Loosing my hair A LOT.

[HippieMom]

I am loosing my hair to the point where it's everywhere in the house and if I pass my hand into my hair I ll have like 300 in my hands, feeling very sad ! I did a blood test and none of the doctors ( saw 3 dr) gave me an explanation..The blood test came back low on iron and borderline on my thyroid...I take enough dark greens to feed a horse with barley grass and wheat grass..I did not get the iron tablets yet because I want to get to the source of the problem and I feel sad and confused and really worried...it's a lot of hair in the floor everyday and don't know what to do????

[Camille]

Keep up the greens and the seaweed: kelp is very high in iodine (good for the thyroid) and iron.. You can find it in powder form over the Internet (great added to smoothies)
Also, garlic is very high in iron and sulphur (MSM!)..
Try MSM (again, check out the Internet) and maybe read about no-poo (no shampoo) as I was reading earlier that someone who was losing her hair quite a lot started to see some re-growth after a while.. (and then it stopped when she started using shampoo again!)

Try and have another blood test done in a few weeks, though, to make sure you're not missing out on anything else (B vitamins..).

Good luck! :-)

[Anastazia]

I'm going thru this, too...scalp massage is helpful, increases circulation...Iron tablets are not a very beneficial way to get iron, from what I've read...I know blackstrap molasses is a great source, but it isn't raw...not sure right now of raw sources...
...Oh, yea, beets! (grated up raw on salads etc. is a really wonderful way to eat them, use the tiny holes on the grater!)

Hope it helps...I'm considering cutting some length off mine, cuz it gets caught on things & makes me lose even more, it seems to come out so easily...
...I'm going no-poo now, hope that helps, too...

~Anastazia~

[Aimee Loves You]

SEAWEED! Buy big pieces of kelp. Eat them chopped on a salad or blended into your dressing. Eat lots of different kinds of seaweed everyday. Make sure you soak them first. This is what worked for me. My doctor couldn't believe it!

[Donna]

The thought of eating seaweed makes me ill........ and I am not at all pickey.,........ where do you buy it, and what is it like?

Aimee Loves You said:

SEAWEED! Buy big pieces of kelp. Eat them chopped on a salad or blended into your dressing. Eat lots of different kinds of seaweed everyday. Make sure you soak them first. This is what worked for me. My doctor couldn't believe it!

[Laurie]

Hi HippieMom,

I've read about this happening to other rawfooders, and resolving over time. Sometimes the body discards unhealthy tissues, hair, etc., and will re-build with healthier materials. There have been a few discussions on these boards:

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/PathOfHealth/ (This group gives you an introductory period of about 2 mos. and then it is donation-based if you decide to continue. There are many very knowledgeable and experienced members.)

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/Rawschool/ (This is run by Nora Lenz, of www.rawschool.com, who is very experienced and knowledgeable. The archives are very extensive. It's a free group.)

You might want to do more research on the grasses and seaweeds. I'm sure a small amount won't hurt, but it doesn't seem like optimal food to me. I mean, like you said, horses (and cows, and the herbivores) eat grasses and they have the stomachs and digestive system for them. I'm not sure if it's the same with humans, but I've read that kelp can inhibit thyroid function in dogs. Just something to look into more, imo.

Best wishes. Hang in there.

Laurie

[Beth]

This exact thing happened to me a few months after I went raw. It also happened after pregnancy. For me, it was a change in hormone levels. Excess weight contributes to excess estrogen. As I lost weight rapidly (and after pregnancy) my hormones changed.

During pregnancy, the woman doesn't shed hair. After pregnancy, the hair cycle begins again. But now instead of just shedding a small portion of hair as usual (we're always shedding hair as part of the cycle), a lot of hair sheds at once. That's the annoying part. The positive part is that there is hair growing beneath it- that's what pushed the old hair out.

My hair has grown back thicker than before. I also had a very high hairline with an odd shape to it and the hair grew in fuller, where it had always been sparse. In the short term, it REALLY sucks. Pretty scarves, a layered haircut, and not washing my hair often helped. When hair is wet it's more vulnerable. The major shedding lasted about 4 weeks then filled in.

When you had your bloodwork done, did they look at your hormone levels? Even if they did, they might not be able to tell anything at this point. Shedding usually happens about 3 months after a major change.

Feel free to message me about this. I've done a ridiculous amount of research on it and have been through it.

