Hair and Nutrition

If you are like me and always buy and try new products on your hair to have that perfect shine, then you will enjoy this article. Instead of purchasing and spending so much money on hair products, why not eat healthier so your hair grows out looking beautiful. Here are a couple of foods that you eat can work magic on your hair to help keep your locks shiny, full, and healthy!

Protein: More than 90 percent of your hair is made up of protein, so you need to have enough protein in your diet to support hair growth. Foods such as meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and dairy products are high in protein. Vegetarians can get protein from plant sources such as soybeans, seeds, and nuts.

Beta-carotene: This antioxidant can help your body synthesize protein, may encourage hair growth, and may help prevent hair loss. Look for it in lots of fruits and vegetables, especially orange ones.

Vitamin A: Vitamin A fosters scalp health. Many orange fruits and vegetables cantaloupe, apricots, squash, sweet potatoes, and carrots are good sources of vitamin A, as is broccoli.

Biotin: A biotin deficiency can leave your scalp itchy and scaly. To help keep your scalp healthy, choose biotin-rich meats, fish, eggs, dairy foods, nuts, whole grains, and molasses.

Vitamin E: This antioxidant vitamin helps your cells repair themselves and facilitates your body’s synthesis of protein; it also encourages hair growth and aids in circulation. It is plentiful in green vegetables, olive oil, whole grains, beans, nuts, and avocados.

Vitamin K: This vitamin can promote hair health. Find it in seafood, eggs, liver, dairy products, green vegetables, figs, cabbage, oatmeal, yogurt, and wheat.

Para-aminobenzoic acid: This nutrient might help stave off gray hair. Look for it in yogurt, whole grains, and some organ meats.

Minerals: A range of minerals, including trace minerals, can help promote hair growth and protect against hair breakage. Key among them are silica, calcium, iron, copper, and zinc. These minerals are found in a broad range of unprocessed foods, including meats, seafood, nuts, seeds, liver, eggs, rice, oats, whole-grain cereals, sunflower seeds, lettuce, onion, cauliflower, cabbage, cucumber, bean sprouts, leafy green vegetables, strawberries, dates, and raisins. Organic foods frequently have higher concentrations of trace minerals than conventionally grown foods.