Want to grow longer, healthier hair?
Healthy hair is not just what you put on the ends of your hair, but more about what you eat.
To grow healthy hair you need to feed it from the inside. The length of your hair is determined by your genes (see my post on why your hair won’t grow past your shoulders) but by increasing your metabolism you can make your hair grow faster.
These are the top 10 foods to include in your diet for a more lustrous head of hair.
10 things you should be eating to make your hair grow faster
- Salmon: The omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin D in salmon are essential for scalp health and to keep your hair hydrated.
- Dark green vegetables: They contain vitamins A and C, both of which help in the formation of sebum (your hair’s natural conditioner).
- Lentils: These little guys are rich in folic acid, which helps provide oxygen to your scalp and skin and in turn promotes hair growth and cell renewal.
- Nuts: Nuts are a great source of protein. Walnuts in particular have a significant amount of omega-3 fatty acids, biotin, and vitamin E. Walnuts also have copper, a mineral that helps keep your natural hair colour rich.
- Poultry: Hair is nearly all protein, so foods rich in protein give you the building blocks for hair. Poultry also contains hair-healthy zinc, iron, and B vitamins to keep your hair strong and thick.
- Eggs: Another good protein source, eggs contain zinc, selenium, sulphur, and iron. Iron is especially important because low iron (anaemia) is a major cause of hair loss, particularly in women.
- Whole grains: Whole grains are rich in nutrients and fibres which promote hair growth and make them a super food for healthy hair.
- Oysters: Hair loss or dandruff can be the result of low production levels of the hormone androgen. Oysters are rich in zinc and assist in the production of androgen.
- Green Tea: Green tea contains polyphenols which help to keep your scalp healthy. You can also wash your hair with green tea or apply it to your scalp if you suffer from dandruff.
- Carrots: As well as helping your eyes, the vitamin A in carrots helps in formation of sebum oil in the scalp, which keep your hair healthy and hydrated.
What’s your fave food for healthy hair?
Great tips. Such simple foods we can add into our diets.
Thanks for commenting Kat! I’m planning a few easy recipes to help include more of these foods in my diet too 🙂
My 4 year old wants to grow up and be Rapunzel. I am definitely sharing this information with her. Anything to get those greens into her. Although we might give the oysters and the green tea a miss ;0)
Haha that’s definitely a way to get her to eat her greens 😉
Excellent – tick, tick tick! Bt I do ned to do more lentils ,I’ve only really started cooking with them recently!! Oh yeah & oysters , am always up for more oysters -yum!
You & your green smoothies would definitely get a big tick from me! Love a lentil daal with a curry, and my MIL makes a mean red lentil pie. I should get the recipe from her…
Interesting! I will definitely have to start drinking some more green tea!!! That’s my fave!
Green tea is so good for you! x
Green tea is the best. I drink one cup a day and sometimes I even wash my scalp with it.