Vitamin B boasts a variety of benefits to your body from improving your metabolism and helping with weight loss to, yes, hair growth. While there are several different types of vitamin B that you can opt for, biotin is going to be the most effective vitamin for naturally boosting your thinning locks, even strengthening your strands so your hair can grow in more luscious. “Biotin is a water-soluble vitamin that supports the growth of hair, skin, and nails by helping to break down fats and carbohydrates,” explains Dendy Engelman, M.D., board-certified dermatologic surgeon at Medical Dermatology & Cosmetic Surgery in New York City to Prevention. If you’re deficient in biotin, this may cause weak strands and lead to fallout, so upkeeping your biotin intake is one easy solution to support your locks.
It is, however, important to note that ongoing research is being conducted as to the efficacy of biotin for hair growth, and researchers are still unsure of the exact extent as to how much this natural vitamin helps. WebMD reports, “While biotin is added to some shampoos that claim to reduce hair loss, there is no evidence that this works. Consuming foods rich in healthy vitamins and minerals will help with overall hair health. The best natural sources of biotin are meat, eggs, fish, seeds, nuts, and vegetables. These will help fortify your hair follicle by boosting your keratin, according to the National Institutes of Health.” Eating biotin from the source may be the best way to ensure you’re reaping all the benefits of this vitamin, but if you’re looking for a naturally occurring solution to hair loss, this may be your best bet.
If you want to invest in a more expensive supplement that’s been backed by further research but is less natural than biotin, Nutrafol is going to be the best engineered addition to your diet for severe thinning and fallout. Nutrition and diet expert Nicole Avena, Ph.D., an assistant professor at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City tells Shape, “Nutrafol varieties also contain biotin (3000 mg; a form of vitamin B), which has been shown to help strengthen the keratin protein found in hair, as well as selenium (200 mcg), which may help the body utilize hormones and proteins to promote hair growth.” Nutrafol helps to target multiple potential causes of hair loss, remedying the problem from the root to allow for reversal. Rather than one simple vitamin, it’s packed with a number of ingredients such as curcumin and marine collagen to improve scalp health and hair growth.
Hair loss is a frustrating side effect of a variety of different causes so it’s important to try to find a solution that addresses all possible issues. Until you know why your hair is thinning and falling out, integrating a biotin supplement into your daily routine may help to strengthen your strands over time, limiting fallout. However, if the issue is slightly more advanced, Nutrafol is a valuable option to target a collection of different reasons your hair may be falling out, improving your scalp health and working from the source to remedy the issue. Natural supplements are wonderful for gently and non intrusively improving hair growth, but check with your doctor before starting any new vitamins to make sure they will fit well into your lifestyle.