Ask a Dietitian: Your Top 5 Questions About Hair, Answered
3 min reading time
Hi, I’m Amelia, a Clinical Dietitian and the co-founder of
wo/men. In my practice and in our community, I receive countless questions about the connection between what we eat and the health of our hair. It's a topic of endless fascination and, often, a lot of confusion.Today, I’m cutting through the noise to answer the top five questions we hear most often about nutrition and hair health.
Question 1: Does my diet really impact my hair that much?
The short answer is: absolutely. Your hair is built from the inside out. Each hair follicle is a tiny, active factory that requires a constant supply of energy, protein, vitamins, and minerals to produce a strong, healthy hair strand. When your diet is lacking, hair production is one of the first "non-essential" processes your body will scale back on to conserve resources.
Question 2: What are the absolute most important nutrients for hair?
While a balanced diet is key, a few nutrients are true superstars for your hair:
-
Protein: Since hair is made of a protein called keratin, adequate intake is non-negotiable.
-
Iron: This mineral is essential for producing hemoglobin, which carries oxygen to your cells, including your hair follicles. Iron deficiency is one of the most common causes of hair loss in women.
-
Vitamin C: A powerful antioxidant that is crucial for producing collagen, a protein that contributes to hair strength and helps anchor your strands.
-
Zinc: This mineral plays a vital role in hair tissue growth and repair.
Question 3: Is a supplement necessary if I already eat healthy?
This is a great question. While a whole-foods diet is the best foundation, a targeted supplement can be a powerful "insurance policy" and a strategic tool. Modern life—with its stress, environmental pollutants, and sometimes depleted soil—can create "nutrient gaps" even in a healthy diet. A high-quality supplement like The Volume (product link here) is designed to fill those specific gaps and provide advanced, clinically-proven ingredients not typically found in our food, offering a level of support that diet alone may not achieve.
Question 4: Everyone says to take Biotin. Is it a magic pill?
Biotin has great marketing, but it's not a magic bullet for everyone. Biotin deficiency is actually very rare, and studies show that supplementing with biotin only helps with hair loss if you are one of the very few people who are truly deficient. For most women, hair issues stem from other factors like stress, hormonal shifts, or other nutrient gaps. This is why our formula focuses on more advanced, patented ingredients that address these other root causes.
Question 5: How long does it take for nutritional changes to improve my hair?
Patience is key. Your hair grows in a cycle that lasts several months. While you might feel better overall in a few weeks, it typically takes 3-6 months of consistent nutritional support and supplementation to see visible changes in your hair's thickness, strength, and shedding rate.
Conclusion
Your hair is a beautiful reflection of your inner health. The most effective strategy for vibrant, resilient hair is a holistic one: a balanced diet, a mindful lifestyle, and smart, targeted supplementation to provide your body with everything it needs to flourish.
You may like these
-
, by Mike Lim Ask a Dietitian: Your Top 5 Questions About Hair, Answered
-
, by Mike Lim A Holistic Hair Growth Guide
-
, by Mike Lim The Cortisol Connection: How Stress Really Affects Your Hair Health
