Bullimia and hair loss

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Replies

  • B21goddess
    B21goddess Posts: 35
    Hair loss from anorexia, yes, hair loss from bulimia? You're probably still eating enough calories since a characteristic of throwing up is bingeing to make up for it. I was bulimic for a few years, it was more mental than I realized. Wish you'd talk to someone, because honestly this post is just a cry for help.

    thats not true at all when I was going through I really rough time with my bulimia-throwing up everything all binges EVERYTHING,I worked at a fastfood restaurant and had all the food I wanted.. I got down to 100 pounds my skin became very dry and alot of my hair fell out.
  • NocturnalGirl
    NocturnalGirl Posts: 1,762
    I've experienced a bit of hair loss from under-eating/purging. It's when you lack nutrients in your body, try taking multivitamins and fish oil capsules and definitely see your doctor. I've been trying to get better and as I increased my intake I noticed a lot of positive things about my health including my hair's texture getting better so it's not a permanent damage. Good luck!
  • estitom
    estitom Posts: 205 Member
    I'm struggling with anorexia and my hair has definitely become thinner. It falls out easily and overall it doesn't look as good as before. I don't know if there's a difference between anorexia and bulimia but you're probably right. I think if you put a healthy person who eats good food and exercise a lot between someone who eats junk food and never work out, the first one would most probably have better hair. :smile:
  • pyrowill
    pyrowill Posts: 1,163 Member
    Yeah I'm going to see a doctor later this week I think.
    Im bulimic 20 now and Ive been at it since I was 14 hw-200 lw-100
    but anyways I have my bad months and good months. you can message me if you like :)

    but Ive experienced my hair thinning and alot of it fell out when I wasnt really eating anything much or just
    throwing EVERYTHING UP.

    how many calories do you think you keep in a day.. without throwing up?
    I think for your hair to be thinning it would have to be really low.

    On my good days I Eat anywhere from 2000-4000 cals, most of it complete junk, on my bad days I can net 100. Very irregular.
  • B21goddess
    B21goddess Posts: 35
    Yeah I'm going to see a doctor later this week I think.
    Im bulimic 20 now and Ive been at it since I was 14 hw-200 lw-100
    but anyways I have my bad months and good months. you can message me if you like :)

    but Ive experienced my hair thinning and alot of it fell out when I wasnt really eating anything much or just
    throwing EVERYTHING UP.

    how often do you have good and bad days?

    how many calories do you think you keep in a day.. without throwing up?
    I think for your hair to be thinning it would have to be really low.

    On my good days I Eat anywhere from 2000-4000 cals, most of it complete junk, on my bad days I can net 100. Very irregular.
  • B21goddess
    B21goddess Posts: 35
    Yeah I'm going to see a doctor later this week I think.
    Im bulimic 20 now and Ive been at it since I was 14 hw-200 lw-100
    but anyways I have my bad months and good months. you can message me if you like :)

    but Ive experienced my hair thinning and alot of it fell out when I wasnt really eating anything much or just
    throwing EVERYTHING UP.


    how many calories do you think you keep in a day.. without throwing up?
    I think for your hair to be thinning it would have to be really low.

    On my good days I Eat anywhere from 2000-4000 cals, most of it complete junk, on my bad days I can net 100. Very irregular.

    how often do you have good and bad days?
  • pyrowill
    pyrowill Posts: 1,163 Member
    Well not wanting to go into too much detail as this wasn't what this thread was about. It's far too irregualr to even summarise, but trying to do so I would say the week could be made up of 60-70% good day, 40-30 bad days.
  • nsblue
    nsblue Posts: 331 Member
    I have never had Bullimia but I am sure it is a battle to overcome and wish you all the best in working on yourself to control it in your life.... Myself in once being super morbidly obese have problems with emotional eating.. and it to is something that is a daily struggle but can be overcome with help and committment to overcome it.
    In weightlosss where I did lose fast I did lose ALOT of hair. I started taking Biotin daily. It does not prevent hair loss but rather promotes new hair growth. It helped for me. My hair is coming in in leaps n bounds. Remember depending on heredity ..and if one has alot of body hair...it could possible promote that hair growth anywhere it grows. so for example if you have alot of body hair say..on your arms...you could gain some growth there, I was lucky it just grew on my head ;)
  • pyrowill
    pyrowill Posts: 1,163 Member
    Thanks, I've heard some good things about Biotin actually.
  • PinkAndSparkle
    PinkAndSparkle Posts: 324
    So I'm not a text book bulimic, as I don't have a history of binge/purge, but rather restrict/purge/compulsive exercise, but I can tell you that when I was purging regularly (once a day at the very least), my hair was falling out, my skin was scaly, my nails were peeling, and I had bloody noses every day...not to mention I was a miserable ***** all the time.

    Following that, I lived on an extremely restricted diet for years. My hair used to be really thick and curly. Now it's way thinner and pretty brittle, despite my healthy diet now.

    I think you are extremely brave to have posted this. I hope you don't take this the wrong way, but most men do not talk about this sort of thing. I think you are on the right track to recovery. I hope you find a good team of professionals to guide you, and have a strong support system outside of that.

    If you have any questions or need more support feel free to add me or PM me.
    Best of luck!
  • pyrowill
    pyrowill Posts: 1,163 Member
    Thanks very much guys :)
  • pyrowill
    pyrowill Posts: 1,163 Member
    Thought I'd bump this as I'm tempted to go see a hair/scalp specialist to see if this could be due to the bulimia or just genetic rubbish male hair loss. It's a bit worse but not much more, and I have eating disorder under control. It might be a waiting game to see any improvements, but I thought I'd bump to see if any others have any more info. Anyone?
  • stefosaurusrawrrrr
    stefosaurusrawrrrr Posts: 44
    Hair loss is one of the side effects of eating disorders. I have anorexia and lost a LOT of hair at my worst, like it came out in huge clumps when I showered or brushed it.

