The Facts About Hair Growth
Human hair has a two-stage growth cycle. Anagen is the growth phase and telogen is the resting phase. In the telogen phase, normal hair loss lasts about 3 months on average. This shedding time commonly is shorter in women after childbirth and in newborns about 1 month after birth.
Besides childbirth, other factors that affect the anagen/telogen cycle include:
- Any type of surgery
- Hormonal imbalance
- Extreme dieting
- Medications such as beta-blockers, excess vitamin A, and anticoagulants
Hair Loss Prevention Tips
Below are four simple tips to help prevent hair loss. Follow these tips and you will have a full head of hair to go along with the new you!
Tip #1: Protein, protein, protein! Our program emphasizes the need for protein from the initial appointment throughout the duration of the band. Protein is the building block of all cells, including the cells that make up your hair. Failing to meet our recommendation of 60g/day minimum per day could leave you with thinning hair as well as less satiety. Make sure you consume lean protein foods at each and every meal. This includes skinless chicken, lean red meat, grilled/baked fish, low-fat string cheese and cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, beans, protein bars, chia seeds, and flax. If you are a vegetarian, it is important to pair different vegetarian protein options at each meal to supply all of the necessary amino acids. Examples include beans, peas, quinoa, chia seeds and soy.
Tip #2: Take your vitamins. Many nutrient deficiencies can lead to hair loss, so think of your daily vitamins as medications. They are essential for avoiding nutrient deficiencies and provide the B-vitamins needed to keep your hair healthy and full. Take your chewable bariatric multiple vitamin consistently starting at two weeks before surgery to help prevent hair loss and fatigue associated with low nutrient status.
How To Fight Hair Loss From Weight Loss
Although hair loss from losing weight is often temporary, there are steps you can take to help your hair growth cycle go back to normal.
Many people who lose weight do so with a restricted calorie intake. Just like your body, your hair needs calories to grow properly. At a basic level, understand your calorie limits to have an idea of how much you should be eating, and how many calories your hair is used to getting from your diet.
Protein makes up almost the entire hair structure, and luckily for us, its also one of the most readily available nutrients in everyday food. Increase your protein intake with foods like red meat, beans, and seafood. Other key hair growth vitamins and nutrients to supplement include vitamin C, vitamin A, iron, and zinc. These vitamins and minerals have all been shown to contribute to regular hair growth and can be found in almost any standard weight-loss diet.
If youre experiencing some hair thinning after weight loss, its not the end of the world. Just relax and understand that its a normal process. Your hair follicles arent damaged, theyre simply adjusting to the changes.
Make an effort to watch your diet and feed your body with the nutrients it needs to effectively grow hair. If youre having trouble getting all of the nutrients you need for your best hair growth, we recommend looking into a daily vitamin for hair growth that contains everything you need.
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What Is Bariatric Surgery
Bariatric surgery is the general term used for a variety of weight loss surgeries. Its also sometimes called metabolic surgery.
These surgeries are used as a treatment for obesity. Carrying a large amount of excess weight can also lead to conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes, sleep apnea and high cholesterol. Because bariatric surgery helps a patient lose weight, it may also help address these issues.
To be eligible for bariatric surgery you need to have a body mass index of over 40 or between 35 and 40 if you have diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, fatty liver disease or sleep apnea. You may also be considered a candidate if you have a BMI that is over 30 and have uncontrolled diabetes.
Once its been confirmed youd be a good candidate for bariatric surgery, a doctor will discuss what type of bariatric surgery is best suited for your specific needs.
The most common types of bariatric surgery are:
-
Gastric bypass surgery: This procedure shrinks your stomach by up to 95 percent, making it challenging to overeat. It also limits the number of calories and fat youre able to absorb. During this surgery, your gastrointestinal tract is also rerouted. This can lead to hormonal changes which can improve diabetes.
Be Gentle With Your Hair Use Quality Products And See Your Hairstylist
Your hair may be fragile after a gastric sleeve. Comb and brush it gently. Dont wash or dry it roughly. Avoid heat-styling and bleach.
