Can't stand this hairloss

[drob31]

I'm getting diffuse hair loss as one of my hypothyroid symptoms and it's driving me insane. The worst part is the ultra intense itching. It's like the most intense itch I've ever felt and is only relieved by pulling the hair where it itches and 1-5 hairs will come out, thus relieving the itch.

What I can't figure out is the mechanism that causes it. Is it DHT that's causing it? I will slather anti androgens on my scalp if I need to, but I wanted to find out the correct mechanism. Why would hypothyroidism even cause hair loss to begin with? I have some topical spironolactone I can apply to some of the thinner areas, but I want to make sure I'm attacking it from the right angle. It seems to happen in spurts during the day. I can go hours without the feeling, the bam I get an itch every few minutes for an hour or so. I'm guessing I'm losing about 100 hairs a day. Although I have read you can lose 50-100 a day on average....

 

[Thinktank]

B12 and iron deficiency are common in hypothyroidism and that may lead to hair loss.
Have you ever had your B12 and iron / ferritin / TIBC level tested?

Does alopecia androgenetica (male pattern baldness) occur in your family? If not i wouldn't stress too much about the DHT fact. If you have alopecia androgenetica then you would notice a receding hair line and / or thinning on the vertex of the scalp.

 

[drob31]

The hairline isn't receding, it just seems to be thinner evenly, all over. My grandfather had a full head of hair at 74, and my father at 60, now, has a full head of hair, albeit its a bit thin. It doesn't seem to run in my family.

I do have a compound heterozygous mutation for MTHFR, so I've been supplementing with MB12, but I'm not sure if I need HB12 or not.


Iron is the one thing I have not had tested. I actually have the gene that causes hematochomotosis.

 

[drob31]

I stopped eating eggs, and started taking 50 mg zinc... other than that, I cannot say what I have changed, besides a new shampoo that has b7 and biotin, but my hairloss has slowed down by about 95%.

 

[ChrisD]

Hi @drob31 @Thinktank I am in my 20's with CFS and Fibro. When I was still managing to work, so much of my hair was falling out on to my desk. I have really thinned out on top and I find that if I stray from my regime of diet and supps then the rate of loss increases, and even the mildest of stress instigates more loss.

Supplements that I have found to improve hair strength are : B12, Zinc, Magnesium, B6, Biotin, Gllucosamine/MSM/Chondroitin and Vitamin D3. Also I always doubted the legitimacy of making your own shampoo but as with most things in this illness, you will try anything and I find a mix of Apple cider vinegar, Coconut oil, Almond/avocado oil and some Salt (pink salt) really helps to protect the skin on the scalp and does a bit of maintenance up there.

 

[Basilico]

I've had this problem off and on for a few years now.

About 4 years ago, when my hair loss started getting REALLY bad (like handfuls coming out in the shower bad), I learned that my ferritin was 11 and I had anemia. Doing a good iron protocol stopped the hair loss then.

In the past year or two, when my hair loss starts ramping up again, I get my ferritin/iron tested, but it's never due to that anymore. Now, I seem to have autoimmune hair loss.

There are some things you can try (maybe you've done some/all of these already), because your itching and hair loss may not actually be related to hypothyroidism. I'm going to copy and paste a response I wrote on another thread awhile ago, maybe something on there can help:



The dry scalp could be from SLS in your shampoo, fungal infection, or psoriasis. There are lots of things to try for fungal infections, if you do an internet search you can find them pretty easily.

Have you tried switching to an SLS-free shampoo? SLS is in most shampoos and is a harsh detergent that often causes dryness and itchiness because it strips all your good scalp oils away with the dirt. Don't know where you live, but Trader Joe's carries an SLS-free shampoo for $3. You can also find them in any health food store.

Have you tried a zinc shampoo? Head and Shoulders makes a good one. The version I use is "extra strength" and I order it online because it has twice the zinc of the formulas that are usually in the stores and it's like $6. Unless you have psoriasis, there is a very good chance this shampoo will help.

If the shampoo doesn't help, there is a way to tell if your issue is psoriasis (I suddenly have some psoriasis on my scalp and under my eyebrows and have some autoimmune hairloss. The zinc shampoo didn't help for this, nor did anything else I tried.) Here's how I figured out my issue was autoimmune: I bought a tube of hydrocortisone for $1 and applied some to my whole scalp. Within 2 days my itchy scalp disappeared and in another day my hair texture actually changed from being kind of wiry to being fuller, like how my hair used to be. As soon as I stop applying the cortisone it starts getting itchy again and the texture gets wiry.

In general, it's not good to use cortisone regularly, but what you can buy in the stores is a very low concentration (I think 1%) and when applied topically, I don't think it causes the same systemic problems. I use it for several days, take a little break and then resume. It's not as effective as the cortisone injections the dermatologists use to treat autoimmune scalp/hair issues, but it's MUCH less painful and cheaper.

 

[Valentijn]

Sodium lauryl/laureth sulfates in shampoos were a big problem for me. My scalp skin is still flaky, but without the sulfates I don't get itching. Dandruff shampoos just made it worse.

Some shampoos will use a different sulfate, like sodium coco sulfate, but chemically it's the same, just from a different "natural" source. My favorite non-irritating brand is Hugo Naturals, since it smells nice, but there are other brands too.

And never buy a shampoo that doesn't list all of the ingredients - some will use a vague list and claim things like "sodium lauryl sulfate free" but have other crap instead. If there's names of chemicals, it's probably going to be irritating. A lot of shampoos, especially dandruff-type ones, will include chemicals that deliberately penetrate or damage the skin.

 

[Crux]

Been having hair loss again.
Figured out that iodine stopped the loss.
Had to stop drinking fluoridated water because fluoride displaces iodine.
Lowered green tea intake, it contains fluoride.

Hair loss has normalized.

 

[drob31]

I feel like the issue is related to alopecia arretta, and some immune component is triggering the follicles to end their cycle early.

Not sure what causes the random itches though, almost seems like it's "high cortisol".

 

[Jigsaw]

Sodium lauryl/laureth sulfates in shampoos were a big problem for me. My scalp skin is still flaky, but without the sulfates I don't get itching. Dandruff shampoos just made it worse.

Some shampoos will use a different sulfate, like sodium coco sulfate, but chemically it's the same, just from a different "natural" source. My favorite non-irritating brand is Hugo Naturals, since it smells nice, but there are other brands too.

And never buy a shampoo that doesn't list all of the ingredients - some will use a vague list and claim things like "sodium lauryl sulfate free" but have other crap instead. If there's names of chemicals, it's probably going to be irritating. A lot of shampoos, especially dandruff-type ones, will include chemicals that deliberately penetrate or damage the skin.

@Valentijn
I've stopped shampooing altogether Too knackered, hurts my back, don't like all the chemicals. Everyone managed perfectly well without shampoo before it got invented in, I think, the 1920s/30s.

After three months or so of a load of skin peeling off in clumps from my scalp, and greasy hair (I wear it up so it hasn't been noticeable) (well, not as much as it would've been wearing it loose), it's finally all normalised and isn't greasy anymore.

Taking Lugol's has def helped, too. I've got new hair growing.

There are other things you can use to clean your hair - bicarb, ACV, lemon juice are amongst them. There's a whole "No (sham) Poo" movement out there, because of SLS etc.