Are You Starving Your Hair From the Minerals It Needs to Promote Growth?

She can smile because slow growing hair is no longer a problem.  

You heard the saying that you are what you eat.  The condition of your hair is affected by your diet and the food choices that you make.  If your hair is deprived of certain minerals or you don’t get enough of them, then this might explain why it takes so long for your hair to grow. 

Zinc is an important mineral that you could be overlooking.  Ask yourself how much whole grains, pistachios, almonds, cashews, oysters, chick peas, white beans, meat and poultry, eggs, wheat germ, crab, lobster, spinach or pumpkin seeds are among the foods you eat.  The recommended daily requirement is 8 milligrams a day for women and 11 milligrams for men.  However, our bodies are different and could require more in supplement form.

Iodine is also essential since it affects hair growth from the health of the thyroid. Iodized table salt is a source, but it is hardly the best option to load up on.  Iodine rich foods include seafood, plain yogurt, milk, cranberries, kelp, sunflower seeds, cheese and eggs are just some to consider.

Sulfur is just as critical.  This mineral helps with blood circulation, inflammation while building collagen for the hair, skin and nails as well.  You might want to add more foods such as broccoli, cabbage, horseradish, onions, garlic, celery, fish, asparagus, eggs, kale, Brussel Sprouts, fish, poultry, meats, nuts, and beans to your grocery list. 

Silica is a mineral you may not have given much thought too.  Yet, this one also helps skin, hair, and nails, including your joint function since it has the ability to repair collagen and connective tissue and strengthen bones.  You might want to start incorporating raisins, whole grain breads, green beans, bran cereals, oats, seafood, spinach, dried fruits, nuts, bananas, onions, garlic, brown rice, flaxseed, almonds, beets, grapes and red lentils when devising your menu.  

Magnesium is a mineral that you could easily be lacking since 40% of the population is deficient in it.  It does a lot things to keep the body young and functioning properly from strengthening bones, blood pressure, regulating the heart, boosting the body’s immune system to helping with skin and hair.  This is the mineral you need to create strong hair follicles that keep strands from falling out and encouraging healthier hair to grow in. 

The best and safest way to get your minerals and vitamins is ideally from food.  However, this is not always possible for the amount required to satisfy what your body may need.  If do need to turn to supplements, especially if you are on medication, do seek the opinion of your doctor before self-prescribing with any vitamins and minerals because they can interfere or may not be advisable with your health problems.

What I take is a combination of calcium, magnesium, and zinc along with vitamin D in one tablet three times a day because I cannot eat as much food to get all the nutrients necessary to keep my bones, skin, and hair their healthiest.   Each tablet has 333 mg of calcium, 133 mg of magnesium, 5 mg of zinc and 200 IU of vitamin D.  I have supplemented this way for years.  As a result, I do have thick hair that grows like a weed. 

However, I urge great caution when shopping for your vitamins and minerals because they are not regulated as they should be.  Just because you see such products at your grocery or drugstore doesn’t mean they are all safe.  Look below at what happened to me just taking calcium capsules!

This is what my bare legs looked like as they were recovering.  My cousin thought I was wearing textured stockings. My face was too ugly to show.

I made the mistake of buying  calcium capsules just because I assumed if it was sold commonly where I shopped, it was fine.  However, I developed a strange rash all over from head to toe and looked like something that could have been in a horror movie.  I went from one confused doctor to two specialists, 13 blood tests, a biopsy, and two steroid prescriptions before I found out that not all the ingredients were included on the label.  Would you believe lanolin was in the capsule?  I don’t put lanolin on my skin, let alone eat it.  Yet, this ingredient was unlisted and could be deadly to someone that may be allergic to it.

Look for some sort of regulatory label like from the USP (United States Pharmacopedia, the non-profit organization that sets standards for medicines, supplements and food ingredients).

Now I am very careful of always looking for that seal.  So, please save yourself the pain and expense that I went through, and check before swallowing.