Some of the best foods for hair growth are foods that have high nutritional value such as eggs, green leafy vegetables, and fatty fish. Nutrient deficiencies can affect hair health.
What is the effect of nutritional deficiency on hair?
Many people want strong, healthy hair, especially as they age.
However, how quickly it grows and how healthy it is depends on many factors including age, overall health, genetics, environmental exposure, medications, and diet.
Your diet is a factor that you most likely have more control over than others, such as age and genetics.
Vitamins and minerals contained in foods play an important role in the hair follicle growth cycle and cell turnover.
Consuming a diet that lacks the right nutrients can lead to hair loss.
Research indicates that inadequacies in biotin, riboflavin, iron, vitamins B12 and D, and other nutrients are linked to hair loss.
Eating a balanced diet rich in these vitamins and minerals can help promote hair growth, especially if you experience hair loss due to poor nutrition.
While more research is needed to understand the connection between micronutrients and hair loss, it’s a good idea to make sure you’re getting enough of these 13 nutrient-rich foods that support hair growth.
1. Eggs:
Two important nutrients for hair growth are protein and biotin, both of which are found in abundance in eggs.
Protein makes up the majority of hair follicles, so eating enough of it is essential for healthy hair growth. It has been demonstrated that a diet low in protein causes hair loss.
Because keratin, a protein found in hair, depends on biotin for its production, biotin supplements are frequently sold as hair growth aids. Studies have also indicated that increasing one’s intake of biotin can enhance hair growth in those who are deficient in the nutrient.
However, biotin deficiencies are rare if you follow a balanced diet. There is little evidence to show that people who have limited or no health problems benefit from consuming more biotin.
Furthermore, a high biotin diet may affect test results that are used to diagnose and treat a variety of illnesses.
While it is unlikely to consume excess biotin through food, many hair, skin, and nail growth supplements contain biotin in excess of the recommended daily allowance.
Eggs are also an excellent source of zinc, selenium, and other hair-healthy nutrients. They are therefore among the greatest foods to eat for healthy hair.
2. Berries:
Berries are rich in beneficial compounds and vitamins that can support hair growth.
Among these is vitamin C, which possesses potent antioxidant qualities.
Antioxidants can shield hair follicles from the damaging effects of free radicals, which are dangerous molecules. Both the environment and the body naturally contain these molecules.
For example, 1 cup (144 grams) of strawberries provides a whopping 85 milligrams or up to 113 percent of your daily vitamin C requirement.
Furthermore, collagen, a protein that helps strengthen hair and keep it from breaking and becoming brittle, is produced by the body using vitamin C.
Vitamin C also facilitates the body’s absorption of iron from food. Anemia from low iron levels has been connected to hair loss.
3. Spinach:
Spinach is a healthy green vegetable full of beneficial nutrients such as folic acid, iron, and vitamins A and C, all important for hair growth.
Research indicates that vitamin A plays a significant role in hair growth. However, taking excessive amounts of vitamin A supplements can actually cause hair loss.
Eating foods high in vitamin A should provide you with all the required amount of this essential nutrient.
Spinach makes up up to 20% of your daily requirement for vitamin A in just one cup (30 grams).
Another great plant-based source of iron, which is necessary for healthy hair growth, is spinach. In order to power the metabolism and encourage growth and repair, iron helps red blood cells transport oxygen throughout the body.
Additionally, iron deficiencies have been linked to hair loss.
4. Fatty fish:
Oily fish such as salmon, herring and mackerel contain nutrients that can promote hair growth.
They are great providers of omega-3 fatty acids, which numerous studies have connected to the development of hair.
An earlier study of 120 women found that taking a supplement containing omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and antioxidants reduced hair loss and increased hair density.
Studies on omega-3 fatty acids and hair growth are, however, scarce. Before medical professionals can recommend anything, more research is required.
In addition, oily fish is a great source of B vitamins, vitamin D3, selenium, and protein—nutrients that can support strong, healthy hair.
Interestingly, studies have linked vitamin D3 deficiency to hair loss.
While it is not yet clear whether low vitamin D levels lead to hair loss, it is a good idea to regularly include fatty fish and other sources of vitamin D in your diet.
5. Sweet potatoes:
Sweet potatoes are an excellent source of beta-carotene. This substance is transformed by the body into vitamin A, which is related to healthy hair.
About 114 grams, or one medium sweet potato, has enough beta carotene to meet up to 160% of your daily requirements for vitamin A.
Research has shown that vitamin A can influence the production of sebum, which helps maintain healthy hair.
Vitamin A deficiency can lead to hair loss.
However, too much vitamin A can also cause hair loss.
Try to meet your needs by eating vitamin A-rich foods like sweet potatoes and avoiding too many supplements.
