Hair loss from low ferritin

[Caramel78]

I was diagnosed with Low ferritin levels last year (levels were 9) and I started taking 2 x 305mg of ferrous fumarate every day since Jan 2020. My hair has always been thin but I was starting to look a bit bald on top where my parting is and so much hair was coming out when I was brushing it. It’s starting to slowly come back and I have what feels like stubble growing where my parting is. Have any of you experienced this and did it take ages to grow back? Terrified it won’t ever grow back properly :-(

Had everything else tested too such as b12, vit d, folate etc and they are all fine (I take a high strength multivitamin and eat a healthy balanced diet. I think the low ferritin was caused from years of heavy periods)

Did they recheck your levels before lockdown? Did they also check thyroid levels?
My hair did improve (hypothyroidism & low ferritin) although thanks to menopause it is horribly thin again now. I can’t recall how long it took tbh as it was a fair few years ago but just did a quick search and it takes 2-3 months to start growing so it should return to full thickness 4-6 months.
Hair does tend to thin around the parting if its always parted the same way.

The longer you part your hair in the same way, the more you weigh the hair down in that area ultimately causing breakage. And if you had the same parting forever, you will notice that the hair is thinner in the area

www.thehealthsite.com/beauty/can-parting-your-hair-in-the-same-way-lead-to-hair-loss-t0817-512627/

Hi, I had huge amounts of hair coming out every day. I think my ferritin level was down at around 6. It took some time for the level to rise but, yes eventually it did grow back to pretty much its original thickness. Horrible when it was happening though.

I had this too around 3 years ago when my level was 8. I was pulling out handfuls of hair in the shower and was starting to get bald spots on the sides so my scalp was visible if I had my hair tied up. I was devastated and really worried it wouldn’t grow back but within 6 months or so my hair was noticeably growing back all over with a lot of baby hairs, within 12 months it was pretty much back to normal. 3 years on you can’t tell at all and my hair is now thicker than it has been since my teens. Stick with the meds, make sure you’re getting enough vitamin C to help with the absorption and be kind to your hair, I stopped bleaching mine and tried not to heat style it much to protect the new hairs growing through.

Thanks for the replies. My thyroid has been checked and it’s fine.
I don’t dye my hair anymore and only straighten and blow dry it for special occasions.
My ferritin levels were meant to get checked again literally the week the government declared lockdown so my appointment got cancelled. I’ve ordered a private home test to check if my levels are going up enough.
My hair was already thin so I really hope the tablets sort it out fully over the next year or so

My ferritin levels were much higher than yours (34) but my already thin, baby fine hair was coming out at an alarming rate. My GP referred me to a dermatologist after taking bloods which showed everything apart from Vit D to be at normal levels. The dermatologist said that my ferritin was fine in terms of anaemia but too low for hair health. She prescribed ferrous fumerate tablets and high dose vit d. It took about 18 months to see much improvement but it did start to recover and stopped shedding and looking see-through. I recently had problems with HRT supply and ended up seeing if I could manage without it. One of the results of stopping was lots of shedding again. Am back on it and hoping it calms down. I still take iron on prescription and I buy vit d tablets myself.

I forgot to say the dermatologist said ferritin levels need to be 70+ for good hair growth and health and ideally as near to 100 as you can get it.

If you've got a rosemary bush you can make rosemary infusions or oil rubs too, which I did think helped too.

How is your diet? Could you be low on other vitamins and minerals? And are you up taking them properly? Thyroid test, other vitamin levels, maybe celiacs?

What do you take to get them back up ? I heard Florisene, my levels are at 5 for years but I can't take Iron as I am unbelievably constipated as it is

@workshy44 you really need to raise yours. This does it without causing constipation. You need to stick it in OJ though to hide the taste

www.chemistdirect.co.uk/spatone-100-natural-iron-supplement/prd-ak?glCountry=GB&glCurrency=GBP&gclid=CjwKCAjw1v_0BRAkEiwALFkj5uaHRYAjYNIAuVBrJBqLDycewbCe_Gej9QU_Ap0rlKSQF3cIJWDJ7RoCpb8QAvD_BwE

Workshy. I have dreadful constipation but ferrous fumerate doesn’t seem to affect it other than making poo a very dark brown. Might be worth trying.

thanks a million

I've had it, it took about a year of intense supplementation for it to thicken up.

My diet is fairly good I’d say (average day would be something like Greek yogurt and berries for breakfast, quinoa salad for lunch with lots of veg and cheese etc in it, steak and baked potato for dinner, fruit and dark choc for snacks).

Been tested for cealic and it was fine. I do have IBS (had a colonoscopy and gastroscopy etc to check for anything more sinister but nothing was found). I shouldn’t really have lactose but I usually just deal with the bloating consequences as find it hard to cut out.
I take a high strength multi vitamin, vit d spray, omega 3 fish oil, biotin, b12 and magnesium every day.
Hopefully my ferritin levels are slowly improving. It’s devestating to see how thin it is on top now

My ferritin was 11 when it was tested two years ago and my hair seems to be getting worse! Like you I have always had thin hair but I saw a photo of myself taken from above and I am basically bald on the crown now. Really hope it will improve. (I am taking iron but at a lower does than initially suggested as it was awful on the stomach). I am also taking Vit D as it was too low.

Caramel give it time. You’re on a good dose of FF but my experience was that it took about 18 months to see much improvement. That doesn’t mean yours will be that long because everyone is different but don’t worry if you don’t see much improvement for a while. The first thing that improved for me was the shedding. Then what I did have grew quicker and my scalp gradually became less visible. As soon as you are able once gps are doing routine tests etc, get a repeat blood test and check what your ferritin and vit d are doing. My levels came up pretty gradually. It was slow going especially with the vit d.

I don’t mind waiting as long as it does actually grow back properly. So scared it won’t.
For those who have had low ferritin did you also feel dizzy/off balance with it?

Mine was 4 and yes I felt dizzy constantly. It didn’t affect my hair, weirdly! The cause was fibroids which caused heavy periods. I had no energy and would go on hands and knees to go upstairs but I thought I was just lazy. Strange how you often cannot see how bad things are until after.

Oh and rubber cravings

Yes I was dizzy, weak and just absolutely exhausted. Didn’t realise how tired I was until I started feeling better. I’ve been low again recently (pregnant) and had dizzy spells again. I’ve been taking the spatone drink linked above which was recommended by my midwife as I struggle with the tablets, and have been feeling much better.

Yes, dizzy here too.

I always feel like I’m on a boat and it’s driving me mad. Never had the sensation before the low ferritin. Hopefully it will go away when my levels rise

I feel the "boat swaying" a lot less recently which makes me think maybe my levels have risen!

That’s good to hear you don’t feel it as badly. It’s definitely my worst symptom (other than the hair loss)

Did they tell you to take vitamin C at the same time as the iron? You absorb more of both if you take them together.