Why Vitamin B is Important for Your Hair

Hair is a big part of many people's identity. We colour, cut, style, and often have a specific idea of what our hair should look like. Unfortunately, reality doesn't always live up to our expectations.

Maybe you lose a lot of hair, find your hair grows slowly, and your nails break or split easily?

All of this could be due to a lack of B vitamins!

How Do B Vitamins Affect Your Hair?

B vitamins are important for several processes in the body, such as red blood cell formation, the nervous system, and the health of skin, hair, and nails.

Once the hair is fully developed, there's not much you can do, but with the right diet and supplements, you can provide all the necessary nutrients for the development of new hair.

B vitamins have long been used as a beauty product for hair, skin, and nails. That's because B vitamins give your hair the nourishment it needs to stay healthy, strong, and shiny.

READ MORE: How to Make Natural Blonde Highlights

Overview of B Vitamins and Their Effects on Hair

• Pantothenic acid (vitamin B5): Plays a role in metabolism , thus helping your hair follicles to get the most out of the food you eat. Vitamin B5 is found, among other things, in eggs, cereals and vegetables.
• Vitamin B6: Plays a role in the formation of red blood cells , which are important for transporting oxygen around the body - including to your scalp and hair follicles. Vitamin B6 is found in meat from poultry and pork, liver and eggs. Read more about B6 here.
• Biotin (vitamin B7): Biotin is also known as the "beauty vitamin" as it helps maintain hair and skin . You can get biotin from eating liver and eggs. Read more about biotin here.
• Folic acid (B9): Important for maintaining normal cell division . Found mostly in green vegetables.
• Vitamin B12: Has many important functions in the body, including cell division and the formation of red blood cells . Only found in animal foods and not in vegetables, which is why vegetarians and vegans can develop B12 deficiency. Read more about B12 here.

Can Vitamin B Deficiency Cause Hair Loss?

Yes, a sign of vitamin B deficiency can be hair loss. Continue reading here to find out more about B vitamin deficiency.

Usually, a varied and healthy diet contains sufficient amounts of most of the nutrients we need.

READ MORE: What are Minerals?

Deficiencies are usually due to either poor absorption or insufficient intake.

However, if you're vegan, vegetarian, or consume few animal products, you should pay extra attention to getting enough vitamin B.

Vitamin B deficiency can be difficult to detect, and symptoms can vary from person to person. The signs also differ depending on which B vitamin we're talking about.

Different indicators can be:

• Hair loss, eczema and rashes
• Paleness
• Lethargy and fatigue
• Inflammation of the tongue and corners of the mouth
• Irritability and depression
• Dizziness, numbness and poor balance

Sources: Healthdirect, Forbes Health

B vitamins are only stored in the body to a small extent, which is why they need to be consumed on a daily basis. The different B vitamins have different functions in the body.