Thinning Hair Nutrition For Women

Thinning hair in women is often a red flag of something wrong with our body.

Some of us do of course have thinner hair than others but shedding, slower growth and finer strands can be signs of nutritional deficiencies and sickness.

And no fancy hair treatments or scalp remedies will fix thinning hair if our diet starves hair of key goodies every day!!

So what on earth should women do if we're faced with thinning hair?

Well, this guide covers everything I learned when my naturally thin hair thinned drastically. The guide covers :

1. Nutritional Deficiencies
2. Diets At Risk Of Deficiency
3. Underlying Causes
4. When Hair Thins Naturally
5. Best Food To Thicken Hair
6. Supplements For Thinning Hair

I hope it helps you work out why your hair is thinning and what to do about it.

For quick action jump to section 5.

NB Thinning hair can be a big early sign of serious problems. I am not a doctor. This is not medical advice. Talk to a doctor about thinning hair.

Nutritional Shortfalls And Thinning Hair

Key nutritional deficiencies that can contribute to thin and thinning hair are :

1. Protein
2. Iron
3. Zinc
4. Vitamin D
5. B7 Biotin
6. Vitamin B12
7. B9 Folate
8. Collagen
9. Vitamin A
10. Omega-3

If you have thinning hair get tested for those where you're at risk of being low.

Protein

Protein is foundational for our hair because 90% of our hair is keratin, a protein. Low intake weakens strands, slows growth and increases shedding.

Daily meat or fish eaters rarely go short but plenty of women do. A moderately active, average weight woman needs close on 90g. That's hard without meat.

Quick Take Away : Huge Impact. Big risk for veggies and vegans.

Iron

Iron is the second critical nutrient for healthy hair but up to 30% of menstruating women are low in iron.

Iron deficiency can trigger rapid hair loss - telogen effluvium - especially if our low iron levels slips into anaemia.

Quick Take Away : Huge Impact. Many women going seriously short.

Zinc

Low zinc levels disrupts the hair growth cycle causing shedding and weak hair.

Our bodies don't store zinc and lots of us women - especially vegans & vegetarians - don't get enough daily so it's a big risk factor for thinning hair.

Quick Take Away : High Impact

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is - surprisingly - critical for thick, healthy hair. Who knew?!

It works closely with protein in special hair follicle cells to deposit keratin in our hair and going short can block hair growth and worsen alopecia.

Deficiency is common, especially in Britain if you have dark skin.

Quick Take Away : Surprisingly Key

B7 Biotin

Wild claims are made for mega doses of biotin (B7) for thinning hair.

It is important but the claims don't stack up and deficiency is rare (<1%). Mega doses are unlikely to help.

Quick Take Away : Low Risk

B12

Protein and iron both depend on B12 to do their bit giving us thick, glossy hair.

Vegans, veggies and non-red meat eaters are at high risk of going short.

Quick Take Away : Support Role But Can Be Missing Link Causing Thinning

B9 Folate

Vitamin B9 helps protein, iron and B12 hit peak performance keeping hair thick and preventing excess shedding.

B9 is in lots of plant food but antinutrients can block absorption so we can go short if not eating meat. Women are most vulnerable to deficiency when pregnant.

Quick Take Away : Support Role But Another Possible Missing Link

Collagen

Collagen is a fad right now for thickening hair but is genuinely super rich in the amino acids proline, glycine and hydroxyproline, the building blocks of hair thickening protein.

Some women with gut gut issues e.g. SIBO, gastritis may absorb these amino acids more easily from collagen rich bone broth than from meat.

Quick Take Away : Can Help Build Protein If Struggling With Gut Issues

Vitamin A Retinol

Low retinol levels can dry scalp and block new hair growth. It is not the key nutrient for thinning hair but could block thickening if you've shed lots from low protein and zinc.

Vitamin A is a sleeper deficiency - it's rarely tested - but barely anyone now eats organ meat that used to keep up our levels. So could be an issue.

