Vitamin D and Hair Loss: Everything You Need To Know

Reading time: 7 min.

Vitamin D plays a vital role in bone health and the prevention of cardiovascular disease and diabetes. However, a recent study also found a link between vitamin D and hair loss, with 81.8% of those experiencing hair loss also having low levels of vitamin D [1]. According to their findings, a vitamin D deficiency may lead to hair loss.

Here’s everything you need to know about why vitamin D is vital for keeping your hair healthy and intact.

Table of Contents

What is vitamin D?
How much vitamin D do you need?
Who is at risk for vitamin D deficiency?
What’s the link between vitamin D and hair loss?
Can lack of vitamin D cause alopecia areata?
How can you tell if your hair loss is caused by vitamin D deficiency?
How to increase your vitamin D intake
Should I stock up on vitamin D to prevent hair loss?
Is hair loss caused by vitamin D deficiency reversible?
What to do if you’re worried about hair loss

What is vitamin D?

To understand the link between vitamin D and hair loss, it’s also important to understand what vitamin D is and what it does in the body.

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin generated by exposure to UVB light. It can also be obtained by eating certain foods and through supplements if necessary.

Its main function is to help the body absorb calcium and phosphorus to keep bones strong. However, it also has a key function in cell growth and the immune system. The immune system is closely connected with some types of hair loss.

Vitamin D is also important for:

Cardiovascular health — Vitamin D helps keep your heart and blood vessels healthy, reducing the risk of heart disease [2].
Cognitive function — There may be a link between low levels of vitamin D and conditions related to cognitive decline, such as dementia [3].
Muscle function — Vitamin D can help improve muscle function, especially in older people [4].

How much vitamin D do you need?

According to the NHS, most adults and children need 10 micrograms of vitamin D per day [5]. Babies need 8.5-10 micrograms per day. Babies and young children are particularly at risk of vitamin D deficiency.

This daily dose helps keep your vitamin D levels healthy. In general, you should have vitamin D levels of around 20 ng/ml.

Remember, vitamin D isn’t just needed for hair growth. It keeps your bones and teeth healthy and strong, preventing disease like rickets. So make sure you’re getting enough vitamin D to promote good overall health as well as hair growth.

Who is at risk for vitamin D deficiency?

Some people are more at risk for vitamin D deficiency than others [6]. This includes people who:

Spend most of their time indoors, limiting their sun exposure.
Live in places with limited sunlight.
Have darker skin tones.
Are very overweight or obese.

If you belong to one or more of these groups, consider taking a vitamin D supplement every day to stay healthy and minimise the risk of hair loss.

What’s the link between vitamin D and hair loss?

It’s been suggested that a lack of vitamin D prevents keratinocytes in the hair follicles from producing healthy hair growth. This can disrupt the hair growth cycle, leading to the appearance of lost or thinning hair.

Some studies have linked low vitamin D levels to both male pattern baldness and female pattern hair loss [7-9]. However, more research is needed to establish exactly why low vitamin D levels are linked to genetic hair loss.

Despite these connections, it doesn’t look like taking vitamin supplements for hair loss is a magic cure for hair loss (unless you have a clinical deficiency that’s causing your hair to fall out).

Vitamin D works alongside a number of different vitamins and minerals, including iron, vitamin C, and biotin. These are all vital in hair follicle cycling, so gaining a better understanding of all these elements will shed more light on the link between vitamins and hair loss.

Learn more about the effects of each of these nutrients on your hair:

Can lack of vitamin D cause alopecia areata?

Alopecia areata is an autoimmune condition characterised by bald patches that develop across the scalp. Several studies indicate a link between vitamin D deficiency and the development of alopecia areata [10-12].

Lower levels of vitamin D have also been linked with more severe symptoms of alopecia areata. So if you have alopecia areata and inadequate or deficient levels of vitamin D, consider taking a vitamin D supplement.

How can you tell if your hair loss is caused by vitamin D deficiency?

Without the help of a hair loss specialist, it’s difficult to diagnose the cause of your hair loss. However, you can try adjusting your diet and sun exposure to ensure you get enough vitamin D over the course of a full hair growth cycle. This is usually 3-4 months in length.

If you don’t see improvements over this time, it may be worth speaking to a hair loss specialist to find out why your hair is falling out.

You can also look out for other vitamin D deficiency symptoms, such as:

Mood changes
Bone fractures
Wounds that are slow to heal
Feeling weak and fatigued
High blood pressure

How to increase your vitamin D intake

There are 3 main sources of vitamin D:

Sunlight
Vitamin-rich foods
Supplements

Sunlight exposure is the most effective way to increase your vitamin D intake. Throughout the UK summer, people spend more time outdoors, so most of the population can generate enough vitamin D through sunlight exposure alone. However, in winter, few people get enough sunlight to generate sufficient vitamin D.

Foods like oily fish, red meat, and egg yolks contain a lot of vitamin D — so if you’re a meat-eater, you may be covered. Other dietary sources of vitamin D include:

Salmon
Tuna
Fortified juice and dairy products
Beef liver

People following vegan or vegetarian diets can find it hard to get enough vitamin D from food sources, so a supplement may be the best option.

Because vitamin D supplements are fat-soluble, they’re best taken with food (especially high-fat foods like full-fat yoghurt or cheese). Be mindful of what you eat, as some foods may contribute to hair loss.

How can vegans and vegetarians increase vitamin D intake?

If you’re vegan or vegetarian and you’re worried about a vitamin D deficiency, try to increase your intake by:

Taking supplements with a meal that contains plenty of healthy fats, as these help the body better absorb vitamin D.
Choose foodstuffs that are fortified with vitamin D — this can include soy milk and cereals.
Learn to love mushrooms — mushrooms are one of the only plant-based sources of vitamin D, so make lots of room for them in your diet.

Should I stock up on vitamin D to prevent hair loss?

Ensuring you have enough vitamin D and other key nutrients in your diet is always advisable to promote overall good health.

However, taking too many dietary supplements can be harmful to your overall health. Symptoms of vitamin D toxicity include:

Confusion
Apathy
Vomiting
Stomach pain
Excessive urination
Dehydration

The role vitamin D plays in hair loss is still unclear. So don’t rely solely on vitamin D supplements to boost your hair loss, and don’t take more than your recommended daily allowance. Some other vitamins such as vitamin A can actually make hair loss worse, so it’s important to abide by the suggested NHS intake guidelines.

Is hair loss caused by vitamin D deficiency reversible?

If your hair loss is caused by a nutritional deficiency, the good news is that it’s usually reversible. That means you can treat vitamin deficiencies by bolstering your diet with the right nutrients, or take the recommended allowance of vitamins and minerals to restore hair growth. In the case of a vitamin D deficiency, your hair should start to regrow within three months of taking vitamin D supplements [13].

However, it’s important to note that vitamin D deficiency accounts for a tiny percentage of hair loss cases. The vast majority of hair loss is caused by genetic hair loss conditions such as female pattern hair loss or male pattern baldness, as well as temporary conditions like stress and illness. So don’t over-rely on vitamin supplements to treat your hair loss unless advised by a doctor.

What to do if you’re worried about hair loss

If your hair loss is getting worse, or you’re worried about what’s causing it, the best thing to do is to seek professional advice.

Our hair loss specialists can talk through your diet with you to determine whether you’re getting the right nutrients to stimulate hair growth. They can also advise you on other lifestyle factors and genetic causes of hair loss as well as recommend hair loss treatment options to prevent further hair loss.

Book a free consultation with our team to discover the reason for your hair loss — and begin your journey to a healthy new head of hair.