Female hair loss has become an epidemic. Almost every time I tell someone my story about becoming a health coach—which began with hair loss six years ago—they invariably say, “my hair is falling out too,” or “my friend’s (daughter/sister/sister-in-law/wife) hair is falling out.” The women saying this aren’t only middle aged. They're in their 20’s and 30’s, 60’s and 70’s. Some are even teens and pre-teens. Yet no one seems to be talking about it—perhaps because modern medicine hasn’t been able to definitively crack the code. No one completely understands hair loss and its host of elusive causes, and so treatments that work for some people don’t work on others. Everyone is different. I know firsthand how emotionally devastating hair loss can be, so I hope some of the suggestions below give you a place to start looking into possible causes of yours.
1. Check your thyroid –
Low thyroid (hypothyroidism) is a well-known cause of hair loss, and if your thyroid is to blame, balancing your thyroid hormones with a naturopath or endocrinologist can be a relatively easy fix. Ask your doctor or naturopath for a complete thyroid panel to determine if your thyroid might be a factor. For a complete list of which tests to ask for, check out my thyroid blog post here. Make sure your Free T4, Free T3, and TSH are well in range (and not borderline), and if you test positive for thyroid antibodies, consider trying an Autoimmune diet for 6 weeks to see if things improve.
2. Check Your Ferritin and Vitamin D Levels –
Ferritin is a storage form of iron, and although the acceptable lab range for ferritin is anywhere between 20-200 ng/ml (for women), ferritin levels below 100 ng/ml have been associated with hair loss. If your ferritin level comes in significantly below 100ng/ml, talk to your doctor about beginning iron supplements (with vitamin C for increased absorption). It will take a few months to get ferritin levels up, so be patient and be sure to manage it with a medical professional since having too much iron can be dangerous. Also, low ferritin has been associated with low Vitamin D levels, so ask your doctor to check your vitamin D levels as well. Acceptable Vitamin D levels are controversial—mainstream docs say below 40, and alternative docs say between 60-90 (especially for autoimmune sufferers). Talk to your doctor to determine what’s right for you, and again work with a healthcare provider, as very high Vitamin D levels can be toxic.
3. Check Zinc And Selenium –
Low levels of zinc and selenium have both been associated with hair loss, and are also critical components in converting thyroid hormone into its useable form. Getting zinc and selenium up into their normal ranges may resolve hair loss, in addition to improving a host of other health problems, so ask your doctor to run a blood test.
If you want to cover many bases at once and ensure you’re not missing critical nutrients your hair follicles might crave, here’s a test I highly recommend, called the Spectracell Nutrient Panel. It’s a complete nutrient analysis that measures 35 nutritional components including vitamins, antioxidants, minerals and amino acids within white blood cells. You can either order a test kit yourself, or ask your doctor or naturopath to run one for you (especially in certain states, where self testing is not permitted).
4. Check Sex Hormones and DHT—
Too much or too little estrogen can negatively affect hair growth, and too little progesterone allows the conversion of testosterone into DHT—a biologically active metabolite responsible for damaging hair follicles. If your hormones are out of balance it could be contributing to excessive hair loss. Work with a naturopath to get your sex hormones and DHT tested, and if they aren't in range (or if your DHT is high), talk to them about balancing hormones with food or with bio-identical hormone replacement therapy (HRT). You can also work with a functional nutritionist to balance your hormones with food.
5. Get Your Stress Level in Check—
Stress is one of the most significant contributors to hair loss (causing telogen effluvium), but it can be difficult to know how much of an impact your current (or previous) stress level is actually having on your situation. The only way to find out is to reduce it and see if things improve—and the good news is you can reduce it WHILE you’re testing a bunch of other things (i.e. all of the above). But how to reduce stress? There are several options: Meditation (see this blog post for more on meditation), gentle exercise or any breath practice (such as walking, hiking, and yoga), prayer, beach walks, or any activity that brings you joy (did someone say Zumba?!) can significantly help. If you just don’t have time to do one of these each day, you’re probably more stressed than you think.
Keep in mind that no matter what the cause, resolving hair loss is a slow process, with each intervention taking approximately 3-4 months before you'd see results. As hard as it is, be patient, and work on stress reduction concurrently with other treatments to increase your chances of resolution.
Do you have a hair loss story or solution? I’d love to hear from you!