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Hair Loss and Thyroid: Treatments to Combat Thyroid Induced Hair Loss

AK Clinics | November, 17 2017 | 0 Comments

No one likes losing hair no matter what the cause is. Falling hair strands on brush, pillow or towel is devastating. Your hair is the precise barometer of health. The physical or hormonal changes like nutritional deficiencies, various medications, surgery or medical conditions such as thyroid are the major cause of hair loss.

Hormonal imbalance and your hair
Most of the time, we hear the phrase “Hormonal imbalance” and immediately procure an illusion of disturbance in reproductive hormones in our mind. Hormones act as chemical messengers that travel in our organs to regulate metabolism and reproduction. The most common hormones that fluctuate in our body are;

  • Estrogen
  • Progesterone
  • Testosterone
  • Adernaline (Energy Hormone)
  • Cortisol (Stress Hormone)
  • Melatonin (Sleep Hormone) and
  • Thyroid

Among them, thyroid is considered as the major cause of hair loss. Hair loss occurs when testosterone gets converted to DHT (dihydrotestosterone). In case of thyroid, this conversion process speeds up resulting in faster hair loss. Now the question that might you have in your mind is, how will you know that you have hormonal imbalance? There are number of signs which indicate that there is lack of hormones in your body.

Types of thyroid disorders associated with hair loss

There are different conditions due to which you can face hair loss such as;

Disorder Activity Symptoms
Hypothyroidism An under active thyroid gland in hypothyroidism produces inadequate quantity of thyroid hormones. Thinning of hair in eyebrows or hair loss on scalp.
Hyperthyroidism An overactive thyroid gland in hyperthyroidism produces surplus amount of thyroid hormones than it is required. Thin or fragile hair, rapid hair loss.
Thyroiditis Inflammatory action in thyroid gland, triggered by bacterial or viral infection. Hair loss
Post partum Thyroiditis Occurrence of significant changes in metabolism after delivery. Rapid hair loss
Myxedema Manifestation of hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism. Hair loss, baldness
Graves’ disease Autoimmune disorder, triggers emotional stress & secretes excess hormones Hair loss

Hair loss due to thyroid makes your hair evenly sparse. Take comfort in the subsequent information that will give you tips for preventing and slowing down your hair loss. Hair loss will resolve itself once you will get your thyroid treated after the regulation of hormones.

Get diagnosed by doctor: It is always a good idea to consult or discuss with your doctor. An hair expert will do a complete workup in order to assess the exact cause of hair loss. He might ask you to undergo few tests to identify the autoimmune disorders alongside thyroid.

Get right thyroid drug: It is also important to make sure that it’s your right drug for thyroid. Sometimes, our body gets resistant to some drugs or we are not taking the right active ingredient required to treat thyroid. Side effects of these drugs also results in the hair loss.

Right ferritin levels: Have your ferritin levels evaluated and get treated if needed. The adequate levels of iron in the body are essential for the healthy hair along with proper growth. As ferritin is the stored form of iron, you must visit clinics time to time for proper checkup. Alteration in the ferritin levels or iron deficiency also causes the hair loss.

Add in Collagen: Collagen is a form of protein, packed with amino acids including glutamine. Your body produces collagen by itself but decreases with the age or if you are suffering from any disorder. In that case you have to take collagen externally. Collagen gives strength and elasticity to your hair.

Hair loss supplements: You can enhance the intake of supplements that aid in hair growth. Take supplements like omega fatty acids, biotin, evening primrose oil etc.

    • Omega fatty acids provide the elasticity and essential oils to the scalp. The proper amount of nourishment will prevent the hair from excessive dryness.
    • Evening primrose oil (EPO) is an inhibitor of the DHT (dihydrotestosterone) which is the major reason of the hair fall. EPO helps to inhibit the conversion of the hormone testosterone to dihydrotestosterone resulting in reduced hair fall.
    • Biotin promotes the hair growth. Biotin is known as vitamin B7 or H. Biotin is converted into the essential nutrients in the body resulting in healthy and thicker looking hair.

Don’t let the food ruin your thyroid

You see… foods in wide-ranging have a vast impact on your thyroid health. It is important to look for the right food for thyroid to avoid other problems like hair fall. There are foods which trigger the thyroid and make it worse.

Flax seeds

  • Flaxseed is usually recommended and used dietary supplement today
  • It contains high amount of lignans & phytoestrogens. These directly inhibit the proteolytic enzymes.
  • These enzymes permit your thyroid gland to liberate thyroid hormone.
  • Lack of these proteolytic enzymes makes the hair dry, brittle and more prone to breakage.

Muscle Meat

  • The correct amount of protein is essential for healthy thyroid function but the type of protein makes difference.
  • Muscle meat is rich in certain thyroid suppressive amino acids.
  • Cysteine rich diet blocks the production of the thyroid hormone in the body and this also led to hair fall.

Soy

  • While soy is often touted as a healthy food by many, but now more people are becoming aware of its adverse effects.
  • Soy contains very large amount of isoflavones and phytoestrogens
  • It is another highly estrogenic food that directly suppresses the thyroid gland.

Alcohol

  • Contains phytoestrogens. Promotes the conversion of testosterone to estrogen through aromatization.
  • Decreases progesterone production while increases the prolactin.
  • Provide some antioxidant benefits, it also doesn’t take much to raise estrogen levels and suppress your thyroid gland.

Cruciferous Vegetables

  • Broccoli, Cabbage, Kale etc. are cruciferous vegetables. Goitrogens & plant toxins suppresses your thyroid gland
  • They contain Isothiocyanates &Thiocyanates which make it more difficult for your thyroid gland to absorb the iodine. hormone.
  • They contain Oxazolidines and Thioureas which directly blocks the production of thyroid.

Home remedies to treat hair fall due to thyroid:

  • Scalp Massage: To avoid excessive hair fall, massage your scalp with natural oil regularly. It will enhance blood flow to the hair follicles and scalp cells resulting in strengthening of your hair roots. You can use natural oils like;
    • Coconut oil
    • Olive oil
    • Almond oil
    • Rosemary oil
  • Cleanse your system regularly: Cleansing your system from toxins is one of the best home remedy to fight hair loss due to thyroid. Drink lots of water, juices that help to excrete toxins out of your body. If there are toxins, free radicals etc in your body, you will suffer from hair loss. You can try detox water or juices too.
  • Add in amino acids: Amino acids are considered as the best source to prevent hair loss. Increase the intake of amino acids like L-lysine and L-arginine, these stimulates the hair growth. There are nutritional supplements available commercially.
  • Meditation: Try to be stress free. Meditation acts like stress-buster and will elevate your mood. Meditation has the power to contend stress hormone by lowering the psychological and physical stress. If your hormones are normal, you will not face hair loss.
  • Natural Hair Masks: There are number of natural hair mask treatment for hair loss due to thyroid that will make your hair strong and shiny.
    • Apply the paste of curd and eggs on the entire scalp and wash after 15-30 minutes.
    • Apply the mixture of aloe vera gel, amla powder and neem powder on the scalp for 30 minutes and wash with normal tap water.
    • The mixture of coconut oil, honey and cinnamon powder is also a good home remedy for the hair fall.
    • Washing the scalp with neem water followed by massaging with apple vinegar is good home remedy for hair fall and it will help to get rid of dandruff also.
    • You can apply coconut oil, lime water and lime juice is good to control hair loss.

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AK Clinics

AK Clinics- India most trusted & recommended Hair, Skin, Cosmetic Surgery Clinics in India run by Dr. Kapil Dua & Dr. Aman Dua with a mission empowering one million indians to look and feel their best.

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