Help!! It's not just a "bad hair day"

mypeep

I have been dieting for 2 months and have lost 25 lbs. However, my hair is a mess!

It has become extremely dry and unmanageable. I'm not even able to run a comb through it. My hairdresser feels that it is "internal" and possibly could be related to my diet. This did start in late July and has become intolerable!

I've never had this problem before and wonder if I'm not getting the proper nutrients. Please feel free to view my diary to assist in any suggestions.

singingflutelady

You should get a blood test to see if it is from a deficiency

amyk0202

If your log is correct, you've been routinely eating less than 1200 calories per day & your weight loss of 25 lbs in 2 months is faster than is generally recommended unless you are morbidly obese. Generally if you have a medical reason that requires you to lose weight in such a rapid manner, you should be followed by a physician because it is very difficult to get the proper nutrients in such a low number of calories & they will do your lab work to see what supplements you need on a regular basis. I had WLS & even with supplementation, my hair suffered. If you continue, expect to have a great deal of it fall out as well. If you have health considerations that require rapid loss, make an appointment with your doctor. If not, you need to start eating more & I would begin taking a multi-vitamin.

AnnPT77

amyk0202 wrote: »

If your log is correct, you've been routinely eating less than 1200 calories per day & your weight loss of 25 lbs in 2 months is faster than is generally recommended unless you are morbidly obese. Generally if you have a medical reason that requires you to lose weight in such a rapid manner, you should be followed by a physician because it is very difficult to get the proper nutrients in such a low number of calories & they will do your lab work to see what supplements you need on a regular basis. I had WLS & even with supplementation, my hair suffered. If you continue, expect to have a great deal of it fall out as well. If you have health considerations that require rapid loss, make an appointment with your doctor. If not, you need to start eating more & I would begin taking a multi-vitamin.

Yup, alla that. I don't know how much you weigh, but by generally-accepted rule of thumb, you shouldn't be losing over 3 pounds a week (25 pounds / 8 weeks) unless you weigh well over 300 pounds. And even if you are that heavy, the issues with your hair point to a problem.

Please eat more. It will help you stay healthy & strong. Don't lose more than 1% of your bodyweight weekly, less if you're getting close to maintenance weight (say, within 25 pounds).

ogtmama

You are malnourished. Feed yourself for a while and then get back on track. (That's what I did)

PAV8888

I just can't: 59 yo. female. 1450 Cal a day approximate deficit. 3lbs from goal weight.

Hair "problems"? I sincerely hope for your sake that hair problems will be as bad as it gets.

I fear that you may have lost a ton of lean mass and I would not be surprised if you end up needing gallbladder removal surgery.

I honestly don't know where to start--I already wrote this once and erased it.

Please add 1000 Cal to your daily food allotment... yesterday.

Please ignore how your weight reacts to this injection of food for at least the next two weeks if you either stop losing, or regain some weight. However keep adding food if you continue losing more than 1lb a week subsequent to this 1000 Cal a day injection.

Once your weight stabilizes and/or your weight loss resumes, keep adding 100 calories a day in weekly intervals till the next 100 Calorie increase results in weight increases for a full week... then back-off 100 Cal.

You didn't even do a high protein very low calorie diet, did you?

Most credible sources recommend that people limit their deficits to about 20% of their daily caloric needs (maybe 25% if obese) unless they are medically supervised and there is a medical reason for trying to achieve rapid weight loss.

You have been achieving deficits that are exceeding 50% and depending on your activity level may be as high as 75% of your total daily energy expenditure.

This is not healthy and it doesn't position you well for the future.

Before starting your next diet, please read the first posts in the "getting started" and "general diet and weight loss" sections and the links they lead to so that you can position yourself better in the future.

ogtmama

GothamVeggie

I agree that you should get a blood test to check for vitamin deficiencies (I got a test & was surprised to find a deficiency I didn't know I had) & I think it's likely you are not eating enough. I also think you need to add some more veggies as well...a variety of different veggies. +More variety in fruit.

1nprgr3s

What everyone else said, but in the mean time while you are working on adequate nutrition give your hair some love by putting coconut oil through it for 30 minutes or so before you wash it. It will do it the world of good.

jotough

This happened to me too! I found that when I was keeping to my deficit but eating rubbish instead of nutrient rich foods by hair was fallin out, very dry and needed conditioner every day! Once I upped my calso slightly and improved the foods I was eating it went back to normal! I have got very very short hair though....would probably be a lot worse with long hair.

rainbowbow

Go to your doctor. I just recently had this problem and then i was losing handfuls and handfuls of hair. I was freaking out that it could be my thyroid again, a hormonal issue, a low iron problem, low b vitamins, low d vitamins, all of these are known culprits.

Apparently I have Telogen Effluvium, as a result of having pneumonia and subsequently a re-emergence 6 weeks later this summer. 3 months later? My hair was falling out like crazy. i didnt even put the two together.


So? Go to your doc, see what's going on.

GauchoMark

Just another little bit of info on top of what everyone else said - Even after you put calories/nutrition back, you are probably going to continue to lose hair for a month or two. The damage is already done and hair grows slowly, so the affect will continue. Kind of like @rainbowbow experienced. So, don't give up on adding calories/nutrients just because it doesn't stop the hair from falling out, you will have to give it some time.

