Food to Eat for Healthy Hair
Today is Valentines’ Day and because I love me and you, I’m sharing the foods I eat for healthy hair. Yes, I eat these daily. In fact, it’s afternoon and I’ve already eaten blueberries, sweet potatoes and hard boiled eggs today —all of which are on this list.
Food and diet are really important to hair health because deficiencies in nutrients are bad news bears for our hair. Below are some foods you can incorporate into your diet for healthy hair we all dream of.
Eggs for Protein and Biotin
Hair follicles are mostly protein, therefore a lack of it may cause hair loss. Biotin is needed to make keratin (a hair protein). Interestingly enough, I have keratosis pilaris on my arms which is an overproduction of keratin and I’ve always wondered if that was related to me having so much hair on my head.
Berries for Antioxidant and Collagen Production
Berries have tons of antioxidants that protect hair follicles against free radicals.
Strawberries are also high in vitamin C, which is needed to make collagen, a protein that strengthens hair. Vitamin C also helps the body absorb iron. Low iron levels are correlated with hair loss.
Spinach for vitamin A, vitamin C, iron and folate (or kale)
Be careful, too much vitamin A can lead to hair loss. A cup of spinach is 20% of your daily needs. I guess you can eat five cups and call it a day. Spinach also has a lot of iron which helps prevent hair loss.
Fatty Fish for Omega-3 fatty acids and protein
Salmon, herring, mackerel. This combination makes hair shiny and thick.
Greek Yogurt with vitamin B5
Vitamin B5 is associated with helping hair growth.
Sweet potatoes for beta carotene
The body turns beta carotene into vitamin A. Also try carrots, pumpkin, cantaloupe and mangoes. I love making sweet potato chips by slicing them and roasting them in the oven.
Cinnamon for circulation
Cinnamon helps with blood flow, so oxygen and nutrients can get to your hair follicles. I put a dash of cinnamon in my black coffee sometimes. You can also sprinkle it on sweet potatoes like the image above.
Avocados for healthy fat and vitamin E
Everyone already knows avocados are a miracle. Don’t go crazy. I eat one a week.
Guava to prevent breakage
Guava has an insane amount of vitamin C, which prevents hair from breaking apart and becoming brittle, or the dreaded split ends. Fresh guava is a nice luxury for our tropical friends. It’s so delicious, I have it all the time when I’m home in The Philippines.
Lean protein like chicken breast
Without enough protein, hair growth is really slow. Older hair falls out hence it looks thinner.
Nuts for vitamin E, vitamin B, Zinc and healthy fats
Basically if you don’t eat these you’ll lose hair (sarcasm, post is getting long, and I’m getting lazy).
Seeds for vitamin E, Zinc and selenium
The one you might not have heard of is selenium - it helps nail and hair health and thyroid function. Basically it will make you hot. I put chia seeds in smoothies and oatmeal. Some eggs are fortified with selenium.
Sweet peppers for vitamins A and C
Easy to eat raw or roasted, the vitamin A and C in these aids in both hair growth and loss prevention.
Oysters for zinc
I grew up in Seattle and man was I spoiled. Try to get those oysters if you can, if not, any oysters from the sea will do. Zinc promotes growth of individual strands to be long and resistant to breakage.
Beans for protein, zinc and more
Beans are a great low cost but incredibly nutritious protein option for vegetarians or vegans that want long, healthy hair but can’t get protein from animal sources.
Soybeans/Soy for Spermidine
In a tiny study of 100 people, they found that spermidine made the anagen phase of hair growth longer, and the longer the follicle stays in that phase the longer the hair will grow. Yay for Mapo Tofu.
Conclusion
A healthy, balanced diet that is free of lots of packaged food and has a lot of healthy fat and protein is great for hair.
But remember, hair health depends on many different factors:
Age
Overall health
Genetics
Environment
Medication
Diet
Hair loss can be caused by a lack of:
Vitamin B12 and D
Biotin
Riboflavin
Iron
Protein
The best way to find out if you’re actually deficient is to take a blood test, otherwise you can just do it the old fashioned way and guess and ask the internet.
Stay tuned for our mineral and nutrient guide to see which supplements you should be taking.
Please share this with your friends if you found this useful!
