Do Prenatal Vitamins Make Hair Grow
Theres no denying the pregnancy glow of a mom-to-beeven her tresses look thicker and more luminous. Perhaps you yourself experienced fuller, longer hair during pregnancy.
Whats the secret behind this lustrous pregnancy-related hair growth? Some swear by their prenatal vitaminsprompting women everywhere to flock to their nearest supplement aisle. But is it all hype? Could it just be hormones? Keep reading as we take a closer look at hair growth during pregnancy, the role prenatal vitamins play and if the benefits make it worth adding them to your hair-care routine, even if youre not expecting.
Do Prenatal Vitamins Help Hair Growth
Even though we now know whats really driving the thicker, fuller hair growth women experience during pregnancy, is it fair to completely rule out the role of prenatal vitamins in their new supermodel-esque strands? After all, prenatal vitamins are packed with essential vitamins and minerals that are critical to a babys healthy developmentthats got to mean something, right?
Truth be told, the excitement around prenatal vitamins being the secret to helping hair grow faster is tied to the fact that some of the vitamins and minerals in prenatal vitamins just happen to be key nutrients required for healthy hair, namely B vitamins like biotin and folic acid, the latter which is responsible for healthy cell growth, something our hair, skin and nails count on. And with pregnant women as walking billboards for bombshell hair, its no wonder that women who arent pregnant are heading to the supplement aisle to address their hair loss concerns.
Which Prenatals Are The Best For Hair Growth
Which prenatals are the best for hair growth? DHA is useful to support healthy brain and eye development of the fetus. It can give you 100 percent of the daily recommended value of folic acid. This can be consumed before, during, and even after pregnancy. This multivitamin also promotes hair growth and helps to make your hair lustrous.
What prenatal vitamins are best for hair growth? Biotin is a water-soluble vitamin thats a part of the vitamin B family. Its also known as vitamin H. Your body needs biotin to help convert certain nutrients into energy. It also plays an important role in the health of your hair, skin, and nails.
Is biotin or Prenatals better for hair growth? So Biotin is the winner in the biotin vs prenatal vitamins for hair growth battle if youre not with baby. If we compare biotin with prenatal vitamins, you should definitely go with the former. Taking multivitamins regularly will help you get the required amount of nutrients in your body.
What is the best vitamin for hair growth? One of the best known vitamins for hair growth is a B vitamin called biotin. Studies link biotin deficiency with hair loss in humans . Although biotin is used as an alternative hair loss treatment, those who are deficient have the best results.
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Including Healthy Fats In The Diet
The body needs all kinds of nutrients for keeping healthy. Including healthy fats in the diet in the form of coconut oil, raw milk, and butter, fish oil, pastured meats etc. can help greatly in dealing with the problem of constipation caused due to vitamin supplement intake.
Now that you know, avoid vitamins that can cause constipation and lead a healthy life.
How We Select Supplements
Our team works hard to be transparent about why we recommend certain supplements in our dietary supplement methodology.
We support supplements that are evidence-based and rooted in science. We value certain product attributes that we find to be associated with the highest quality products. And we prioritize products that are third-party tested and certified by one of three independent, third-party certifiers: USP, NSF, or ConsumerLabs.
It’s important to note that the FDA does not review dietary supplements for safety and effectiveness before they go to market. Our team of experts has created a detailed, science-backed methodology to choose the supplements we recommend.
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How Pregnancy Affects The Hair Growth Cycle
A womans body requires a significant shift in hormone concentrations to support a pregnancy. The following hormones change including:
- HCG As one of the key pregnancy hormones, HCG helps prepare the placenta, and it also prevents other eggs from maturing for a possible pregnancy.
- Progesterone Also helps support pregnancy, and levels remain high until delivery. This hormone is one of the causes of hair growth on other parts of the body during pregnancy, like the lower abdomen. Progesterone likely has an effect on hair growth on your head as well.
- Estrogen Also supports pregnancy and prepares other organs for eventual birth, including the breasts. A drop in estrogen before birth signals the body that it is time for delivery. It is thought to be the hormone behind the pregnancy glow, where many women have slight dilations in their skin vessels that make them look sunkissed.
Of course, other hormones increase during pregnancy, including relaxin, prolactin, and oxytocin. But, while these hormones are very important for pregnancy, they likely are not the reason why the hair growth cycle changes in pregnancy.
Estrogen is likely the primary hormone that changes the hair growth cycle. Because of high estrogen levels, hair strands are encouraged to stay in the growing phase of the hair growth cycle instead of switching to the resting or shedding phases.
What Role Does Progesterone Play In Pregnancy
This all-important hormone kicks into gear shortly after ovulation by helping the uterine lining to become receptive to implantation of a fertilized egg. Progesterone, along with the hormone relaxin, can cause some GI woes, such as heartburn, indigestion, constipation, and bloating.