[zUzU]

=^..^=don't know if any of this will be helpful ... but it's free ::hee::

Borderline low thyroid ...
Just went through this with two family members & this is what I learned ... If the thyroid's low, even borderline low one of the first signs can be hair loss (and fatigue.) If your doctor places you on something like, Tapazol, you may see your hair stop jumping ship :o) I know it's not 'natural' ... but not sure what to do other than Tapazole. (Was also told that stress can affect the thyroid/hairloss thing as well.) Just diet and lots of good sleep didn't work until we added the drug.

Dark raisins are a source of iron (easy to find raw-sundried at least) ... and fresh spinach (but I know you have to balance it with something for absorption and I can't remember what ... losta help, huh.) I don't like supplements and can't deal with the smell/taste of kelp so have to use other sources for iron.

The raisins are not only a good source of iron, but B-vitamins which are good for stress! But they're full of sugar (fructose) ... always something, huh? Smile.

Hope things straighten out for you soon! --zU

[chasmyn]

Also supplement with B12 and EFAs (essential fatty acids). Raw diets don't provide much absorbable B12 and we NEED it. It could also be thyroid, so I would definitely go to an endocrinologist and have it checked.

[Anastazia]

I went to look up Tapazol, & found out that it can actually CAUSE major hair loss (it's listed as one of it's side affects!) & also that it's usually given in the case of Grave's disease, or before they're going to destroy the thyroid...scary stuff...
{...glad it helped your family members, though, zU...}
~Anastaza~

zUzU said:

=^..^=don't know if any of this will be helpful ... but it's free ::hee::

Borderline low thyroid ...
Just went through this with two family members & this is what I learned ... If the thyroid's low, even borderline low one of the first signs can be hair loss (and fatigue.) If your doctor places you on something like, Tapazol, you may see your hair stop jumping ship :o) I know it's not 'natural' ... but not sure what to do other than Tapazole. (Was also told that stress can affect the thyroid/hairloss thing as well.) Just diet and lots of good sleep didn't work until we added the drug.

--zU

[Anastazia]

Is there a way to eat kelp without it tasting soooooo FISHY????? I've never eaten fish, HATE it, in fact, tried to use powdered kelp, seaweed, different things, but almost puke every time.
I know I need it, but there's GOT to be a better way!!!
~Anastazia~

[HippieMom]

Thank you Beth :)

Beth said:

This exact thing happened to me a few months after I went raw. It also happened after pregnancy. For me, it was a change in hormone levels. Excess weight contributes to excess estrogen. As I lost weight rapidly (and after pregnancy) my hormones changed.

During pregnancy, the woman doesn't shed hair. After pregnancy, the hair cycle begins again. But now instead of just shedding a small portion of hair as usual (we're always shedding hair as part of the cycle), a lot of hair sheds at once. That's the annoying part. The positive part is that there is hair growing beneath it- that's what pushed the old hair out.

My hair has grown back thicker than before. I also had a very high hairline with an odd shape to it and the hair grew in fuller, where it had always been sparse. In the short term, it REALLY sucks. Pretty scarves, a layered haircut, and not washing my hair often helped. When hair is wet it's more vulnerable. The major shedding lasted about 4 weeks then filled in.

When you had your bloodwork done, did they look at your hormone levels? Even if they did, they might not be able to tell anything at this point. Shedding usually happens about 3 months after a major change.

Feel free to message me about this. I've done a ridiculous amount of research on it and have been through it.

[HippieMom]

Thank you ZuZu , I already feel less down , I ll try everything to get my hair back!! really appreciate your reply:)

zUzU said:

=^..^=don't know if any of this will be helpful ... but it's free ::hee::

Borderline low thyroid ...
Just went through this with two family members & this is what I learned ... If the thyroid's low, even borderline low one of the first signs can be hair loss (and fatigue.) If your doctor places you on something like, Tapazol, you may see your hair stop jumping ship :o) I know it's not 'natural' ... but not sure what to do other than Tapazole. (Was also told that stress can affect the thyroid/hairloss thing as well.) Just diet and lots of good sleep didn't work until we added the drug.

Dark raisins are a source of iron (easy to find raw-sundried at least) ... and fresh spinach (but I know you have to balance it with something for absorption and I can't remember what ... losta help, huh.) I don't like supplements and can't deal with the smell/taste of kelp so have to use other sources for iron.

The raisins are not only a good source of iron, but B-vitamins which are good for stress! But they're full of sugar (fructose) ... always something, huh? Smile.

Hope things straighten out for you soon! --zU