Hair Basics

Each human hair grows from a follicle in the scalp. It goes through three stages – a Growth phase or Anagen (2-3 years), Resting Stage or Catagen (2-3 months) and finally Loss or Telogen. Since the growth phase is the longest, almost 90% of our hair at any point of time are in the growing phase.

Growing healthy hair needs the follicular cells to be in the pink of health. A healthy flow of blood carrying oxygen and nutrients is vital to provide the follicle cells with the ingredients that they need to ensure healthy hair growth.

 Vitamins

Appropriately named as they are vital for the well being of the body, vitamins act as co- enzymes and co-factors responsible for ensuring that our physiological and biochemical processes run at optimal levels. There are two types of vitamins –

a) Water soluble vitamins like Vitamin B complex and vitamin C

b) Fat soluble vitamins like Vitamin A and D

Care is needed when using supplements for fat soluble vitamins as they may accumulate in the body and have toxic effects if consumed in large quantities.

The Best Vitamins for Hair Growth

Changing lifestyles have been accompanied by the adoption of diets rich in energy but devoid of the much needed minerals and vitamins to stop hair loss, or thinning hair. Both men and women alike need an adequate intake of vitamins for healthy hair, and especially to combat the effects of hair loss.

1) Vitamin A – An important vitamin for hair loss, it is readily produced in the body from beta carotene. It is responsible for maintaining the skin and associated tissues like the hair and nails in excellent health.

2) Vitamin B complex – are the best vitamins for hair loss. Among the B vitamin family B6, folic acid, biotin and B12 are vital for maintaining hemoglobin levels which in turn are related to the amount of life giving oxygen reaching the hair follicles. Natural sources of B6 include meat products and soybean while wheat germ, cereals and grain contain ample folic acid. Similarly B12 can be obtained from eggs, meat and fermented food products. One rarely needs to worry about Biotin as its requirements are met by gut bacteria. Hair loss coupled with intestinal disturbance may indicate that one is missing out on one or more of these good vitamins for hair loss.

3) Vitamin C – is another hair loss vitamin. Responsible for the development of healthy collagen, a type of glue that keeps cells together, vitamin C ensures that hair have strong roots and breakage is minimized. Peppers, citrus fruits and green leafy vegetables like spinach are excellent sources of this vitamin.

4) Vitamin E - is an antioxidant that helps in scavenging free radicals. It also increases oxygen flow in the body and improves the skin tone. A healthy skin in turn results in a lower incidence of infections and heathier hair, making this one of the important hair loss vitamins. Green leafy vegetables, nuts and grains are excellent sources of this vitamin.