Is Beauty Only Skin Deep?

by Carmen Stansberry| Feb 9, 2021

Healthy body. Healthy Hair.

Our stress levels, nutrients, hormones, and nutrition (what we put into our bodies) all have an effect on the health of our hair.

Ironically the phrase “beauty is only skin deep” is not entirely appropriate in conversations about hair. Thinning, dry hair is actually a symptom of internal changes in the body. Perhaps viewed by some as a normal, inevitable sign of aging or response to stress, losing hair is oftentimes related to endocrine imbalances📈

The stress hormone, cortisol, that is released from your adrenals can target and damage the hair follicle. You don’t even have to wait until menopause for stress-induced and hormonal hair loss; many women in their 20s and 30s start losing hair due to stress-related issues and hormonal imbalance.

Estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone all have an effect on the life cycle of a single hair. When all or one of these hormone levels is off, we can notice thinning and increased hair loss. This is why during pregnancy we have thick and healthy hair followed by a pretty significant loss of hair when the excess of estrogen and progesterone take a nose dive. That is what happens to us again when our hormones start to decline in our 30s…some of us at a faster or more profound rate than others.

Low Vitamin D and B12, and thyroid hormone can also have an effect on hair growth and loss. Our bodies and endocrine system are complicated! That is why we recommend comprehensive evaluation of your medical history with metabolic and hormone laboratory testing to treat your underlying problem, not just throw supplements at you and hope that they work👩🏻‍⚕️👩🏼‍⚕️