Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Weight loss chat

A space to talk openly about weight loss journeys and challenges. Mumsnet hasn't checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. You may wish to speak to a medical professional before starting any diet.

Weightloss without hairloss

13 replies

springschild · 12/03/2023 18:53

Has anyone managed it? I have a lot of weight to lose and im excited to do it. But im worried about hairloss as its thin already.
I'm pretty much vegan (partly for health reasons) - but im thinking that a key part of it is keeping protein up?
Has anyone managed a significant weight loss and managed not to lose hair? Any tips gratefully received!

OP posts:
MatchaTea · 12/03/2023 19:00

In addition to protein , you need to pay attention to iron and zinc. Are you meeting your requirements ? cronometer.com is a good free analytical website to check.
Also, less linked to hairloss but very important on a vegan diet are b12, VitD, iodine and omega 3

springschild · 12/03/2023 19:09

@MatchaTea thank you so much, very helpful! I will definitely take a look at that

OP posts:
MissLucyLiu · 12/03/2023 19:10

google red meat and hair growth

springschild · 12/03/2023 19:13

@MissLucyLiu - it says red meat has protein, essential for hairgrowth is that what you mean? Lots of things have protein though - so i can find it another way if thats what makes a difference

OP posts:
springschild · 12/03/2023 19:14

@MatchaTea - as you seem very knowledgeable - would good supplements work for the vitamins? I have supplements that cover all of these - is that enough?

OP posts:
Pinacalola · 12/03/2023 19:15

You need enough protein and enough fat. The hair is pretty much made of protein, so go to low on that and it could thin. But it is kept strong and healthy using sebum oil which keeps it healthy, and shiny and in good condition. So if you have enough protein, but not enough fat in your diet it may be brittle and dry and break anyway. Hair is one of the things you need a lot of minerals for, and any vitamin or mineral deficiencies are likely to have an effect on the hair, it is something the body will 'take' from quite quickly if you're in any kind of deficit.
I would look for a vegan vitamin that offers iodine and some omega 3 to keep your hair healthy, as well as making sure you get enough protein especially complete proteins, which are harder to find on a vegan diet.

Pinacalola · 12/03/2023 19:19

A lot of vitamins are fat soluble, so make sure you are eating a lot of healthy fats and it will enable you to better utilise the vitamins and minerals in the supplements. You still need to be consuming enough protein, for the amino acids

springschild · 12/03/2023 19:26

@Pinacalola thanks so much. Really helpful as well. Omega 3 i take supplement for and complete proteins - i love quinoa, buckwheat, edamame and tofu - I think these are complete? And i love carrots - iodine?

OP posts:
Pinacalola · 12/03/2023 20:12

Yes carrots are good, might be worth taking some greens in a supplement, as sea weed is also really good for iodine and spirulina is packed full of most of the nutrients vegan diets can be a little lower on. Soy products and grains like quinoa are perfect, yes. Or rice and beans (together) are a good complete protein. Sounds like you're well prepared for losing weight without losing hair. I hope it goes well for you

MatchaTea · 12/03/2023 21:06

I would take a general multivitamin every 3 days and on the other day supplement with targeted single supplements.
You NEED and must take daily a vitamin b12 supplement. Some foods are fortified in B12 but supplementing the food or supplementing directly is still supplementing, so do it directly.
Vitamin D especially in winter is important. When there is sunshine, you can put mushroom in direct sunlight and they will produce vitamin D, however in UK, sunlight is not always present
Iron is important for many cellular processes. Tea and coffee, even decaf , will drastically reduce iron absorption, so have your iron rich meal in the evening when you consume less tea/coffee. Add lemon juice to your lentils / greens
iodine in non vegan diet comes form the milk as iodine is used to sanitise milking machinery . Eat seaweed or take 3 drops of an iodine supplement.
Omega 3 are critically important for cognitive function. Supplement EPA-DHA with an algae source, not a plant source such as flaxseeds. ALA can be provided by flaxseeds so eat 30 gr of those daily as well. Check your Omega 3 supplement for EPA/DHA and not only ALA. Unless it is from a marine source, it is not good.
Selenium is very easy to obtain with diet with just 1 Brazil nut a day.
Zinc is easy to gain from pulses such as chickpeas, lentils, soya, ...

The complete protein is BS. All plants contains all of them, in various amounts, some plants are very low in a specific amino acid, other very high, but plants have all of them .

Spirulina has raised concerns for neurotoxins, and since there isn't really a reason to take it, I would be cautious.

Eat your nuts and seeds without overdoing as calorie dense.

oddUsername · 12/03/2023 22:23

I lost weight without any hair loss. I just took one multivitamin which was enough for me without individual supplements.
I also suggest lots of fat and protein because it filled me up and kept me full so I didn't snack.
Carbs and sugar were my biggest problem so without them I really wasn't craving so I would eat when I was genuinely hungry once I'd weened myself off the sugar, which I won't lie was hard but once I'd done it I saw positive results which spurred me on.

MatchaTea · 13/03/2023 05:58

@oddUsername it is the vegan diet that calls for single supplements. The OP is vegan and a vegan diet requires good nutritional planning. A vegan weightloss diet even more so.

SlashBeef · 13/03/2023 06:20

I'm 7st down without any hair loss. At most I've taken a multivitamin when I remember too. I'm not vegan or veggie though, so I dont know how much difference that makes.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page