Understanding The Impact Of Diet On Your Hair Health

• by Daryl Fillion
• 2025-01-26 20

When it comes to appearance, hair can truly make or break your look. Our diet plays a pivotal role in nurturing our hair from within. The food we consume is a big deal when it comes to our hair health. Our diet can either be our hair’s best friend by providing it with all the essential nutrients, including Vitamin A, C, D, and E, zinc, iron, omega 3, protein and biotin or its worst enemy, depriving it of it, resulting in weak, damaged and thin hair. So, when you don’t eat healthy and fiber-rich food, your hair suffers the consequences. Bad eating habits often include indulging in late night snacking, avoiding homemade food and frequently dining out. Other than that nutritional deficiencies are also a significant reason for poor hair health.

Hair is made of Keratin, a protein that grows from hair follicles in the skin. A lack of protein can damage hair. Hair health and how it grows depends on many factors, including age, overall health, environmental factors and diet. Although we don't have control over many of the things mentioned above, we still have control over our diet.

If you are still wondering whether changing your diet and making healthy lifestyle choices is worth it for hair health then the answer is YES. It definitely makes a difference, you just have to be consistent with it. Avoiding the latest hair colour trends, minimizing the use of hair tools and always using heat protectant sprays can be a game-changer. Long, thick and shiny hair can boost your difference and make you stand out among all the people.
In this blog we will uncover how nutritional deficiencies affect your hair, hair loss solutions, effective hair care routines, balanced diet plans and reveal the secrets to achieving healthy, smooth and shiny hair. Let's dive in!

Impact of Balanced Diet And Nutritional Deficiencies on Hair Health

Before discussing the impact of diet on hair health, it is extremely important to understand the basic stages of hair growth. This knowledge will help you deeply analyze the root cause of damaged hair and target the underlying issues and focus on repairing and restoring healthy hair!

There are 3 stages in which hair grows, they include:

1. Anagen Phase:

• What is it? It is known as the growth / active phase in which hair grows from the follicle. In this stage the cells in the roots of the hair are actively dividing to form new hair.
  
  
• How much does the hair grow? It grows about half an inch in a month and faster in summers than in winters. This is because warmer temperatures cause blood vessels to become wider resulting in an improved blood flow to the scalp. Hence, more oxygen and nutrients are delivered to the hair follicles, which stimulates hair growth. Other than that, spending more hours in daylight in summers produces a hormone named melatonin, which influences hair growth.
  
  
• How long does this stage last? It can last up to an average of 3-5 years resulting in full hair length growth about 18-30 inches. In some cases it can extend up to 7 years depending upon genetics.
  
  
• How to speed up this phase? There are few things which you can incorporate in your routine to accelerate this stage!
  
  
  • Maintaining a healthy diet is the most crucial part of speeding up this stage. Having a balanced diet plan including all the proteins, vitamins (A, C, D, E) and minerals like zinc and iron.
    
    
  • Scalp massages can be a game changer in your hair care routine as it boosts blood circulation.
    
    
  • And lastly, keeping your scalp healthy by avoiding harmful chemicals, hair colour trends or overusing heat tools or using heat protectant sprays can also help to enhance this stage.

2. Catagen Phase:

• What is it? It is a short transition phase which signals that no active hair growth will now occur. This stage starts by detaching the strands from the blood supply, preparing them for hair fall.
  
  
• How much does the hair grow? No hair growth occurs as this phase prepares it for shedding.
  
  
• How long does this stage last? It lasts up to 2 weeks, resulting in the loss of about 50-100 hair daily. So if you are experiencing this then don’t worry! It's completely normal.
  
  
• How to speed up this phase? As it is a short and natural transition phase, you cannot accelerate it but rather prevent it from causing a huge damage by maintaining a healthy scalp. This could be done by keeping your scalp free from excessive oil and buildup by washing your hair frequently. Incorporating a gentle shampoo with good ingredients in your hair care routine is essential for nourishment of hair and is an excellent hair loss solution!

3. Telogen Phase:

• What is it? It is a resting phase in which hair remains in the follicle and does not actively participate in the growth. In this stage, the hair might shed naturally, making space for new strands, preparing it for another anagen phase.
  
  
• How much does the hair grow? No active hair growth occurs during this phase.
  
  
• How long does this stage last? It lasts up to 3-4 months, during which time they might naturally fall.
  
  
• How to speed up this phase? You cannot speed up this phase directly but there are a few things which help to smoothly begin the new anagen phase. It includes minimizing stress levels, maintaining overall good scalp health by following a good hair care routine, keeping your hair away from the hair colour trends and always using heat protectant sprays to avoid any direct damage.

Understanding these phases gives an insight of how everything is linked with our diet. Poor eating habits mess with this cycle resulting in fragile and weak hair with damaged strands.

What is a Balanced Diet?

Balanced diet means that your food intake includes a variety of foods from different groups including fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins and dairy, in the right proportions to provide the body with all the essential nutrients needed to function properly, maintain a healthy weight, and consume the right amount of calories.

Balanced diet promotes hair growth by providing it with all the necessary supplements it needs to remain healthy. It is one of the best hair fall solutions which is not only good for your hair but overall health.

What Should be Incorporated in The Diet for Healthy Hair?

If you want your hair to be luminous and healthy then focus on maintaining a good and balanced diet. It will gradually help you in solving all of your hair concerns. Remember consistency is key. Since it took a long time for your hair to become damaged, reversing that damage will also require patience and time. A few things which you should incorporate in your diet for strong hair includes:

• Protein: As hair is made of protein, it plays a vital role when it comes to healthy and strong hair. Insufficient protein intake can make hair brittle and prone to damage.
  
  
  • Increase your consumption of fish, chicken and eggs. They are protein rich foods and will help you in achieving your dream hair.
    
    
• Iron: If your body is low in iron, it will result in weak hair follicles resulting in shedding of hair strands. If you have tried everything to prevent hair fall and are looking for hair loss solutions, iron is the magic ingredient.
  
  
  • Increase your intake of iron rich foods including red meat and green vegetables. If you are allergic to red meat then you can try using folic acid as it is an iron supplement and will help you in covering this deficiency.
    
    
• Biotin: Its deficiency can cause thinning of the hair. Whether you have Biotin deficiency or not, research has found that including its intake can boost hair growth.
  
  
  • Increase your intake of eggs and bananas. If you are allergic to it then you may try biotin supplements.

To summarize, if you are looking for hair loss solutions and want your hair to be thick, shiny and voluminous then it is possible just by focusing on your diet. Having healthy hair is possible by following a balanced diet plan which will cover the deficiency of any essential nutrient required for healthy hair. Following these steps and a good hair care routine will be enough to have your dream hair!