How Can I Strengthen My Hair Follicles Naturally? As hair follicles are made of cells, you need to ensure you consume enough nutrients every day to maintain their health long-term. Eat foods rich in Vitamin A, B (biotin), C, D, E, iron, protein, and zinc.
Environmental Factors – Exposure to dirt, soot, harmful chemicals due to pollution may cause oxidative damage to hair strands and follicles and weaken the hair roots. Hair changes may range from diffuse hair fall, scalp irritation, burning sensation and dandruff to dry, frizzy and brittle hair.
Increase Vitamin, Iron And Zinc Intake
Vitamin deficiencies can cause weak hair. Thus, it is important to increase your intake of vitamins. Following is a list of foods high in vitamins required for strong hair. Consult your doctor if you feel you are unable to get all the above nutrients from your diet.
There are many ways to repair damaged hair follicles naturally. Adding iron, B vitamins (particularly B6), omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin E, and zinc into your diet can help to repair damaged hair strands. Scalp massages with essential oils like peppermint or rosemary can keep hair follicles healthy.
Truly dead hair follicles are almost impossible to reactivate, except with the help of medical/surgical treatment, so it's important that you take action on your dying hair follicles as soon as you're able – the earlier the better.
When your hair follicles are dead, they do not regrow hair. You can inspect your scalp and look for signs of hair growth. Even if you only see thin hair patches or fuzzy texture, your hair follicles are still alive and will continue to renew themselves.
Eat a Healthy Diet
Hair strands are made up of a protein called keratin. Therefore, it's important to get enough protein in your diet. Eat plenty of chicken, lean beef, lentils and beans to maintain healthy hair follicle function. Other nutrients that benefit hair growth include zinc, iron, B vitamins and silica.
Argan oil. Argan oil is commonly known as Moroccan oil. Garodia points out that it's high in vitamin A, C, E, antioxidants, and omega-3 fatty acids. “It acts as a natural conditioner and helps strengthen the hair,” she says.
Do hair follicles heal after an injury and will my hair grow back? If you damage your hair follicles after an injury, they can repair themselves and your hair will grow back. It could take up to four years before you see new hair growth out of damaged hair follicles, depending on the severity of your injury.
Overview of Alopecia Areata
Alopecia areata is a disease that happens when the immune system attacks hair follicles and causes hair loss. Hair follicles are the structures in skin that form hair. While hair can be lost from any part of the body, alopecia areata usually affects the head and face.
“Vitamins are essential for healthy hair growth and may help in preventing hair shedding and thinning,” says Michele Green, M.D., a cosmetic dermatologist in New York. “The best vitamins for hair growth include B vitamins, vitamin D, vitamin E, zinc, biotin and iron.
A number of essential oils including lavender, rosemary, thyme, and cedarwood are effective in boosting hair growth. Some carrier oils like jojoba oil, coconut oil, olive oil, almond oil, castor oil, etc. can also be used to improve hair growth.
Oils like castor, peppermint, onion, coconut, jojoba, argan, amla, olive, grapeseed, rosemary, and tea tree are often recommended for hair growth. They help boost blood circulation and strengthen hair. Remember that essential oils must be mixed in with carrier oils before application.
The B vitamins that affect hair growth are Vitamin B6, folic acid, and Vitamin B12. These vitamins are important for proper formation of red blood cells, which carry oxygen to the tissues, including the hair.
"ACV unblocks follicles in the scalp so that strands have freedom to thrive," Ruggeri says. (Note: If you do use dry shampoo, Ruggeri advises spraying it on the mid-lengths of hair, rather than the roots, to prevent clogging the follicle).
There are a total of one million on the head, with one hundred thousand of those follicles residing on the scalp. This is the largest number of hair follicles a human will ever have, since we do not generate new hair follicles anytime during the course of our lives.
This is because some follicles are small and don't contain eggs; while others are large, and have formed cysts which do not have an egg. It's not possible to differentiate between a cyst and a large follicle based on the ultrasound scan images.
But even though some of your hair follicles may eventually go dormant and stop producing new hairs altogether, these sleeping follicles are not a lost cause. Regular scalp massages and topical hair products with the right stimulating ingredients can effectively wake them up and trigger hair production again.
Here's the hard truth: Little can be done to permanently change the diameter of individual hair strands. Thickening products can do wonders to temporarily plump hair strands, but when it comes down to it, fine hair is genetic and can't be changed.
Sources of Biotin
Foods that contain the most biotin include organ meats, eggs, fish, meat, seeds, nuts, and certain vegetables (such as sweet potatoes) [2,12].
One role vitamin D plays is stimulating new and old hair follicles. When there isn't enough vitamin D in your system, new hair growth can be stunted. Vitamin D deficiency has been linked to alopecia, the autoimmune condition that causes bald patches on the scalp and other areas of the body.