Any gut-based theories of hair loss (and potential hair regrowth)?

pbg

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Origin Story: I started experiencing male pattern baldness around the same time I started having IBS-C type digestion issues ~10 years ago. At the time I was taking an SSRI and it worked well. However, when I started drinking coffee (usually on an empty stomach) while taking it, the SSRI lost its affects. At night, I would wake up at around ~3am having ulcer-like pains in my gut. I went off the SSRI ten years ago but still kept having serious gut health issues. It's like the SSRI opened up some connection between my scalp and gut that previously didn't exist (or wasn't nearly as sensitive).

I still experience to this day a correlation between my gut health and scalp. When my gut gets sideways, my hair line recedes, or I experience more diffuse thinning, or dandruff. So, my question is, how do I make my scalp less sensitive to my gut? Or clean up my gut health? And if this is a root of hair loss, can it also be a root of hair regrowth? Does anyone know if there is any literature or research on this?
 
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Here’s one…


“Dermatologists tend to think of the skin as the interface between the body’s internal systems and the outside world. However, the digestive tract also is an important connection between the body’s internal environment and the external environment. Beyond nutrient assimilation and elimination pathways, the digestive tract is home to a complex and diverse ecosystem: the gut microbiome. The intricate relationship of the surrounding enteric nervous system (also described as the second brain), the neuroendocrine-hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, the gut immune system (GALT), and the intestinal mucosal barrier1 ultimately connects the digestive system to many other body systems, including hair. Accordingly, the integrity of the gut microbiome is critical for optimal total-body well-being.“

 
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“They then repeated the experiment, only this time they also gave the mice a long course of antibiotics to destroy the balance of bacteria in their gut. This time they observed a mild hair loss, as expected, and as previously shown in bacteria-free mice.
By studying what had happened in the gut bacteria of these mice, the scientists discovered that a particular type of lactic acid bacteria, Lactobacillus murinus, had expanded after the antibiotic treatment.
This bacteria couldn’t produce biotin and was a clear candidate as the cause of biotin deficiency that then led to then hair loss.“


“When they fed the bacteria-free mice with Lactobacillus murinus they saw that the hair loss became even worse and the mice became almost entirely bald.
They ran control tests, feeding regular mice and bacteria-free mice a regular diet with normal levels of biotin but added Lactobacillus murinus. These mice suffered no hair loss at all.“


 

Hans

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Origin Story: I started experiencing male pattern baldness around the same time I started having IBS-C type digestion issues ~10 years ago. At the time I was taking an SSRI and it worked well. However, when I started drinking coffee (usually on an empty stomach) while taking it, the SSRI lost its affects. At night, I would wake up at around ~3am having ulcer-like pains in my gut. I went off the SSRI ten years ago but still kept having serious gut health issues. It's like the SSRI opened up some connection between my scalp and gut that previously didn't exist (or wasn't nearly as sensitive).

I still experience to this day a correlation between my gut health and scalp. When my gut gets sideways, my hair line recedes, or I experience more diffuse thinning, or dandruff. So, my question is, how do I make my scalp less sensitive to my gut? Or clean up my gut health? And if this is a root of hair loss, can it also be a root of hair regrowth? Does anyone know if there is any literature or research on this?
There is definitely research on this. I wrote an article on it a while ago. The Gut-Hair Loss connection: Fix the Gut to Stop Hair Loss » MENELITE
Any gut-irritating food can stimulate the immune system to release inflammatory mediators, which can then cause hair loss. So avoid anything that negatively stimulates the immune system. Common problematic foods include A1 dairy, gluten, high FODMAP foods, lectins, etc. Also, stress is a biggy.
 
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pbg

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There is definitely research on this. I wrote an article on it a while ago. The Gut-Hair Loss connection: Fix the Gut to Stop Hair Loss » MENELITE
Any gut-irritating food can stimulate the immune system to release inflammatory mediators, which can then cause hair loss. So avoid anything that negatively stimulates the immune system. Common problematic foods include A1 dairy, gluten, high FODMAP foods, lectins, etc. Also, stress is a biggy.
How much time each day do you recommend exposing your scalp to sunlight? Is there a specific time of day it is best to do so?
 

Hans

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How much time each day do you recommend exposing your scalp to sunlight? Is there a specific time of day it is best to do so?
Depending on where you are. Just as long as you don't burn. 10min+ daily around 9am-3pm in the summer and 10am-2pm in the winter.
 

Vins7

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Rob English from perfect hair health had a client who explain that his completely hair regrowth was due to carnivore diet (low gut inflammation) and scalp massages.
 

aniciete

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There is definitely research on this. I wrote an article on it a while ago. The Gut-Hair Loss connection: Fix the Gut to Stop Hair Loss » MENELITE
Any gut-irritating food can stimulate the immune system to release inflammatory mediators, which can then cause hair loss. So avoid anything that negatively stimulates the immune system. Common problematic foods include A1 dairy, gluten, high FODMAP foods, lectins, etc. Also, stress is a biggy.
Would ear pain, bruxism and sinus/mucus problems indicate an allergy? Started drinking cow milk (a2a2) for the first time in months and within a couple days all of these symptoms have started. Plus very bad sleep which I’d assume is from an irritated intestine.
 

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