The FastDay Forum

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For anyone oiling their hair, I belong to a hair forum (http://www.longhaircommunity.com) and many of us there have found that conditioner works better than shampoo in removing even heavy oilings. Simply apply a good handful or two of conditioner depending on hair length, massage it in well and leave it in for a good few minutes, add a bit of water to hair, 'lather' lightly and rinse out very thoroughly. Cheapo conditioners work well for this purpose.

There would also be a lot of advice on hair shedding available on the forum, but obviously people experience a big hair shed for different reasons.

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I too am shedding a fair bit at the moment. I've just resumed 5:2-ing this week after a bit of a hiatus (well, have been 16:8-ing, kind of...). So I'm not sure that that is the problem.

Sometimes hair shedding is seasonal. I lose more in the winter! Then there's things link Telogen Effluvium which can be related to iron levels. And many other causes.

Supplementation can help, as can eating plenty of protein. I personally take MSM specifically for my hair but it seems to help my skin as well. I think it's fairly safe. I try to avoid megadosing on vitamins, but do take supplements for various health concerns.

Hope you all find something that helps! I thought I'd point you in the direction of the forum though because there might be something useful there for you.

[wildmissus]

It's the dead rat down the plug hole in the shower that I don't like!

Wow, what great advice. @Ballerina I normally use Molton Brown's Seednoir once a week, a deep conditioning oil so I'll switch to coconut oil and give that a try. Thank you.

@Manderley I've had a quick glance at the article and that looks really helpful, thank you, I'll read it properly when I'm not spending so much time on here . I have just come out of a hair lose phase so it could happen every autumn but I've also just come out of a stressful period, so I'm not sure. I would guess that I go through a hair loss phase about 4 times a year.

Interesting to read that the best way to remove the oil is with cheap conditioner. And although I'm not one for taking supplements (I only take cod liver oil) I have just ordered High Strength Vitamin B Complex. It might help my hair, skin, energy levels and lots of other things. I'll try anything once .

My seems to have stopped growing. Its just above my but and not getting any longer. I do have a clump of hair in the brush every time I brush, but if my hair wasn't so long there wouldn't be anything to notice.
I do the coconut oil trick but I leave it on overnight. I slather my hair with coconut oil, it doesn't take much really, even though mine is long and thick and sleep with it draped over my pillow. I do this the night before I change my sheets, as the oil does make a mess of the pillow case. Then I shampoo it out with a good quality shampoo and I condition the hair from the base of my skull down (the head hair gets enough natural oils from my head).

I take high levels of B12 because I am prone to dropping below healthy levels, a multi-vitamin, Omega 3 and vitamin D. I do think my skin is improving, whether its the vitamins or the liberal amounts of coconut oil I slap on every chance I get I don't know, but I'm continuing with it.

I am having more loss (nothing drastic yet!) but I think this is seasonal.

I lost a good third of my hair about three years ago due to thyroid problems (over active). I could run my hand through my hair and it would remove loads of hair every time. Never mind what the plug hole looked like

Lost alot of confidence with it. Luckily I had pretty thick hair to start with as no one actually noticed! When I put it in a pony tail you could see it though and also it was about as thick as a pencil when bunched together. I lost it evenly so no bald patches.

Its grown back (alibet a bit wavy), but having lost so much once before, its scary when I see it coming out again to work out what is normal loss. I am blonde (that accounts for alot then ), and this colouring loses more through natural shedding.

When I hoover I get hair balls all over the place.

Does coconut oil smell ? I couldn't use it to cook with as I hate the smell of coconut, but would give it a go on my hair if it didn't smell like a coconut macaroon

@wildmissus You're welcome

After years of really dry hair - I have very long natural red hair with natural curls, and lots of them.....) I now wash my hair with a baby shampoo "mixa bébé" which is known to be good for adults as well. No conditioner but after my shower I put a bit of olive oil everywhere except the roots of course. I also do a special treatment twice a month with a serum for very dry hair from Dove.

Also I never blow dry my hair, have a special brush and also braid them before going to sleep (or I will sleep on them during the night and it won't be pretty in the morning....)

Lots of great tips in this thread! I've really struggled with this issue the last few years, with doctors who mostly just point out that they don't know why my hormone levels are off, but that's OK because they have female patients whose hair loss is much worse. Not reassuring!

Blood tests are a really good idea to see if there's a hormonal or nutritional cause. Also, hair tends to show the effects of intense stress (nutritional, emotional, or whatever) 3 months later, so if you correct the problem the hair loss might still get a bit worse before it gets better.