Really, at the very least you need to look into nutrition requirements and fix your diet.

amywhitbread

I was in a similar situation. I wanted to lose as much weight as quick as I could, that I was stupid. I was eating less than 1200 calories a day, sometimes just 1000, and doing a lot of exercise (biking too and from work for 20 minutes each way, 1 hour weight lifting and 1 hour cardio .. all in one day, 4 or 5 times a week). It was only when I had lost 20 kg within 5 months, and my hair was falling out by the handful that I woke up and realised what I was doing was stupid and dangerous. I was exhausted. I went for blood tests at the doctors and although there was not a deficiency, I knew I had to change my diet. I immediately increased my food to 1500 calories a day, and I am now increasing the calories every week so I will eventually be having 2000 calories a day or even more if I am working out a lot. I have put on a tiny bit of weight since increasing the calories (2 kg - which is nothing really), but I feel soo much better ! .. and to top it off, my hair has stopped falling out so much and I have new hair growing ! I now have a completely different mindset and I actually eat loads of food, so much so that I feel that I am always eating, but the changes externally are so rewarding (more definition, better skin, less bloating, less cravings for junk food etc etc), I just hope that some of the damage I did internally can be rectified. I also now feel like this is more of a lifestyle change rather than a diet, "a marathon .. not a sprint". Hope that your hair does not get much worse.

mypeep

ogtmama wrote: »

Would mind reentering your post? The reply section was empty and I would like to know your opinion. Thank you

mypeep

Thanks everyone for your prompt responses. I plan to see my PCP tomorrow. I didn't realize that my weight loss diet could reek havoc with my hair. It appears that I will be able to prevent further problems by addressing this issue now.

geneticsteacher

If your diary is accurate, you are malnourished - low on calories many days, low on protein, etc. Are you adding back exercise calories? I don't see any logged.

cerise_noir

amyk0202 wrote: »

If your log is correct, you've been routinely eating less than 1200 calories per day & your weight loss of 25 lbs in 2 months is faster than is generally recommended unless you are morbidly obese. Generally if you have a medical reason that requires you to lose weight in such a rapid manner, you should be followed by a physician because it is very difficult to get the proper nutrients in such a low number of calories & they will do your lab work to see what supplements you need on a regular basis. I had WLS & even with supplementation, my hair suffered. If you continue, expect to have a great deal of it fall out as well. If you have health considerations that require rapid loss, make an appointment with your doctor. If not, you need to start eating more & I would begin taking a multi-vitamin.

Yep.. and low fat is shite for beautiful hair skin and nails.

mypeep

geneticsteacher wrote: »

If your diary is accurate, you are malnourished - low on calories many days, low on protein, etc. Are you adding back exercise calories? I don't see any logged.

I made an appt with one of the nutritionists in my medical group to help me with my diet. It seems like it's a mess! No wonder my hair is a disaster. I haven't been able to exercise consistently due to chronic health problems but do remain fairly active....I'm just not sure how to log it. I think that it is time to reevaluate my weight loss program. Thanks for your input.

mypeep

amywhitbread wrote: »

I was in a similar situation. I wanted to lose as much weight as quick as I could, that I was stupid. I was eating less than 1200 calories a day, sometimes just 1000, and doing a lot of exercise (biking too and from work for 20 minutes each way, 1 hour weight lifting and 1 hour cardio .. all in one day, 4 or 5 times a week). It was only when I had lost 20 kg within 5 months, and my hair was falling out by the handful that I woke up and realised what I was doing was stupid and dangerous. I was exhausted. I went for blood tests at the doctors and although there was not a deficiency, I knew I had to change my diet. I immediately increased my food to 1500 calories a day, and I am now increasing the calories every week so I will eventually be having 2000 calories a day or even more if I am working out a lot. I have put on a tiny bit of weight since increasing the calories (2 kg - which is nothing really), but I feel soo much better ! .. and to top it off, my hair has stopped falling out so much and I have new hair growing ! I now have a completely different mindset and I actually eat loads of food, so much so that I feel that I am always eating, but the changes externally are so rewarding (more definition, better skin, less bloating, less cravings for junk food etc etc), I just hope that some of the damage I did internally can be rectified. I also now feel like this is more of a lifestyle change rather than a diet, "a marathon .. not a sprint". Hope that your hair does not get much worse.

Thank you so much for sharing your story. I've had some pretty significant health issues due to my obesity. While on vacation I ended up in the hospital w/a problem that occurred directly because of my weight. To say the least, we had to come home. So I became determined to lose weight and do it quickly. But as you pointed out, it can be dangerous. I do feel that I am "starving" myself, but have had so many things come my way health wise that I have finally come to the conclusion that I must start dropping the pounds. My scare so far has been the condition of my hair. It's so awful that my hairdresser nearly cut it all off to get rid of the dry ends ( I have short hair ). The responses I have gotten have been awesome and have helped me prevent...what could have been...a disaster. I plan to get professional help with my diet and hope to goodness, restore my hair!

rainbowbow

Well, as stated, if you have some sort of health issue this could be causing your hair loss... regardless of your diet. And hair loss (once started) goes on for months and usually takes months to slowly stop and then eventually go into another growing phase.

So don't expect instant results from whatever you do. It could be from a health problem and hospitalization as you said.