Look for shampoos, conditioners, and treatments to strengthen your hair and promote growth. This will help prevent further breakage.
If you already have this problem after gastric surgery, ask your hairstylist about styles that work well for thin hair. Start supplementing your diet as soon as possible. Good nutrition is still the best way to protect your hair.
Consider to check a complete collection of gastric bypass vitamins.
Have a look at our blog as well: Zinc After Surgery
Also you might be interested in our collections of Bariatric Protein and Biotin tablets.
If you have found this article helpful, we have many other resources for bariatric patients. Have a look at our articles on:
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Tips For Minimizing Hair Loss
Although there are no proven methods to stop hair loss during this phase after surgery, there are supplements like biotin and zinc that help thicken or strengthen hair.
Following the bariatric diet and nutrition program, which calls for limited calories and diverse protein intake on a daily basis, is helpful in preventing long-term hair loss. Of course, you must be cautious not to add too much extra protein or you may not see the expected weight-loss results.
In addition to the nutritional recommendations, it’s essential to take a bariatric-specific multi-vitamin with adequate B vitamins, folate, zinc, and biotin. B12 and calcium citrate with a vitamin D supplement also are prescribed.
Regular follow-up appointments with your bariatric surgeon are important to ensure that your vitamin and mineral intake and your blood levels are normal. These visits also help minimize side effects, and theyre essential to long-term maintenance after surgery.
Nutrition And Hair Loss After Bariatric Surgery
And as it turns out, prioritizing your nutritional intake isnt just important for your overall health and healing. If your hair loss continues after six months, I suggest looking into your nutrient intake as this may be contributing.
Many people are under the impression that biotin is the most important nutrient in terms of hair loss prevention and regrowth, but this isnt necessarily true.
While biotin can certainly play a supportive role, there are a few other nutrients that are more important to minimize hair loss. Biotin has only been shown to be helpful in preventing hair loss if you have a biotin deficiency. I typically dont suggest a biotin supplement following surgery because there is not much evidence to support it and I would rather you focus on your multivitamin.
If you would like to eat biotin rich foods you can include foods like salmon, egg yolks, nuts and spinach in your diet.
Instead of biotin there are several other nutrients that have been shown to affect hair loss, including iron, zinc, and protein.
If youre taking a bariatric multivitamin youre likely taking the suggested amount of iron and zinc. But just to make sure you can check out this article here that I wrote about vitamins.
As always, including foods that are high in these nutrients is also suggested. Foods can include poultry dark meat, red meat, light tuna, quinoa and beans.
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Do Gastric Banding Patients Experience Weight Loss
Since the weight loss process is more gradual in the case of lap-band procedure patients, there is 0 or little chance of hair loss among them. However, other conditions such as a feeling of psychological stress also increase the rate of hair loss. So, there is a chance that some gastric band patients experience hair loss.
Lap-Band patients, however, lose weight gradually and have less risk of hair loss. This is because they lose weight at a slower rate when compared to other bariatric surgery patients, and dont suffer from a high level of nutrient deficiency.
Temporary Hair Loss And Losing Weight
Hair thinning after weight loss is usually associated with a condition called telogen effluvium. Telogen effluvium effectively throws your normal hair cycle out of whack.
Normally, hair grows at a rate of about ½-inch per month for about two years, before it goes into the resting phase known as telogen. All of your hairs are at a different stage, so normally you see constant growth and regrowth, with old hairs falling out to make room for new ones during telogen. With a regular cycle, about 10% of your hairs will be in the resting phase at any given time.
Telogen effluvium occurs when this 10% starts to increase, and the hair cycle phases are out of balance. More hairs than usual are going into the resting phase, so hair falls out faster than it grows back in. Its one of the most common forms of hair loss among both men and women. Although its normally limited to the scalp, more serious cases can affect eyebrows and body hair.
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Can Surgery Affect Your Hair
Unfortunately, yes, your normal hair cycle can be interrupted when you go through surgery. Though it’s a pretty common occurrence, it’s a distressing side effect that can interfere with your healing process. What’s even more frustrating is this type of hair loss can occur months after the surgery is complete.