Progesterone teams up with relaxin again to help soften ligaments and cartilage, and loosen your joints to prepare you for labor. And if your gums swell and start to bleed, your skin breaks out or you feel super sweaty, thats the handiwork of this chemical, too.
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What Is The Difference Between Prenatal Vitamins And Regular Vitamins
Though prenatal vitamins and regular vitamins work the same way to provide your body with micronutrients that it may be lacking there are some key differences between the two, specifically when it comes to ingredients. For example, as an article on Mom.com explains, there is a specific amount of folic acid and iron that pregnant people are supposed to have in their diet. A prenatal vitamin ensures that those exact levels are met, whereas a regular multivitamin might have some amount of folic acid or iron, but necessarily enough to meet the threshold recommended for pregnant people.
As always, it’s important that you consult a health care provider or family physician prior to taking any over-the-counter medication or starting a vitamin regimen. After all, what works for one body does not work for all. But if you do have lingering questions about taking prenatal vitamins when you’re not pregnant, here’s what you need to know:
Prenatal vitamins may help your skin and nails, but its likely that any type of vitamin with the same nutrients would be just as beneficial.
Kipping says that more than 90 percent of women arent meeting their choline needs, and 50 percent are critically deficient in vitamin D. Since fetal organs start to develop in the first couple months of pregnancy, often before some women even realize theyre pregnant, its important to give your body the nutrition it needs ahead of time.
Key Nutrients In A Prenatal Vitamin
Prenatal vitamins contain a wide range of nutrients, targeting the specific vitamin and mineral needs to support a healthy pregnancy. “I look for the active form of the B vitamins folate and methylcobalamin . I also look for iodine, choline, and adequate amounts of vitamin D,” says Kristin Brown BSc, RD, who owns Grounded Health Nutrition and Wellness.
These are some of the top nutrients to look for in a prenatal vitamin and their different forms:
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Nutrients You Need When You’re Trying For A Baby
Recently, we had the pleasure of featuring a fertility smoothie post from the one and only Lisa Mastela, founder of Bumpin Blends. We were lucky enough to share some of our own insight about the key nutrients you need when you’re trying for a baby in a post published on the BB site, and we’re sharing some of it with you right here.
Reasons Why You Might Want To Take Prenatal Vitamins Even If Youre Not Pregnant
Even if you are not currently pregnant and dont plan to become pregnant, and even if youre a man, you still might want to consider taking prenatal vitamins in some cases.
A prenatal vitamin provides significant nutritional support so that the enzymes that your genes make can function well. Enzymes perform the work in your body.
Think of enzymes as the worker bees. When there is work to do, your genes produce a lot of enzymes. Many of these enzymes require vitamins and minerals to work. Without vitamins and minerals, your enzymes cannot work well and, as a result, you experience symptoms.
In the same way that your car cannot work without gas and your stove cannot work without gas or electricity, your enzymes cannot work without vitamins and minerals. This is why a prenatal vitamin can be so useful. It provides the needed tools for your enzymes.
So ask yourself these questions if youre not trying to conceive or currently pregnant:
- Are my enzymes working at high speed?
- Am I putting a lot of demands on my body?
If so, a prenatal vitamin may be appropriate for you. If not, then you likely dont need it.
If I was taking a prenatal vitamin or a potent multivitamin while on vacation when I did not need it, Id likely experience symptoms. Too many vitamins and minerals clog your enzymes just like too much gas in your engine floods it and prevents it from starting. Balance is essential and there can be too much of a good thing.
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Constipation During Pregnancy Basics
Pregnant women are at a higher risk for constipation for several reasons:
- Sky-high progesterone levels cause your gut to slow down
- Higher fluid needs lead to inadequate hydration
- Less likely to eat enough fiber
Why think/talk about constipation during pregnancy? Well, for starters being constipated is uncomfortable and unpleasant. Secondly, it increases your risk for hemorrhoids. Which also arent fun, and also impact pregnant women at a higher rate than non-pregnant women . But, the good news is there is plenty you can do to maximize your gut health before, during, and after pregnancy to reduce your risk for developing constipation or hemorrhoids!
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Who May Not Benefit From A Prenatal Vitamin
Men: Getting pregnant is a two-person job. The man’s overall health, as well as sperm health, are important to consider, specifically while trying to get pregnant. Research has seen positive effects on sperm count, motility, and morphology, as well as conception, from supplemental intakes of selenium, vitamin C, vitamin E, alpha-lipoic acid, folic acid, and zinc. While most prenatal supplements are specifically designed for those with female reproductive organs, we encourage men to work with a healthcare provider if they would like to choose a supplement to improve their fertility.