6. Avocado:
Avocados are a fantastic source of healthy fats and are also tasty and nutritious.
They are also a great source of vitamin E, which has been shown to encourage the growth of hair. About 200 grams, or one medium avocado, supply 28% of your daily requirement for vitamin E.
Similar to vitamin C, vitamin E functions as an antioxidant to counteract free radicals and thereby prevent oxidative stress.
There is conflicting evidence, but some studies have found lower levels of vitamin E in individuals who have hair loss.
In a previous study, taking a vitamin E supplement for eight months increased hair growth by 34.5% in participants who were experiencing hair loss.
Vitamin E also protects areas of the skin, such as the scalp, from oxidative stress and damage. Damaged skin on the scalp can result in poor hair quality and fewer hair follicles.
7. Nuts:
Nuts are tasty, convenient and contain a variety of nutrients important for hair growth.
For example, 28 grams of almonds provide 48% of your daily vitamin E requirement.
Additionally, they also provide a wide variety of B vitamins, zinc, and essential fatty acids. A deficiency in any of these nutrients has been linked to hair loss.
Nuts have also been linked to a wide variety of other health benefits beyond hair growth, including reduced inflammation and a lower risk of heart disease.
This makes nuts an excellent and easy addition to your diet.
8. Seeds:
Seeds are packed with nutrients with relatively few calories. Numerous of these nutrients are also necessary for the growth of hair. Selenium, zinc, and vitamin E are a few of these.
One ounce (28 grams) of sunflower seeds provides nearly 50 percent of your daily vitamin E needs, with a wide variety of hair-healthy B vitamins.
Additionally, some seeds such as flax and chia seeds also provide omega-3 fatty acids.
Two tablespoons of ground flaxseeds provide 4.7 grams of omega-3 fatty acids. That is equivalent to more omega-3 fatty acids than half a salmon fillet (178 grams).
The omega-3 fatty acid in flaxseeds, however, is not absorbed by the body as well as the omega-3s in fatty fish. However, they are an excellent complement to the diet.
To get the widest variety of nutrients, it is best to consume a mixture of seeds.
9. Sweet peppers:
Sweet peppers are an excellent source of antioxidant-rich vitamin C, which can support hair growth.
In fact, one yellow pepper provides up to 456% of women’s daily vitamin C needs and 380% of men’s.
Collagen production is aided by vitamin C, and this can fortify hair strands. It is also a powerful antioxidant, which can protect hair strands from oxidative stress.
Oxidative stress occurs when free radicals overwhelm the body’s antioxidant defense system. Graying of the hair and hair loss have been related to it.
Furthermore, peppers are a fantastic source of vitamin A.
This vitamin is important for hair growth and influences the production of sebum, which helps keep hair healthy.
10. Oysters:
Oysters are one of the best food sources of zinc. One medium oyster provides up to 96% of the daily zinc requirement for women and 75% of the daily zinc requirement for men.
One mineral that supports the cycle of hair growth and repair is zinc.
A deficiency of zinc in the diet can exacerbate telogen effluvium, a common but curable type of hair loss brought on by a diet low in nutrients.
According to studies, taking a zinc supplement can counteract the effects of a zinc deficiency-related hair loss.
However, taking too much zinc can cause toxicity. That’s why getting zinc from foods like oysters can be better than taking supplements since foods provide zinc in small but healthy doses.
11. Beans:
Beans are an excellent source of plant proteins, essential for hair growth.
Like oysters, beans are a good source of zinc, which promotes the growth and repair cycle of hair. A 100 gram serving of black beans provides up to 14% of a woman’s daily zinc requirement and 10% for men.
They also offer folic acid, iron, and biotin, among many other nutrients that are beneficial to hair health.
In addition to all these benefits, beans are highly versatile and inexpensive, making them an easy addition to your diet.
12. Soy:
Studies have shown that compounds found in soy can promote hair growth. One such compound is spermidine, which is abundant in soybeans.
For example, one study of 100 people found that a spermidine-based dietary supplement prolonged a phase of active hair growth called the anagen phase. The longer a hair follicle remains in the anagen phase, the longer it will grow.
Other studies suggest that spermidine may promote human hair growth.
More research is necessary before medical professionals can recommend spermidine use, though, as the relationship between spermidine and hair growth is still relatively new.
The bottom line:
What you eat can affect the health of your hair.
Inadequate intake of certain nutrients, such as zinc, B vitamins, iron, biotin, protein, essential fatty acids, vitamins A, C, D, and E, can impede hair growth or even result in hair loss.
Fortunately, correcting a deficiency in any of these nutrients can help treat hair loss and promote hair growth rate.
If you feel like you’re missing some of these nutrients, try adding some of the foods listed above to your diet.