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Control Nausea And Vomitting After Weight Loss Surgery
Remember your mindful eating rules:
Its also possible that you may not be ready to eat certain foods. If a certain food seems to cause nausea or vomiting, avoid that food few a week or so and try again. If nausea and/or vomiting persist, call your doctors office for further evaluation.
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How Long Does The Hair Loss Last For
Under normal circumstances, hair loss lasts for an average of 3-4 months, but no longer than 6 months.
Hair follicles arent damaged during telogen effluvium, so hair your hair will grow back stronger and better than before.
If your hair continues to fall out six months after your bariatric surgery with Dr Padovan, we recommend you contact our clinic at 9544 5200.
What Causes Hair Loss After Weight Loss
Hair loss is quite a common problem, perhaps even more common, then you might have thought. If you lose weight rapidly, then the chances of hair loss are even greater. If you drastically change your diet, and if you drastically reduce the number of calories you take daily, then of course, you will have problems with thin hair and hair falling. This problem is particularly common in people dealing with anorexia nervosa.
In this case, a nutritional deficiency due to drastic changes and rapid weight loss is the cause of the weight loss. If you are not getting the necessary nutrients your body needs, then normally some defending mechanisms on the body will start working, supplying the important organs and body parts with these nutrients first. Hair follicles dont belong among the important body parts, so normally they will not get the necessary nutrients needed for healthy hair.
Weight Loss Surgery
Hair loss after weight loss through surgery procedures is also a common problem. Any drastic change in the human body, such as a surgical procedure will cause a certain amount of physical stress. This physical stress will send a signal to the hair follicles to go into a resting phase. If this occurs, then normally your hair will stop growing and even it will start falling off quickly.
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Talk With Your Doctor About Hair Loss Concerns Before Surgery
Its also important to discuss the possibility of surgery-related hair loss with your doctor before your operation.
If you expect a long surgery or an intensive care treatment, you may ask about the medical teams plan for head turning schedules to help prevent positional alopecia.
Your doctor can help assess other risk factors for hair loss, and potentially offer an action plan to help minimize it. This may involve the preventive strategies listed above, as well as potential post-surgery treatments.
Continue Taking A Multivitamin Exactly As Prescribed After Surgery
Taking a multivitamin will continue to be a daily, lifelong habit after surgery. For the first few months, its best to take a chewable or liquid multivitamin, after which you can switch to a capsule form if desired.
Follow the guidance of your surgical team regarding what kind of multivitamin to use, to make sure its well tolerated and adequately meets your nutrient needs. Ideally, look for multivitamins that have been verified to contain what is indicated on the ingredient label, and in the amounts claimed.
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Facts About Hair Growth
Human hair has a natural three-stage growth cycle the anagen phase , the catagen phase, and the telogen phase . During the telogen phase, youll likely experience hair loss in the form of shedding. This phase typically lasts around 3 months.
Factors such as trauma, extreme dieting, chronic disease, nutritional deficiencies, and severe illness can all affect anagen and telogen cycles. Because nutritional deficiencies are common amongst those who struggle with obesity, weight loss surgery patients are often at a higher risk of experiencing hair loss post-surgery.
The first 3 to 6 months after weight loss surgery is often the most challenging, as the body is healing and adjusting. During this time, calorie intake is restricted and can cause a decrease in macronutrients such as carbohydrates and proteins. Patients may also be experiencing increased stress levels and hormonal changes.
All of this can culminate into a condition known as telogen effluvium, a type of hair loss patients often experience after undergoing weight loss surgery.
Why Am I Losing Hair After Losing Weight
The beauty of the hair is often considered as the half of a persons beauty in total. Having beautiful and above all healthy hair is something we all want. However, this is not always the case and often people have problems with their hair. Many lifestyle and behavioral changes greatly affect the health of our hair. Hair loss is one of the changes with a great impact on a persons hair. Why hair loss occurs after weight loss? Lets find out.
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