If you do not plan to become pregnant: If you do not plan to become pregnant soon, you may be better off sticking with a standard multivitamin. Prenatal vitamins contain higher levels of certain nutrients due to the increased needs of mom and baby, but this is not necessary for a non-pregnant state unless you have documented deficiencies.
Prenatal vitamins can be taken without being pregnant. However, it is advised to take them leading up to pregnancy and even during the postpartum period. Keep in mind that prenatals are designed for the state of pregnancy, where the need for some nutrients is greater than the non-pregnant state, so you will want to be careful not to over-consume supplements.
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What Role Does Relaxin Play In Pregnancy
If you do end up conceiving, relaxin is at the ready and lives up to its name, since it helps to relax your muscles, bones, ligaments and joints in the pelvis later in pregnancy in preparation for labor. Relaxin also softens and lengthens the cervix. Its limbering mechanism may make you feel off balance and wobbly as you walk .
What Are The Signs And Symptoms Of Vitamin D Deficiency
Severe lack of vitamin D causes rickets, which shows up in children as incorrect growth patterns, weakness in muscles, pain in bones and deformities in joints. This is very rare. However, children who are deficient in vitamin D can also have muscle weakness or sore and painful muscles.
Lack of vitamin D is not quite as obvious in adults. Signs and symptoms might include:
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Hair Loss Treatment Is It Possible
You have come to the right place if you are looking for hair loss solutions. I was there before, and it was a difficult situation. I was losing hair at alarming rates and no matter what I tried it just didnt work. After trying just about everything and anything I figured I would try something that wouldnt cost me a lot of money but would get rid of my problem in a matter of months.
The first thing I did was go see my dermatologist. They said that I couldnt do much because my hormones were out of control and that there was nothing they could do. So they recommended I take Minoxidil. At first, I was skeptical that Minoxidil would work for me. My life was so hectic that I barely had time to take care myself. After seeing my doctor, I realized that there was a pill for hair loss. I decided to give it another try.
Within a couple weeks I noticed my hair starting to grow back in. The best part was it worked! Minoxidil is the only hair-loss treatment that actually stimulates hair follicles to produce hair again. There are no chemicals or anything like that at all.
Biosil was the first thing that I heard about. I had to get some tests done immediately after hearing of it. I was told that my problem was advanced stage diffuse hair loss. I didnt believe that anything so simple could solve it. My blood work was run and it turned out that I didnt have non cancerous hair follicles. It was actually a protein buildup that was blocking my hair loss and causing my hair to thin out.
Do Prenatal Vitamins Contain Hormones
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Do Prenatal Vitamins Help With Hair Loss
Prenatal vitamins can help with hair loss thats caused by nutrient deficiencies.
Part of the reason prenatal vitamins can be so important for people during pregnancy is that nutrient demands go way up during pregnancy. Prenatal vitamins can help you make up for any deficiencies caused by this increase in demand. Getting enough nutrients is also vitally important for any hair care routine.
Beyond taking prenatal vitamins, you also want to make sure youre getting enough protein. Lack of protein can disrupt hair growth and create challenges for your hair health.
What Role Does Hpl Play In Pregnancy
This hormone is produced by the placenta to adjust your bodys metabolism to feed your baby. Along with placental growth factor, it preps your breasts to breastfeed. This hormone helps make colostrum, which is the antibody-rich pre-milk that precedes actual breastmilk. In some women, hPL and placental growth factor are thought to lead to insulin resistance, resulting in gestational diabetes.
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Stay In Bed Right After Intercourse
You have probably heard this one â lie in bed with your feet in the air after having sex to increase your chances of getting pregnant. The verdict? Not true.
âItâs good advice to lay in bed for 10 to 15 minutes after intercourse, but you donât need your feet in the air,â Goldfarb says. âYour pelvis does not move when you put your legs in the air.â Donât go the bathroom during this time either, he says. âIf you wait 10 to 15 minutes, the sperm that is going to get into the cervix will be in the cervix.â
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Folic Acid Calcium Iodine And Iron
Folic acid
If getting pregnant is a possibility for you, you should take folic acid. It can prevent birth defects that affect the babyâs brain and spinal cord. Neural tube defects develop early in pregnancy, before many women know theyâre pregnant half of all pregnancies are unplanned. This is why doctors recommend that any woman who could get pregnant take 400 micrograms of folic acid daily, starting before conception and continuing for the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.
If youâve had a baby with a neural tube defect you should talk with your health care provider about folic acid. Studies have shown that taking a larger dose at least one month before and during the first trimester may help if youâve had a baby with this defect. But talk to your doctor about whatâs right for you.
Foods that have folic acid include:
Iron
Iron helps your body make more blood red cells. These blood cells carry oxygen to the baby that it needs to develop.
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