15th August, 2023

How Lifestyle Choices Can Cause Hair Loss?

Reviewed By

Dr Dhananjay Chavan

Dermatologist

Lifestyle can be a cause for hair loss? | HairMD

lifestyle factors can significantly contribute to hair loss, often going unnoticed until the problem becomes more severe. 

Habits such as poor diet, excessive stress, smoking, and lack of sleep can disrupt the body’s natural processes, leading to weakened hair health and increased shedding. However, by making simple lifestyle changes, such as maintaining a balanced diet, managing stress, quitting smoking, and ensuring adequate rest, it’s possible to reduce the risk of hair loss and promote healthier hair.

What’s covered in the article?

  • Lifestyle can be a cause for hair loss?
  • 8 Lifestyle Factors That Can Cause Hair Loss
  • Lifestyle Changes for Hair Loss
  • Conclusion

Lifestyle can be a cause for hair loss?

Hair loss is a major problem for everyone. We all know about it. In today’s day and age, we are always stressing about something or the other. But, Do you know lifestyle can be a cause for hair loss? This is when a healthy lifestyle comes into a direct relationship with the quality of our hair. Today Dr. Dhananjay Chavan will explain to you how lifestyle can affect your hair loss problem.

8 Lifestyle Factors That Can Cause Hair Loss

  • Physical Stress

If you have faced any sort of trauma in the past year, then you might witness excessive shedding. If a lot of hair occurs in the shower drainage or on your pillow; then the hair loss problem might be turning towards something serious. This happens quite often after surgery as well. Our hair goes through three phases- growth, rest, and shedding. If you suffer from physical trauma, then your hair gets into the shedding phase much earlier.

  • Stress and anxiety

When you are on stress don’t try to take any decision. A similar phenomenon occurs when you are undergoing a lot of emotional stress as well. If you are suffering through a broken relationship or taking a lot of stress due to some other emotionally taxing issue, then the hair loss can really aggravate. Try to keep your stress and anxiety away so that it will be possible to protect your hairs.

  • Pollution

With pollution all around us, it is extremely difficult to keep hair away from toxins and dirt. Due to the overexposure to dirt and impurities in our environment, our hair follicles become weaker much faster and start to lose their shine and strength causing them to shed largely.

  • Unhealthy diet

If you suffer from the junk food phenomenon, where you constantly keep on bringing unhealthy food- then there are a lot of chances that you might have hair loss. Lack of nourishment in your diet can lead to various problems.

Let’s check the foods which are really beneficial for hair growth.

  • Iron: It is very important for the growth of your hair. You can get iron spinach, legumes, pumpkin seeds, meats, etc.
  • Vitamin B12: It helps in red blood cell production, cell division etc. B12-rich foods are eggs, beef, chicken, and fortified cereals.
  • Protein: This promotes hair growth and foods rich in proteins are eggs, pulses, fish, chicken etc.
  • Vitamin: Having vitamin-rich foods is of equal importance. You can have all green leafy vegetables, fruits, pulses, etc.

Food deficiency is one of the leading causes of hair loss problems. Even the lack of folic acid can sometimes really impact hair growth. We advise such patients to change their diet completely for them and introduce a healthily balanced chart of nutritious meals.

  • Lack of sleep

Lack of sleep is said to produce stress. This also results in the weakening of hair follicles. Lack of sleep is very harmful to people as a whole. This can result in major hair loss in patients who have erratic schedules and haywire sleep patterns.

  • Smoking and Alcohol

We generally advise our patients to not smoke or have alcohol post-hair transplants. Nicotine and alcohol, both cause the hair follicles to fall out. Excessive smoking and drinking can cause hair loss as both of them affect the blood in the brain as well as the nerves responsible for hair growth. Keep in mind the points to protect your hair.

  • Crash Diet

Extreme diets result in the complete crashing of nutrients doing harm to the entire body. It results in lesser nutrition and incomplete consumption. This is why we completely advise against extreme diets and tell our patients to practice a healthy exercise schedule along with diet.

  •  Hairstyle products

In today’s day and age, all of us want to look good. We try different haircuts, ironing, straightening, and regular blow-drying causing a lot of damage to the roots of our hair. The amount of heat and extreme torture that we put our follicles through results into hair loss in many patients who come to us at Hair MD.

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Lifestyle Changes for Hair Loss

  • Follow a balanced diet and include foods rich in vitamins B, C, D, and E and minerals like selenium, zinc, and iron in your diet. Increase your protein intake. These nutrients support hair growth.
  • Avoid smoking and drinking, as these habits can cause hair loss, and also spoil overall health.
  • Avoid using hair products and hair treatments that include harsh chemicals, as these chemical ingredients are detrimental to your hair’s health.
  • Condition your hair after shampooing.
  • Do not wear hairstyles that pull or strain the hair, as they lead to hair breakage, thus causing hair fall.
  • Protect your hair from the sun.
  • Avoid frequent curling, ironing, and other procedures that expose the hair to heat, later causing dry, damaged, and frizzy hair.
  • Manage stress. Stress and anxiety are among the leading causes of hair loss.
  • An unhealthy lifestyle causes hair loss. So, healthy living is the key to beautiful hair, skin, and overall health. This includes a healthy diet, proper exercise, and stress management. 
  • Follow a good hair care routine.

Watch this video for getting more information about how to take care of your hair.

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Conclusion

Lifestyle choices play a significant role in contributing to hair loss. Factors such as poor diet, excessive stress, lack of sleep, smoking, and alcohol consumption can all negatively affect hair health. While genetics and other medical conditions can also be causes, adopting a healthier lifestyle can help prevent or minimize hair loss. By making mindful choices, such as maintaining a balanced diet, managing stress, and avoiding harmful habits, individuals can take proactive steps toward promoting healthier hair and overall well-being.

It is imperative to have a healthy lifestyle. We suggest you practice meditation to reduce stress. A healthy balance of diet for hair loss and exercise is necessary for hair growth. Sleeping properly, taking care of our hair regularly, and not putting in too many chemicals would also help us increase the shine and growth of our hair.

Further Reading

Chronic Headaches Linked to Hair Loss?

Explore the link between chronic headaches and hair loss. Learn about causes, triggers, and effective management strategies from the experts at HairMD.

Can a Short Haircut Reduce Hair Loss?

This article explains the facts about haircuts and hair loss, including tips for hair care and effective ways to deal with hair fall.

Powerful Home Remedies for Itchy Scalp

Discover Home Remedies for Itchy Scalp relief with remedies like aloe vera, tea tree oil, and apple cider vinegar. Get expert tips at HairMD!

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