I have a ton of hair naturally, but I have noticed some shedding post our second baby. Postpartum hair loss is unfortunately related to hormones and somewhat genetics. Every woman experiences it, to some degree, but for me it hasn’t been all that bad. Below are some things that I do and products that I use to try to help the cause.
Prenatal Vitamins
The first thing is that I make sure to take my daily prenatal vitamin and one with folic acid. I believe it’s important to take a prenatal or multivitamin to make sure your body is getting plenty of good nutrients, especially while nursing. Our bodies go through so much during pregnancy and postpartum and if you can give your body some extra nutrients on top of eating healthy it can only help. I use the garden of life prenatal once daily vitamins and have used these through both of my pregnancies. These specific vitamins never made me feel sick and they contain good amounts of folic acid. They are also a vitamin that consists of whole foods and no added sugar.
Healthy Diet
Next, I try to consume a well-balanced diet consisting of healthy fats, protein, complex carbs and superfoods. I eat a ton of healthy fats such as avocados, unsalted nuts, nut butters, flax seeds, scrambled eggs, salmon and use coconut and avocado oils when I cook. The protein I normally consume is a lot of eggs, fish, chicken, salmon, elk meat, beans, chickpeas, lentils and shrimp. For fruits I like to eat berries, tropical fruits in my shakes, bananas and some citrus fruits. I try to eat mostly plant based, consisting of peas, leafy greens (kale, spinach), broccoli, carrots and brussel sprouts.
We also use Kachava protein powder that has a lot of great vitamins and minerals for our shakes, as well as spirulina powder and Primal Kitchen Collagen that I add to my coffee or smoothies. The coconut vanilla is my favorite flavor to use as creamer in my coffee.
Hydration, Exercise and Sleep
Next, I make sure I am taking care of myself by drinking at least 100-120 ounces of water a day, sleeping 8-10 hours a night and getting daily exercise of cardio and strength training. My favorite water is essentia water or figi water when I am on the go. When I found out that I was pregnant I started to really increase my intake and especially while nursing.
For exercise, I typically workout 6 days a week with 3 strength days and 2-3 cardio days. I am also trying to incorporate more gentle workouts such as yoga/pilates.
Sleep has always been a huge priority to me and I just don’t function as well on less than 8 hours of sleep. I make sure I am getting to bed around 10 pm and listen to my body when I need more rest.
Hair Products and Styling
The fourth thing that I do is sleep on a silk pillow case. I started to sleep on a silk pillow case when my estitician in Denver recommended it for my skin, but I think it has only helped my hair, as well. Also, I only use big scrunchies, linked here and here, when I put my hair up.
I try to air dry my hair as much as possible and try not to use heat on it too much. The T3 curling iron and hair dryer are the tools I use and cannot recommend the hair dryer enough. Using good tools and products will only help and protect your hair from damage.
I use oil, texturizing spray, dry shampoo and hair spray. I also use a natural shampoo such as Beautycounter or Dae Hair and getting regular trims does seem to help it grow better.
These are all the things I do to try to keep my hair healthy and to help with postpartum hair loss. Not to say that these ideas will work for you, but I think every little bit could help.
I do believe genetics and hormones play a huge roll in this and checking your T3 and T4 thyroid levels regularly is also important to make sure your hormones are within normal ranges.
Below, I have linked everything I use and have discussed in this post in hopes that they make work for you too.