Low iron and hair loss

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Tricia
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Low iron and hair loss

Post by Tricia » Fri May 19, 2006 5:25 am

Hair Loss May Be Caused By Iron Deficiency
Thursday, May 18, 2006
By Daniel J. DeNoon



If you're losing hair, you may have an iron deficiency.

A review of 40 years of research shows that iron deficiency has a much closer link to hair loss than most doctors realize. It may be the key to restoring hair growth, Cleveland Clinic dermatologists find.

"We believe that treatment for hair loss is enhanced when iron deficiency, with or without anemia, is treated," Leonid Benjamin Trost, MD; Wilma Fowler Bergfeld, MD; and Ellen Calogeras, RD, MPH, write in the May issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

It's a controversial issue. Not every study shows a link between iron deficiency and hair loss. Trost says there's not enough hard evidence -- yet -- to make iron-deficiency screening a routine procedure for people with hair loss.

But study researcher Bergfeld has been doing this for years. And she's finding that whatever the cause of hair loss -- for both women and men -- having too little iron in the blood makes it worse.

"What Dr. Bergfeld has found in decades of experience, is when she treats patients for iron deficiency --even in the absence of anemia -- it can maximize their ability to regrow hair," Trost tells WebMD. "It is not the silver bullet for baldness, but it can definitely help maximize how a patient regrows hair."

The Cleveland Clinic isn't alone in doing this. George Cotsarelis, director of the University of Pennsylvania Hair and Scalp Clinic, has studied iron supplementation in women with various forms of hair loss.

"From our clinic's experience, it is clear to me that if you replenish hair-loss patients' iron stores with iron supplements, they are more likely to regrow hair, or at least stop hair shedding," Cotsarelis tells WebMD. "And they don't have to be anemic. That is the biggest mistake doctors make."

An even bigger mistake would be for balding people to take iron supplements on their own. Unless you have iron deficiency -- diagnosed by a doctor -- iron supplements can lead to a very dangerous condition from iron overload.

Hair Loss May Be a Symptom of Serious Illness

A sensitive way to check total body iron stores is to measure the amount of ferritin in the blood. Ferritin is a protein that plays an important role in iron storage. As a general rule, the less ferritin in the blood, the less iron a body has stored up.

Cotsarelis and Trost say that what most doctors consider to be a normal ferritin level is, in fact, too low. Ferritin levels of 10-15 ng/mL are within the "normal" range. Cotsarelis says a ferritin level of at least 50 ng/mL is needed to help replenish hair. Trost and Bergfeld shoot for 70 ng/mL.

"Doctors see ferritin levels in the normal range, and don't do anything," Cotsarelis says. "But the normal range is wrong, I think. The normal range for women is 10-120 ng/ML, and for men it is 30-250 ng/mL. Why should a man's be lower than a woman's? Mostly because women are iron deficient. It is almost a public health problem. Hair loss is only an indication of this."

Cotsarelis and colleagues have found that women with hair loss have significantly lower iron stores than women without hair loss. Surprisingly, this was particularly true for women with alopecia areata, a form of hair loss caused by haywire immune responses.

"Our theory is that lower iron levels decrease the threshold for developing hair loss of any kind in genetically predisposed individuals," Cotsarelis says. "So people prone to develop even hereditary hair loss, if their iron levels are low, it accelerates that process. We think it's because the hair follicles grow so much, they require a lot of iron."

Women who frequently have heavy menstrual periods often become iron deficient. "If you have a healthy woman with hair loss, you can assume iron deficiency," Trost says.

Iron deficiency is less common in men and postmenopausal women than in women of childbearing age. But it's something Cotsarelis and Trost see often in people with hair loss. Especially when it gets to the point of anemia, iron deficiency can be a symptom of very serious illness. It's important for a doctor to find out why this is happening.

"If you have a man or a postmenopausal woman with iron-deficiency anemia, you need to do a workup to find out why," Trost says. "Say you have a 55-year-old man with iron-deficiency anemia -- it could be caused by bleeding due to colon cancer. Believe it or not, someone can come in complaining of hair loss, and find out it is something serious."

Don't Take Iron Supplements Without Doctor Visit

Iron supplements are not a cure for baldness. But as part of a multipronged approach, Cotsarelis and Trost say, supplements can be a big help.

So is a diet full of iron-rich foods, such as tofu, lentils, beans, oysters, spinach, prunes, raisins, and, yes, lean beef.

Trost says he and Bergfeld usually recommend these foods, plus supplementation with ferrous sulfate, 325 milligrams per day taken on an empty stomach.

It's not an easy supplement to take.

"Iron supplements cause constipation and gastrointestinal upset," Cotsarelis says. "We try different preparations, but they but all seem to have similar problems. And there is some anecdotal evidence that orange juice, vitamin C, or lysine, if take together with the iron, helps the absorption."

Do not take iron supplements unless a doctor has told you that you have iron deficiency, Trost warns.

