedly lower cholesterol which is a good thing because, you don’t want to have to take cholesterol lowering drugs as they may actually cause hair loss.
• Whole wheat is a good source of sillica and iron. Silica is important as it helps with the absorption of many other vitamins and minerals.
• Oats are a great source of easily absorbable iron in addition to potassium, phosphorus and magnesium.
• Oranges are a good source of vitamin C which, again, helps make iron more absorbable in the human body. Vitamin C plays a big role in the development of collagen, which is necessary hair growth; helps keep your skin tight and is the “glue” that holds things together in the body.

Sometimes the whole diet thing seems so complicated. The things mentioned above are very simple to implement into your diet. And, as I’ve said many times before, supplementing your diet is necessary as most of us are just not getting everything we need on a daily basis. Many of us at Fantasia are on Isagenix products as we feel they are superior to anything else out there! Call us if you are interested in joining us!