Omega 3 Oils in Your Diet May Help to Prevent Hair Loss

Proven natural remedies for hair loss sadly don’t exist, but there are things that you can do to guard against thinning, and one of the best is to ensure you have a good intake of Omega 3 oils.

Though certainly not a ‘miracle cure’ for hair loss, Omega 3 oils can play an important part in maintaining hair health. In circumstances where lifestyle choices play a part in hair loss influences encompass many elements of everyday life from smoking to a poor diet these oils can help. By encouraging strong, healthy hair follicles, they may mitigate against the effects of ‘burning the candles at both ends’ somewhat.

Omega 3 for Vegans, too

Keeping topped up on Omega 3 oils is easier than you think. They can be found in a wide variety of fish, including sardines, tuna, mackerel and anchovies; they can be found in eggs; and they are also well within the grasp of vegans, as they are abundant in spinach, walnuts and flaxseed. Experts recommend getting them from foods rather than supplements if possible, but the latter is certainly better than nothing at all.

As well as keeping hair follicles strong, Omega 3s nourish the scalp, preventing it from drying out. A healthy scalp is important for healthy hair growth, and it’s worth remembering that some scalp conditions can cause hair loss. Others can lead to head scratching which can lead to hair breakage, which makes the hair look thin and damaged.

The list of benefits seems endless: Omega 3 oils are thought to help protect against Alzheimer’s; they can help with joint pain; WebMD suggests they have even been found to help stave off depression. Interestingly, the stress that often accompanies depression can exacerbate or even trigger hair loss: it can speed up the onset of the genetic hair loss conditions Male Pattern Baldness and Female Pattern Hair Loss, and also plays a role in some cases of Telogen Effluvium which causes all-over thinning hair, most commonly in women.

May help to clear lung infections

And there’s more: a new study by the University of Rochester found that Omega 3s may clear up certain lung infections. This includes Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), a form of chronic bronchitis, which is known to cause hair loss as a side effect.

The theory about why hair loss ensues as a result of this condition is that the disease affects the flow of blood around the body, and that this causes hair follicles to be undernourished. Tests on mice found that an inhalable Omega 3 derivative reduced inflammation in the lungs.

What Omega 3 oils definitely won’t do is fix an existing hair loss condition: for that, specialist medical help using proven, clinically-proven hair loss treatments is the most effective route. Nor will they prevent genetic hair loss, which is simply ‘waiting in the wings’ if your genes dictate it. As previously stated, however, they may stop early onset of genetic hair loss, because this can be triggered by certain lifestyle choices.