Vitamin C and hair growth

It’s no surprise that many hair supplements contain vitamin C. This vitamin is one of the greatest nutrients to help grow and thicken hair as it helps to build collagen. Collagen is a structural protein that is a building block of hair. Vitamin C also plays a role in absorbing iron, which is important for maintaining healthy hair.

However, because this is a water-soluble vitamin, our body doesn’t store it or accumulate too much of it. If you notice your hair is suddenly dry or you have more split ends, you may be lacking vitamin C. It’s important that you are getting enough vitamin C to encourage healthy hair growth.

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How does hair grow?

We start with 1 million hair follicles on our head, and about 100,000 of those are specifically on our scalp. Our hair grows about half an inch a month. But how does it grow? Each hair follicle goes through a four-stage growth lifecycle, and not all follicles are in the same stage at the same time. The four stages are: anagen, catagen, telogen and exogen. Check out the breakdown of the hair growth cycle for specifics on each stage.

Hair growth cycle - 4 stages

As we go from childhood to adulthood and our scalp expands, most people notice the density of their hair reduces as the follicles spread out.  

Where to find vitamin C

To incorporate more vitamin C in your diet, there are more options than just orange juice and oranges.

Other citrus fruits that are natural sources of vitamin C include: kiwi, lemon, guava and grapefruit. Papaya, cantaloupe and strawberries are good sources as well.

Vegetables that include a healthy dose of vitamin C are broccoli, cauliflower, Brussel sprouts and bell peppers.

3 more vitamins for healthy hair

Vitamin B7 aka Biotin – Biotin is a water-soluble vitamin that is part of the vitamin B family. It plays a role in maintaining the health of your hair, skin and nails. A biotin deficiency, though rare, can cause hair loss and thinning on the head and body. 

Vitamin B12 – This vitamin helps with red blood cell production, which in turn boosts hair growth. Common food sources containing vitamin B12 are proteins such as eggs and meat, milk and shellfish.

Vitamin A – Vitamin A is involved in supporting immune function, vision, reproduction and cell growth. It repairs your hair and helps to keep the scalp from drying out by producing sebum. Like vitamin C, vitamin A is also an antioxidant that helps fight off free radicals in the body that can damage hair.