Introduction
The human body is dependent on many trace elements. One of these trace elements is iron. Normally, we cover our daily iron requirements with various foods.
Both a low intake and a loss of iron can lead to iron deficiency. This iron deficiency is associated with a variety of physical symptoms, which may include hair loss. The iron deficiency can often be remedied by an increased intake of iron-containing foods or supplements.
Why does iron deficiency lead to hair loss?
Iron is one of the necessary components that the body needs for blood formation. In the case of severe blood loss, for which a strong menstrual bleeding is sufficient, the body has to replenish a lot of blood and the iron requirement may be greater than the intake. An unbalanced diet can also lead to an iron deficiency and thus to reduced blood formation.
Since haemoglobin, the red blood pigment, is needed for the transport of oxygen, lower blood formation also means less oxygen for all body cells. Especially body cells in growth and new formation have a high oxygen demand. The body has a priority plan which cells are particularly important and therefore must be supplied with oxygen as a priority.
However, since hair is not essential for survival, the hair follicle cells, which form new hair cells, are among the cells that are the first to be poorly supplied. If the hair cells receive too little oxygen, they switch from the active growth phase to the resting phase and the affected hairs fall out. This effect can be reversed with sufficient iron in the diet.
Diagnosis
Since hair loss is a very common and unspecific symptom, many causes are possible. In addition to genetic causes, many other diseases are associated with hair loss. Additional information is therefore important for the diagnosis of iron deficiency.
The doctor will therefore ask about other symptoms, such as fatigue and concentration disorders and possible explanations, such as a heavy menstrual period. The diagnosis of iron deficiency can be confirmed by a blood test. Interesting values here are the haemoglobin value, the erythrocyte count, the form of the red blood cells, the serum iron value and the serum ferritin.
To clarify the cause, a test can also be performed to check the iron absorption in the intestine. Ferritin is the most important laboratory value in the diagnosis of iron deficiency. A lowered ferritin value is almost proof of iron deficiency, especially if a reduction in haemoglobin is detected at the same time.
Ferritin is a protein complex which is necessary for the storage of iron in the body. However, a high ferritin value does not mean that an iron deficiency can be excluded. In the case of chronic inflammation, the ferritin level can rise even though there is too little iron in the body, as large amounts of ferritin are released. More about the topic: Ferritin
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