Healthy diets often include a consideration of the glycemic index of the foods one is eating. The glycemic index is used to rate foods containing carbohydrates based on their potential to increase blood sugar and how quickly this rise occurs. Foods that have a high glycemic index can also be thought of as simple sugars that often lead to bursts of energy but later cause fatigue and hunger shortly afterwards.
To promote thicker, healthier hair, it is recommended to avoid high glycemic foods which can lead to weaker strands, thinning, or hair loss. We caught up with experts in the fields of dermatology, medicine, and skincare who identified three glycemic foods to avoid if healthy hair is the desired result.
Read on for tips, suggestions and insight from Dr. Enrizza P. Factor, dermatologist and writer at My Eczema Team, Dr. Joshua Zeichner, M.D., director of cosmetic and clinical research in dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, Lisa Richards, registered nutritionist and creator of The Candida Diet, Heather Hanks, nutritionist and Medical Advisor at Medical Solutions BCN, Dr. Heather Duckett, Health Team Manager with Key Cellular Nutrition and Krutika Nanavati, registered nutritionist and dietitian at Massey University.
3 High-Glycemic Foods That Can Cause Hair Loss
1. White Bread
As we age, many of us begin experiencing signs of hair loss and thinning. Zeichner notes that there are many causes of this. "Hair thinning can be caused by a variety of reasons including genetics, underlying medical conditions, dietary deficiencies or even external factors like hairstyling practices." he says.
While Zeichner stresses that a visit to your dermatologist is essential if you are worried about thinning hair and loss, there are still some foods out there that you can avoid in the meantime that are known to exacerbate this issue.
Eating white bread once in a while is not going to cause immediate hair loss, but if your diet is lacking essential nutrients like riboflavin, biotin, folate, and vitamin B12 and you mostly eat processed foods, this won't do your hair any favors, Nanavati points out.
When it comes to your hair health, "foods like white bread, pasta, and rice are high on the glycemic index, which can cause inflammation and lead to dryness and breakage," Nanavati explains.
2. Pastries
Like white bread itself, pastries made with it often contain refined carbs, which Richards says "lack in fiber and other beneficial nutrients."
Refined carbs, she warns, are "highly inflammatory and turn to sugar quickly, causing a quick rise in glucose."So, what does that mean for your hair?
Hanks says that your hair "cannot grow properly" if you're dealing with scalp inflammation, and if the majority of your calories come from "nutrient-poor, sugar-heavy foods."
Scalp inflammation is the main culprit to healthy hair, she notes, as it is associated with female patterned baldness and hair damage.
3. Candy
Like refined carbs, sugars can also make thinning hair and loss so much worse, Nanavati says. Eating lots of sugary candies "can also lead to insulin resistance, which can cause inflammation," she notes.
Duckett agrees, and concludes that candy can cause inflammation all throughout the body, including the hair follicles. "Calming inflammation and restoring healthy cell function is imperative in stopping and reversing hair loss," she says.
Hanks concurs, and notes that "your hair health indicates how healthy your body is from the inside out." If your diet is high in processed foods with refined sugars and carbs, then "your hair will have a hard time shining and growing to the length you want it to," she adds.
Foods That Help Promote Hair Growth
Reexamining your diet is important for healthy hair, Factor says. She provides a list of vitamin-rich, nutritious foods to your daily menu if you don't know where to start but want to achieve shiner, fuller and healthier hair.
According to Factor, the "best foods to consume for optimal hair health" include anti-inflammatory choices like "eggs, berries, spinach, fatty fish, sweet potatoes, avocados, nuts, seeds, sweet peppers, oysters, shrimp and beans."
The "bottom line," Factor says, is that "what you eat can have a huge effect on the health of your hair." A diet full of high glycemic foods and a lack of the right nutrients including "vitamins A, C, D and E, zinc, B vitamins, iron, biotin, protein and essential fatty acids may slow down hair growth or even cause hair loss," she says.
Fortunately, correcting a deficiency in any of these nutrients may "help treat hair loss and promote the rate of hair growth," she advises.
