Want to let the highlights grow and don’t know what to do? A balanced diet with the proper nutrients can help promote hair growth, especially when lost due to poor nutrition.
Hair usually grows around one centimeter per month, but ensuring all the nutrients the body needs to form hair and improve blood circulation helps accelerate growth, healthy, and without the need for hormones or steroids.
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Eggs
Eggs are a great source of protein and biotin, two nutrients that can contribute to promoting hair growth. Hair follicles, for example, are made up primarily of protein. The lack of it in the diet can cause a fall.
Biotin is essential for producing the hair protein known as keratin, which is why biotin supplements are often marketed for hair growth. Research has also shown that consuming more of this nutrient can help improve hair growth, especially when deficient. However, little scientific evidence proves this benefit in healthy people.
Other nutrients, such as zinc and selenium, are still present in large amounts in eggs and help ensure better hair health.
Berry Family Fruits
Of all the so-called superfoods – rich in antioxidants – the most famous are those in the Berry family. From blueberries to their exotic cousins from more distant climes, these berries have been robust, drawing the attention of researchers worldwide.
Rich in vitamins with antioxidant properties, including vitamin C, they help protect follicles from free radical damage.
To give you an idea, about 144 grams of strawberries, give or take a cup, provide 141% of the daily requirement of this nutrient.
Spinach
Spinach is rich in nutrients such as folic acid, iron, and vitamins A and C, which can contribute to hair growth. An amount equivalent to 30 g of spinach provides up to 54% of the daily need for this nutrient.
Another benefit of vitamin A is that it triggers more production of sebum, an oily substance secreted by the sebaceous glands, which helps to hydrate the scalp and keep hair healthy.
Also Read: Summer Care For Beautiful Hair
Fatty Fish
The omega-3 fatty acid has also been linked to hair growth. It is present in large amounts in cold and deep water fish such as anchovies, salmon, tuna, mackerel, herring, shellfish, and seaweed – the source of this type of fat.
A study of 120 women, for example, found that taking a supplement containing omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids and other antioxidants slowed hair loss and increased volume.
Another conducted with women who suffered from hair loss showed that fish oil supplements slowed hair loss and accelerated hair growth.
Sweet Potato
Rich in beta-carotene, a substance that, after being ingested and metabolized by the body, turns into vitamin A, adding sweet potato to the diet is equally essential for maintaining good capillary health.
A medium sweet potato, for example, weighing about 100g, contains enough beta-carotene to supply more than four times the daily requirement of vitamin A.
Vitamin A can also speed up hair growth and prevent hair follicles from regressing.
Avocado
A very nutritious fruit, avocado is a source of vitamin E, which is among the nutrients that can contribute to promoting hair growth. A medium avocado, weighing around 200 grams, provides 21% of your daily requirement for vitamin E.
Like vitamin C, vitamin E is an antioxidant that helps fight oxidative stress by neutralizing free radicals. One study in which people with hair loss took a vitamin E supplement for eight months found up to 34.5% more hair growth in participants.
Chestnuts
Chestnuts also contain a variety of nutrients essential for hair growth. About 28 g of almonds, for example, provide 37% of the daily requirement for vitamin E.
They also contain several B vitamins, zinc, and essential fatty acids – a deficiency in any of these nutrients has been linked to hair loss– and provide other health benefits, including reduced inflammation and the risk of hair growth. Of cardiovascular diseases.
Seeds
The seeds are also great allies for hair growth. They provide a variety of essential nutrients, including vitamin E, zinc, and selenium, and are low in calories. About 28 g of sunflower seeds, for example, contains almost 50% of the daily requirement of vitamin E and several B vitamins.
Some seeds, such as flaxseed and chia, also contain omega-3s. The amount of flaxseed, 28 g, has about 6.4 mg of this fatty acid, more than that found in half a salmon filet, about 178 grams.
However, the omega-3 present in these seeds is not as effective as that of fatty fish, including salmon.
Peppers
A source of vitamin C – a yellow pepper provides almost 5.5 times more vitamin C than an orange –a nutrient that can also contribute to hair growth and, at the same time, increase collagen production, which helps strengthen the strands.
It is also among the primary antioxidants that protect hair against oxidative stress and, consequently, against hair loss and aging.
Bell peppers are also an excellent source of vitamin A, already touted for their hair health benefits.
Oysters
Oysters are among the food sources that have the most zinc, a mineral that contributes to hair growth and repair.
The lack of zinc in the diet can also cause telogen effluvium, a condition that causes an increase in the daily loss of hair strands, but which can be reversed through the intake of zinc supplements.
Shrimp
High in protein, shrimp is also rich in several nutrients, such as B vitamins, zinc, iron, and vitamin D. A 100-gram serving provides 38% of the daily requirement for vitamin D.
Vitamin D3 deficiency, for example, from sun exposure or supplements, is among the factors that cause hair loss.
Shrimps even have a small amount of omega-3 fatty acids, ensuring better hair health.
Beans
While it is an excellent source of vegetable protein, which is essential for hair growth, just like oysters, beans are also rich in zinc, which contributes to this purpose and helps repair hair. A 100-gram serving of black beans provides 7% of your daily zinc requirement.
It contains many other nutrients essential for hair health, including iron, biotin, and folic acid.
Soy
Several studies have shown that soy substances can contribute to hair growth. One of them is spermidine, which is abundant in this plant.
A study of 100 healthy people found that a spermidine-based nutritional supplement prolonged the anagen phase of hair growth: the longer a follicle remains in this phase, the more it will grow.
Although the research linking this substance to hair growth is recent, which suggests the need for more evidence to prove the benefit, studies carried out in laboratories have demonstrated the same effect.
Red Meat
Typical food in the diet of most people, red meat, in addition to being an essential source of protein, is also rich in other nutrients, which contribute to hair growth.
The protein present in it also helps to repair and strengthen the follicles. A 100-gram serving of cooked sirloin steak provides up to 29 g of the nutrient.
Also Read: How Do I Get Strong And Healthy Hair?