In case it's helpful to anyone else, an issue I had was my docs weren't treating my hypothyroidism for a while because my TSH was just above 5, which was considered normal in the old reference range. It's good to be aware that the new standard is 0-3. Treating that helped, but I still have much thinner hair than I used to that gets much worse at times and have been trying vitamin supplements, minoxidil, intense swearing.... I'll give other tips here a try as well.

but I still have much thinner hair than I used to that gets much worse at times and have been trying vitamin supplements, minoxidil, intense swearing.... I'll give other tips here a try as well.

"................................

You mean the intense swearing hasn't worked? Damn!

Ballerina x

I am 63. In my fifties I lost a lot of hair due to the menopause (great stuff that was! Hideous time in my life.) Although my hair is thinner than it used to be I have noticed an improvement lately, new growth. Maybe it's the diet, maybe it's the supplements (B12, B6, D3, folic acid and flaxseed oil) on top of a very healthy no grains diet (I read 'Grain Brain' which made me start thinking.....) with lots of good quality meat (I can't eat fish I am allergic to it), veg and fruit. When you change SO much it's difficult to know what made the difference.

[carorees]

Seeing several posts about hair loss, I had a quick look to see if there were any scientific studies that could throw light on the issue. I found that a low carb, ketogenic diet had been found to cause biotin deficiency in mice (link). As a symptom of biotin deficiency is hairloss and as a low carb diet is metabolically similar to fasting, this may be what is happening. Biotin deficiency can also occur with rapid weight loss.

So, it may be worth taking a vitamin B supplement (biotin is a B vitamin) to see if that helps.

reading through a few of these posts is worrying.

Maybe i ve been lucky; I ve got a (genetic) bald patch on the back of my head, which needless to say doesn't make me happy.

I looked at a phto taken during the autumn showing the back and it wasn't as bad as I had dreaded.

I don't make point of examining it. I just thank my lucky stars I don't have had the agony of male pattern baldness or too much receding hairline.

I wondered what was going to happen or if the diet was going to affect stuff at all..... fasting etc...... but certianly the front seems to be reasonably prolific. I put any possible improvement down to improved intake of greens etc. (broccoli tips eems to be very beneficial)

May I say that Im sorry to read this posts as I now all to well the distress this subject causes. Lottery win.....i'd have a transplant tomorrow.

I read somewhere that we lose half our hair by the time we are 50. Well any loss of hair off my head is made up for by hair sprouting from places it's never been before.

:shock: This is becoming a big worry for me now
I have posted before that I'm losing hair and that I'm not regaining my now 50lbs weightloss, I said that I'd go
Wig shopping first deffo
I'm mid sixties so most people would say it's age related but why now? only in the last 4 months
( I'm nearly 8months into this WOL )
I had a full thick healthy head of hair when I began and can only put it down to the "diet" if I lost no more I'd be well happy Sue

That was part of my reply early December now one month on my hairloss is Slightly less the plughole + hairsnare are now both holding less hair, my dyson is still catching up in different rooms so plenty to show in tub, I'm getting used to my new shorter "thinner" style but don't want it to get any worse, as for changes I've not made any other than at the moment I'm trying tresemme shampoo but have always swooped and changed on a regular basis, had forgotten the article posted by @carorees and will look at getting the supplement and check out the food it contains, hope this is helpful to some.

Lol Wino that one I've got prob with age deffo

I have a slow thyroid (hypothyroidism) and one of the side effects of that is hair loss. another is weight gain. (others include tiredness, irritability and aches). I originally put it all down to getting older, but the treatment is really simple (one tablet a day) and it has helped with all the above. It's worth getting your bloods checked!

Bumping this thread.

I have recently (the last 3-6 months) experienced quite a bit of hair loss, enough so that I am starting to freak out a little, which of course doesn't help. I have had my thyroid levels (full panel) checked: Fine. My estrogen level: Fine. My progesterone level: Fine. My testosterone level: Fine.

Anyway, I am perimenopausal and I figure that's the reason, even if my hormone levels are checking out OK.

I take biotin and B12 daily. I eat coconut oil about 3 or 4 times a week. I eat well on my regular days.

Should I just accept this is age related and maybe stress related? I don't want to be bald. It makes me cry to think that. Right now I'm doing a lot of styling to hide the thinning patches. I guess that's all I can do. Can someone, anyone, please offer me some kind and encouraging words?

Thanks.

@Melinda_in_NC
Not sure this is of any help to you but as my postings in Dec+ Jan
My situation is pretty similar to then my hairloss has slowed down considerably but not stopped however I do keep forgetting to take the vitamin Bcomplex must try harder, obviously I'm lot older than you but never suffered hair loss with any rubbish dieting over the years or with the menopause, but mine is an overall loss I don't have bald patches or anything like that.
Perhaps my buddie @gillymary can offer you some different advice as this is a problem for her too.