    If you are recovering, do not panic if you lose hair during recovery. Some of my worst hair loss happened when I first started recovering; this is totally normal! If you persevere and try to maintain a healthy lifestyle, the hair loss will decrease. My hair is a lot thicker and healthier now.

    You can also talk to your doctor about taking pills that help with hair growth. My sister is on some (I don't know what they are called) but I hear they can help with healthy hair.
  • pyrowill
    pyrowill Posts: 1,163 Member
    Thanks for the info :)
  • ericarae33
    ericarae33 Posts: 211 Member
    Good luck to you!! Wishing you all the best.

    I take Biotin to help with hair and nails (after pregnancy I lost a ton of hair, and my hair has always been thin...this helps) My son was also experiencing thinning hair (bad diet of a teen) and this has helped him as well.
  • holly1283
    holly1283 Posts: 741 Member
    My daughter suffered from bulimia. Yes, it can cause thinning of your hair. Having been there with her, it would be wise to get counseling and see your doctor. She did get it under control. She still has her long beautiful hair, too. You can do it, too.
  • Scandinavia
    Scandinavia Posts: 291 Member
    My hair became quite brittle and thin, and even dull when I was acting on my eating disorder. Now my hair (in a little under a month and a half out of treatment) is thicker and shinier than ever.
  • lisacarey6
    lisacarey6 Posts: 2
    Hi Will,

    I had cancer and early menopause and experienced a great deal of hair loss. I take Evening Primrose twice a day and B complex vitamins. It slowed it down a great deal and I do not see the significant loss anymore. I am not sure if this will help with an eating disorder but it is natural and beneficial to hair, skin, and nails. I am a nurse and did research before I did any more to my body. Good luck, Lisa
  • JustThriveCo
    JustThriveCo Posts: 14
    I so hope you get help with your eating issues! Nutrition is so important, and it certainly DOES affect your hair!

    I started researching the science behind aging when I was in high school ... why? Because of my hair!

    At 14 I started getting WHITE hairs.

    I learned that premature WHITE hair (not gray, but WHITE) is caused when the body does not ABSORB B vitamins.

    You can be getting ALL the B vitamins in the world, but when your body isn't absorbing them, the result can be premature white hair.

    WEIRD, huh?

    Well, I FINALLY just quit coloring my hair a couple years ago, embracing my white hair. Voila! Cried, but got used to it and now I LOVE it.

    Then, I went on a nutritional rebalancing program when I learned that without ORGANIC TRACE MINERALS the body can't absorb VITAMINS ... and our fruits and vegetables are devoid of these minerals and mineral supplements are just rocks that don't get absorbed.

    Guess what? I now have BLACK HAIR growing in! Not a ton, but definitely many new hairs are BLACK

    It's crazy.

    But, it definitely illustrates that NUTRITION (or lack of it ... which you would be definitely experiencing with Bulimia) DOES affect hair.

    Your cells need 70+ organic trace minerals per day (most people are only getting about a dozen), plus vitamins, plus amino acids, etc .. in order to successfully recreate themselves!

    Without all of these things in your diet in the appropriate amounts, one will experience health concerns either internal or external.

    Please get the help you need to get the NUTRITION you need! It is KEY!
  • whitneyps7
    whitneyps7 Posts: 409 Member
    yes i used to be bulimic as well been good for 5 years and i had a little thinning during it but when i did stop and recover it thickened up again. eat healthy, and take biotin suppliments it will help it grow & thicken back up
  • pyrowill
    pyrowill Posts: 1,163 Member
    I so hope you get help with your eating issues! Nutrition is so important, and it certainly DOES affect your hair!

    I started researching the science behind aging when I was in high school ... why? Because of my hair!

    At 14 I started getting WHITE hairs.

    I learned that premature WHITE hair (not gray, but WHITE) is caused when the body does not ABSORB B vitamins.

    You can be getting ALL the B vitamins in the world, but when your body isn't absorbing them, the result can be premature white hair.

    WEIRD, huh?

    Well, I FINALLY just quit coloring my hair a couple years ago, embracing my white hair. Voila! Cried, but got used to it and now I LOVE it.

    Then, I went on a nutritional rebalancing program when I learned that without ORGANIC TRACE MINERALS the body can't absorb VITAMINS ... and our fruits and vegetables are devoid of these minerals and mineral supplements are just rocks that don't get absorbed.

    Guess what? I now have BLACK HAIR growing in! Not a ton, but definitely many new hairs are BLACK

    It's crazy.

    But, it definitely illustrates that NUTRITION (or lack of it ... which you would be definitely experiencing with Bulimia) DOES affect hair.

    Your cells need 70+ organic trace minerals per day (most people are only getting about a dozen), plus vitamins, plus amino acids, etc .. in order to successfully recreate themselves!

    Without all of these things in your diet in the appropriate amounts, one will experience health concerns either internal or external.

    Please get the help you need to get the NUTRITION you need! It is KEY!

    Thanks for this, even though I feel I have the actual bulimia under control my attitude to food still leaves a lot to be desired, and I know I'm lacking a lot of regular nutritious food. I'm trying to take more vitamins, but I know that's no substitute. I guess that's all part of healthy eating and lifestyle. I count calories and quite fit due to regular exercise. But the diet man.....that bloody diet, need to totally boss it.

    Thank you very much for everyone who has offered their input in this thread x

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