Quick Take Away : Could block new growth if you're already thinning.

Omega-3

Omega-3 deficiency can contribute to thinning hair both postpartum and post-menopause triggering rapid shedding and androgenetic alopecia (AGA) if we are at risk genetically.

Quick Take Away : Big risk for new mothers and post-menopause.

Root Causes Of Thinning Hair

Nutritional deficiencies are big triggers for thinning hair in women but these underlying conditions make us more vulnerable to thinning :

1. Alopecia Areata
2. PCOS
3. Thyroid Disorders
4. Chronic Stress
5. Diabetes
6. Psoriasis
7. Lupus
8. Gut Problems

If you have any of these conditions or suspect you do, talk to a doctor.

Alopecia Areata

Alopecia Areata is an autoimmune disorder where the immune system attacks hair follicles, causing patchy hair loss that can progress to thinning or total scalp hair loss (alopecia totalis). Stress or genetics trigger it.

PCOS

In PCOS excess androgens - male hormones like testosterone - can shrink hair follicles, leading to alopecia where hair thins on crown and hairline.

Thyroid Disorders

Low thyroid hormones slow hair growth cycles making hair dry, brittle and prone to diffuse shedding across scalp.

High thyroid hormones speed up hair cycle, pushing follicles into resting phase early causing all over thinning.

Chronic Stress

Chronic stress can trigger telogen effluvium - severe rapid hair loss.

Diabetes

Poorly managed blood sugar damages blood vessels, reducing circulation of nurtients to hair follicles which can weaken hair and slow regrowth.

Psoriasis

Psoriasis causes rapid skin cell turnover, leading to scaly plaques on the scalp. These can block or damage hair follicles resulting in temporary or even permanent hair loss. Thinning is usually localised not diffuse.

Lupus

Lupus - an autoimmune disease - can cause scalp inflammation and scarring (e.g. discoid lupus), leading to permanent thinning or bald patches.

Gut Problems

Gut problems such as SIBO, gastritis and medicated acid reflux can cause malabsorption of nutrients like iron, zinc, and B vitamins leading to weak hair and increased shedding.

Key Periods Of Life When Women's Hair Thins

Women are especially vulnerable to hair thinning in key periods of our life.

Some of these are natural lifecycle changes but some are when nutrition needs change and we don't keep up :

1. New Mothers
2. Autumn / Fall
3. Perimenopause
4. Post-Menopause
5. Old Age

New Mothers

In pregnancy, high estrogen reduces shedding and hair's often thicker but postpartum, estrogen crashes and 40-50% of women have rapid loss, losing 100-400 hairs daily vs. normal 50-100.

The thinning isn't permanent and hair usually recovers in 6-12 months but we need great nutrition for it to come back.

Autumn / Fall

Our hair follicles have a rest in fall in prep for winter like other mammals - 20% of follicles actually shut down as temperatures drops. But with healthy nutrition, hair regrows in spring.

Perimenopause

Hair strands thin and hair growth slows as we hit perimenopause in our late 30s and 40s. This can be exacerbated by heavier and more frequent periods during perimenopause triggering iron, zinc and B12 deficiency.

Post-Menopause

Big estrogen drops post menopause shrink follicles, slow growth and thin hair on our crown. 30% of women have thinning hair in menopause.

This is the key time Omega-3 becomes valuable in our diet to cut thinning.

Old Age

As women get older our thyroid hormone levels are more likely to fall. As many as 15% of women over 70 have thyroid levels that cause more shedding on top of falling estrogen.

