Hair Loss with a Healthy Diet

Jme2209

Hello everyone,

I have lost 75 pounds since Jan 1st of this year! YAY! And that's all fine and dandy....BUT I have been losing A LOT of hair in the past few months. I have done some research on the subject and from what I have read this could be a normal occurrence. I wanted to ask the opinions of others who may have gone through a similar experience what their views were? I am not experiencing bald spots just general thickness loss. Will my hair grow back?

And before the question is asked "Are you starving yourself!?" the answer is no. I have a desk job and I eat between 1200-1600 calories per day depending on my exercise routine. I get enough protein (60-90mg) per day, I eat fruits and veggies, I take biotin, fish oil, and a multi every day. I run for exercise, averaging right now about 10 miles/week.

Stats:
Height: 5'9
SW: 248
CW: 173
Age: 22

I had my thyroid level checked in Dec 2012 (Normal). I take Lo Loestrin birth control (regarding hormone levels).

Please help ease my worried mind. At 22 and just now getting back to a healthy body I really don't want to go bald!

Francl27

IMO you're not eating enough. That's a lot of weight loss in 9.5 months, heck I've lost 65 lbs in 9 months and that was already too fast.

upscalelifedownscalebutt

How are your biotin levels? Have you had your stomach acid levels checked?

Low levels of either can lead to hair loss, and low stomach acid is actually fairly common.

ETA: You might consider adding some more fat to your diet. I scanned your food diary and you tend to stay under. If that is a long term trend your hair, nails, and skin will eventually start showing signs of it. Fats help us with fat soluble vitamins and minerals and are usually yummy

diannethegeek

IMO you're not eating enough. That's a lot of weight loss in 9.5 months, heck I've lost 65 lbs in 9 months and that was already too fast.

Agreed. I'm 5'8" and 170-ish pounds and I lose on 1600 calories a day without exercise.

I'll second taking a look at your fat intake. That can be the culprit for a lot of people.

Alluminati

Rogaine if it really bothers you. If you are seeing new hair growth aka baby hairs then you're not going bald. A hairdresser or dermatologist might help you assess this. Unusual amounts of hair fall is not uncommon when you have been eating low calories for a while. For your height and former weight, 1600 does seem a bit low. Keep taking your supplements and eventually it should stop on its own. Might last a few months.

Eta: like the person said above, check fats, fats are good for hair and skin.

Lenceex

this has happened to me too!!! have had my thyroid tested and its fine, would like to hear any views on this!!

x

_TastySnoBalls_

It's the BC pills. If you read the package insert, a side effect is hair loss and guess what? Discontinuing them can also cause hair loss. I took ortho tri-cyclen lo for 10 years... The hair loss/thinning is much worse now that I stopped taking it

cwolfman13

Do you get enough dietary fat...I noticed that you really didn't even mention that very important macro-nutrient. Most "dieters" don't because they think fat is "bad" and that fat will make them fat. Losing hair is a common side effect of not getting enough dietary fat. Also, it is a common side effect of iron deficiency...which a lot of "dieters" also have because they tend to avoid "fatty" red meats, dark meat poultry, etc...

Docpremie

You need to eat more & up your protein. I'm 5-8 and currently weight 160 (down from 217 in January of this year) and I eat 1800+ cal/day. Most women need 100-125 gm protein/day at a minimum. I shoot for 135 gm protein/day & usually exceed it. No hair loss at during my weight loss journey.

willdob3

Hair loss is very common with weight loss. Even weight loss at a healthy rate, with healthy food, good calories, etc. Assuming it is caused by your weight loss it should resolve once your weight stabilizes. I've experienced it before.

Do check with your doctor & have some labs done to make sure something else is not going on. I'm experiencing the same thing, have been for months. My doctor is having me do some lab tests just to be sure but he suspects it is almost certainly caused by my "extreme weight loss." Like you, OP, I have lost a lot of weight, eating healthy, good calories, etc. I also suggest taking a good hair, skin, & nails supplement or biotin.