"Iron supplements are available over the counter, but we recommend you take them only under the supervision of a doctor," he says. "It is safe, when used appropriately, but if taken when inappropriate it can cause some harm. If you take a too-high dose of vitamin C, your body eliminates it -- but iron doesn't work that way. Your body can regulate how quickly it uptakes iron, but has no way to get rid of it quickly. If you are not deficient, you can get iron overload, which can be dangerous."


By Daniel J. DeNoon, reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

SOURCES: Trost, L. B. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, May 2006; vol 54: pp 824-844. Leonid Benjamin Trost, MD, resident physician, department of dermatology, The Cleveland Clinic, Ohio. George Cotsarelis, director, hair and scalp clinic; and professor of medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia.
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Post by Tricia » Fri May 19, 2006 5:30 am

I haven't had much luck in finding a doctor who will test serum ferritin for me. Initially, a dermatologist checked my serum ferritin, told me it was low, gave me 3 months of supplements and referred me to my regular doctor. My regular doctor would not re-check my serum ferritin. He would only check for anemia and said I was not anemic and didn't need iron supplements.
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Post by HairLossFight.com » Fri May 19, 2006 7:38 pm

Hey Tricia, thanks for the article. I wonder if this is more of a problem in women's hair loss than men's.

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Post by Tricia » Sat May 20, 2006 10:09 am

Yes, I would imagine that is more of a female issue. I used to know one guy who had low iron, but that's kind of unusual for males and post-menopausal women.
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Re: Low iron and hair loss

Post by himusarker » Sun Mar 20, 2011 10:21 am

Low iron levels are arguably the most common cause of hair loss in women. Over 70% of women who present with a slow thinning-out of hair from all over the scalp are found to be iron deficient and usually report a long-term history of their hair gradually decreasing in overall thickness. However, actual hair loss is not always obvious to the sufferer. Many women don't realise what requirements for iron their bodies have over a lifetime. Rapid growth into, and the activity of adolescence, an average 40 years of monthly 'periods', childbirth, family and career pressures all contribute to keeping iron stores low. If the woman is then vegetarian or consumes little red meat and tends to experience heavy periods, then she's at high risk to be iron deficient or even anemic.

Other symptoms of iron deficiency are tiredness, breathless on exertion, pale complexion, dry hair and even heart palpitations. Naturopathic indications include a bright red 'meaty' tongue, nails which are flat, square-edged, or thin with an upward 'spoon-like' curl. Iridologists would also note iris changes.

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Re: Low iron and hair loss

Post by dekisha » Sun Feb 26, 2012 2:01 pm

i was really anemic person from my childtime.
the doctor sad to me that iron deficiency is the most common blood disorder and it is caused by lack of iron.
Without a sufficient amount of iron the body can not produce enough hemoglobin.
I tried to use something that will help my body to produce more hemoglobin.
Almost all life of battle with anemia and it seems now i stoped to be anemic, my last researches was good.
All people who have same problem keep trying, never give up!

readting about iron a lot at http://www.irondeficiencyguide.com/
hope someone will help

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Re: Low iron and hair loss

Post by david07 » Wed Jul 11, 2012 12:44 am

Very nice article. Really informative. Thanks for sharing with all.

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Re: Low iron and hair loss

Post by Junavo » Sun Jul 29, 2012 8:51 pm

dekisha wrote:i was really anemic person from my childtime.
the doctor sad to me that iron deficiency is the most common blood disorder and it is caused by lack of iron.
Without a sufficient amount of iron the body can not produce enough hemoglobin.
I tried to use something that will help my body to produce more hemoglobin.
Almost all life of battle with anemia and it seems now i stoped to be anemic, my last researches was good.
All people who have same problem keep trying, never give up!

readting about iron a lot at http://www.irondeficiencyguide.com/
hope someone will help
Sign and symptoms of iron deficiency anemia would include hair loss. So how was your hair now?

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Re: Low iron and hair loss

Post by dekisha » Sun Aug 12, 2012 12:22 pm

my hair is little better but blood results just the same!
I must drink some new supplements. I will write review of that..

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Re: Low iron and hair loss

Post by jeffreyadaake » Wed Aug 29, 2012 8:52 pm

At the same time you need to take regular scalp massage, nourishing your hairs, and use nice shampoo and don't ever forget to conditioning it.

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Re: Low iron and hair loss

Post by shinning_like_me » Mon Jun 03, 2013 5:48 am

Few friends of mine were discussing this issue regarding the iron defieciency and also the B12 deficiency in the vegetarians leads to hair loss at an early age. Some say that thyroid could also trigger the hair loss. Anyway Thanks for such an informative post, keep posting . THANKS AGAIN.

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Re: Low iron and hair loss

Post by demo45151 » Thu Jan 09, 2014 3:27 am

nice article share. thanx

Icnoaihek7t
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Re: Low iron and hair loss

Post by Icnoaihek7t » Sun Apr 27, 2014 6:49 pm

severe stress and childbirth also can lead to hair loss.

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Re: Low iron and hair loss

Post by frankyjannie » Thu May 01, 2014 9:20 pm

May be, we have to consider this one also one of the reasons for hair loss. In some people, Due to iron deficiency, Hair loss started. They are better to use iron tablet which is prescribed by doctors and also take the iron content diet in every day plan.

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