Best Food For Thinning Hair

Eating the right food really can help thinning hair fast if we focus 4 key things :

1. Daily Protein Hits
2. Stored Iron
3. Bone Broth
4. Oily Fish

Daily Protein Hits

Our body doesn't store protein so we need a daily dose to stop hair thinning. These are the richest sources :

• Meat Eaters : Chicken Breast, Turkey Breast, Lean Beef e.g. sirloin, Pork Loin, Venison.
• Fish Eaters : Tuna, Cod, Halibut, Salmon, Tilapia.
• Vegetarians : Eggs, Aged Cheddar, Greek Yoghurt, Tempeh, Parmesan.
• Vegans : Tofu (Firm), Hemp Seeds, Edamame, Quinoa, Legumes.

A moderately active, average weight woman needs 80-100g of protein daily. Standard portions of above give us :

• Meat : 45g per 160g
• Fish : 35g per 160g
• Eggs : 14g per 2 eggs
• Cheddar : 25g per 4 slices
• Greek Yoghurt : 16g per small pot
• Tempeh : 18g per 100g
• Parmesan : 10g per 25g
• Hemp Seed : 10g per 2-3 tbsp
• Edamame : 11g per 50g
• Quinoa : 18g per 150g
• Legumes : 10g per 100g

It is not hard for meat and fish eaters to get their daily protein hit but it is easy to go short daily on a vegan or vegetarian diet. A protein supplement - see below - maybe essential.

Stored Iron

Our bodies store iron so we don't need it daily and can stock up on iron rich food some days to get us through the week without our hair getting hungry!!

This iron rich food guide covers how to eat enough iron in different diets but the easiest way to build our iron store is red meat and especially traditional organ meats :

• Black Pudding
• Beef Liver
• Lambs Liver
• Kidneys
• Faggots.

One helping delivers 2-3 days iron in one hit reducing the risk of hungry hair!

They are also rich in the other hair thickening nutrients : zinc, A, B7, B9 and B12.

Bone Broth

Great quality bone broth is a brilliant source of hair thickening collagen and amino acids. It can be a much easier way to feed our hair with protein if we're struggling with digestive issues or recovering from sickness.

You can easily make your own bone broth for less than $1/£1 a week which is a darn site cheaper than lots of fancy thinning hair treatments!!

Oily Fish

Oily fish can be a brilliant boost for thinning hair postpartum and post menopause as it is rich in Omega 3 EPA and DHA which help trigger new growth.

Omega-3 rich fish include :

1. Mackerel
2. Salmon (wild)
3. Sardines
4. Anchovies
5. Tuna (only eat in moderation when breastfeeding).

Supplements For Thinning Hair

Great nutrition is the gold standard for thinning hair but supplements help.

The real winners are usually :

1. Protein
2. Iron
3. Vitamin D
4. Omega 3
5. Vegetarian & Vegan Supplements

There is good quality research on the benefits for thinning hair of all of the above if you're low but NOT despite wild claims on TikTok etc for Biotin.

Protein Supplements

If we've got hectic, active lives and don't eat meat or fish daily a good quality protein supplement can help protect our hair from thinning.

Iron Supplements

As mentioned previously, 30% of menstruating women are iron deficient. Iron supplements can stop shedding in as little as a month and stimulate significant regrowth in as little as 3.

Vitamin D Supplements

Our hair needs Vitamin D to fully make use of protein so supplements can help thinning hair in risk groups :

1. Anyone living in UK & Ireland.
2. Very fair skinned who can't go in summer sun unprotected.
3. Dark skinned in northern latitudes.
4. People who don't get outside.

Biotin Supplements

Some people claim mega doses of biotin (B7) have thickened their hair but it doesn't really add up because :

1. <1% of people are deficient.
2. We don't really store biotin.
3. Any excess is excreted.

Now there could be some benefit science has missed but the other supplements are better bets for thinning hair if you're deficient.

Vegetarian & Vegans

Unfortunately, the best nutrients for thickening hair are in food for animals, so it is worth vegetarians and vegans getting tested for deficiencies and taking supplements if needed in :

• Protein
• Iron
• Zinc
• Vitamin A
• Vitamin B12
• Collagen
• Omega-3

And there you go, everything I have learned about thinning hair nutrition for women. I really hope it helps.

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