Have you noticed lately that your hair just doesn’t seem as full or thick as it used to? Do you seem to be shedding more hair than normal? It’s possible that you may be suffering from iron deficiency, a common condition that can lead to hair loss and thinning. Read on to learn more about iron deficiency and how it can affect your hair.

What is Iron Deficiency?

Iron deficiency happens when your body doesn’t have enough iron to produce hemoglobin, a protein that helps transport oxygen throughout the body.

When you don’t get enough iron, your body can’t produce enough hemoglobin, which can lead to anemia.

Anemia is a condition where you don’t have enough red blood cells or hemoglobin to carry oxygen to your body’s tissues. This lack of oxygen can cause fatigue, weakness, dizziness, shortness of breath, and other symptoms.

How Iron Deficiency Affects Your Hair

Your hair follicles require a good supply of nutrients, including iron, to produce healthy hair. When your body is deficient in iron, it redirects the iron it has to other parts of the body that need it more urgently, like your brain and muscles.

This means that your hair follicles may not be getting the iron they need to produce new, healthy hair.

Iron deficiency can also cause your hair growth cycle to be disrupted. Normally, hair undergoes a cycle of growth, rest, and shedding.

But when your body is low on iron, the growth phase of your hair cycle can be disrupted, leading to excessive shedding and thinning hair.

In rare cases, severe iron deficiency can cause a condition called telogen effluvium, where more hair goes into the resting phase of the hair growth cycle and falls out prematurely. This can further exacerbate hair thinning and hair loss.

How to Tell If You Have Iron Deficiency

There are several symptoms that can indicate you have iron deficiency anemia, including:.

Feeling tired or weak
Becoming easily fatigued
Difficulty concentrating
Shortness of breath
Cold hands and feet
Headaches or dizziness
Pale skin and nails

If you’re experiencing any of these symptoms, it’s important to see your doctor to get a blood test. A blood test will measure your hemoglobin levels, which can tell you whether or not you’re anemic.

Your doctor can also measure your ferritin levels, a protein that stores iron in your body. Low ferritin levels can indicate that your body is running low on iron, even if you’re not yet anemic.

How to Treat Iron Deficiency

If you’re diagnosed with iron deficiency anemia, your doctor may prescribe iron supplements to help boost your iron levels.

Iron supplements can be taken orally, in pill or liquid form, and are usually taken for several months to replenish your body’s iron stores.

In order to boost your iron levels naturally, you can try incorporating more iron-rich foods into your diet, such as dark leafy greens, red meat, lentils, beans, and fortified cereals.

Vitamin C can also help your body absorb more iron, so be sure to eat plenty of citrus fruits and peppers.

Finally, it’s important to address any underlying causes of your iron deficiency anemia, such as heavy menstrual periods, gastrointestinal bleeding, or a diet low in iron.

If your anemia is caused by a more serious underlying condition, your doctor will work with you to address and treat that condition.

Conclusion

If you’re noticing hair loss or hair thinning, it’s possible that iron deficiency anemia may be to blame. Talk to your doctor if you’re experiencing any symptoms of anemia, and ask whether a blood test may be right for you.