Vegan diet and hair health

Most of the people, who choose vegan diet, do not do that just to have shinny healthy hair but if thats the side effect of being vegan, we will take it! We have to agree that vegans experience many different health benefits but veganism role in hair growth is often overlooked. 

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So lets find out what benefits and what disadvantages vegan diet can have on your hair. 

Benefits:

• It has been shown that vegan diet reduce risk of hypertension by up to 75% in comparison to omnivorous diet. And hypertension is linked to hair loss so by eating plant-based food we increase our chances to have luscious and healthy hair. 

• Vegans do not consume dairy products which are linked to inflammation processes. By doing so, we save our hair as well - long term inflammation process is proven to cause hair thinning and even hair loss. 

• It comes with no surprise that cholesterol level is one of many important indicators of persons health. Those, who follow plant-based diet, tend to have lower level of it and it is good news for your hair. The study about cholesterol showed that high cholesterol levels may contribute to the progression of hair loss and further miniaturization of the hair follicles. 

• Blood sugar spikes and insulin resistance also have a connection with hair loss. Even though it is not widely researched, there is a theory that high blood sugar level increase follicle sensitivity which, long term, may cause hair loss. A healthy vegan diet can help to avoid all of that.

• Vegan-friendly hair care products are mostly made with natural, organic ingredients and are way less harsh for your scalp and hair than regular ones. Vegan products for hair are much less likely to cause rashes or allergies.

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Disadvantages: 

• If you are not being careful and not paying enough attention to your nutrition - vegan diet will not help to avoid brittle, thin hair. You have to make sure to consume enough vital vitamins and minerals (such as iron and zinc), in order to have a healthy hair. More about nutrient deficiency and how to avoid it you can read in our article "Nutrients that vegans might lack". 

• Unfortunately, quite a lot of plants are not complete protein sources. So you have to ensure that your diet is well balanced and your body gets enough protein. Yes, deficiency of it might cause hair loss.

• If you are a new vegan, you have to pay big attention to your diet and make sure you are not experiencing rapid weight loss caused by malnourishment because it can, among many other things,  affect health of your hair. 

• Consequent to going vegan, people might increase the amount of soy and its products in their diet. Soy can affect thyroid gland and it may lead to hair loss. In order to prevent that, you should make sure you get enough iodine. 

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Summary

As you can see, there are plenty vegan diet benefits for your hair. And even though there are some disadvantages (some of them can occur while on omnivores diet as well) you can easily avoid them by paying close attention to your diet and making sure that your body is not missing any minerals or vitamins. 

P.S. You can show your hair some love with an occasional natural, vegan-friendly shea butter or argan oil mask!

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The vegan society is ready to welcome you!💚