What Is Causing Your Hair Loss & Can It Be Stopped?

What is causing your hair loss & can it be stopped?

It can be very concerning when you wake up to hair on your pillowcase or watching hair pile up in your trash can after every brush

In order to stop the hair loss, we need to get to the bottom of WHY you are losing it in the first place. Most times, hair loss is a symptom of a hormonal imbalance and/or nutrient deficiency. 

First, we need to determine what is the pattern of hair loss?

Do a self-assessment to determine if it is: 

  1. Patchy? 
  2. Thinning?
  3. Top of the head only?
  4. Total body hair loss? 
  5. Balding all over? 

Patchy = Look into if you have a cortisol imbalance, B-vitamins, deficiency, zinc deficiency or heavy metal exposure. 

Thinning = Look into hormonal imbalances (mainly thyroid). 

Top of the head only = Look at sex hormones; testosterone, progesterone, estrogen. Also look into cortisol. 

Total body hair loss = Look into DHEA, LH, blood sugar regulation and blood circulation. 

Balding all over = Look into blood and oxygen circulation and a deficiency in protein, essential fatty acids, B-vitamins, silicon and zinc.

 

For some of these to be investigated, you will need to get labs which your health care practitioner should be able to help with.

 

Ultimately, you are looking some or all of: 

  • CBC & Ferritin (iron)
  • TSH, free T3, free T4 (ask for full thyroid panel)
  • ANA & RF (autoimmunity markers)
  • Testosterone, free testosterone, DHT
  • FSH, LH, Estrogen, Progesterone
  • Sex Hormone Binding Globulin (SHBG)
  • Cortisol, DHEA, Prolactin 
  • CMP (baseline check for liver, kidney, electrolytes) 
  • Fasting Insulin, Fasting blood glucose, Hemoglobin A1C
  • Heavy metal testing

 

Depending on how your labs come back, you will be able to tackle the root cause of the hair loss. 

  • If it is related to a mineral or nutrient deficiency, you can make changes to your diet to include more of that nutrient or mineral.
  • If it is hormone related, you can work with an endocrinologist, functional medicine doctor, or naturopath to find ways to properly balance these hormones. 
  • A lot of changes can be made through the diet such as adding certain fat sources, removing certain inflammatory foods, and including some supplements. 

Questions? Ask away! 

 

- BORN Naturals 

 

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