I have written about quite a few supplements (and experimental topicals) for hair growth on my blog. Whether they actually work is a different story. I guess the one I have most faith in is BioSil, though I haven't noticed anything different after a few months' use. There's a study that says it's effective, however, and lots of anecdotal evidence from people I generally trust in these matters.
best supplements and vitamins
- Thread starter JLL
- Start date
but What about Today
Established Member
- Reaction score
- 0
but What about Today
Established Member
- Reaction score
- 0
but What about Today
Established Member
- Reaction score
- 0
My regimen will be
Cellfood Silica
Toco-8
Hair Gain
I'm going to try it everyday for 2 months or more depending on the results.
Cellfood Silica
Toco-8
Hair Gain
I'm going to try it everyday for 2 months or more depending on the results.
ali777
Senior Member
- Reaction score
- 4
There is some really expensive stuff out there. I use a generic hair and skin supplement from "Holland and Barrett", a UK based health shop.
I have tried Saw Palmetto in the past, but that thing just doesn't agree with my body. So, I avoid any hair supplements with Saw Palmetto, and that means those expensive and fancy products are not for me.
I think my skin has improved, so I'm guessing my hair has all the right ingredients for optimum growth. However, I'm not actively fighting the effects of DHT with supplements.
I also use Silica and MSM, but I haven't really noticed any effects from those two. The silica tablets I use contain 15mg of zinc, which is great for sex :whistle: and may delay the greying of hair. Zinc can be toxic in large doses, so I have to be careful with the amount of zinc I take.
Also there is evidence that taking large doses (more than the RDA) of vitamin A over a long period of time can have negative effects. It was initially thought that vitamin A can prevent cancer in smokers, but in trials it actually increased the incidence of cancer in smokers. Vitamin A rich diet over a long period has also been linking with osteoporosis and weak bones.
Do your research before taking any supplements.
I have tried Saw Palmetto in the past, but that thing just doesn't agree with my body. So, I avoid any hair supplements with Saw Palmetto, and that means those expensive and fancy products are not for me.
I think my skin has improved, so I'm guessing my hair has all the right ingredients for optimum growth. However, I'm not actively fighting the effects of DHT with supplements.
I also use Silica and MSM, but I haven't really noticed any effects from those two. The silica tablets I use contain 15mg of zinc, which is great for sex :whistle: and may delay the greying of hair. Zinc can be toxic in large doses, so I have to be careful with the amount of zinc I take.
Also there is evidence that taking large doses (more than the RDA) of vitamin A over a long period of time can have negative effects. It was initially thought that vitamin A can prevent cancer in smokers, but in trials it actually increased the incidence of cancer in smokers. Vitamin A rich diet over a long period has also been linking with osteoporosis and weak bones.
Do your research before taking any supplements.
irishpride86 said:
I tried Toco-Sorb, which is very similar to Toco-8, for two months. Here's the conclusion: Hair Growth with Vitamin E Tocotrienols from Palm Oil – Experiment Conclusion. Didn't see any interesting results, but if I had extra cash lying around, I'd probably take tocotrienols anyway, because new studies touting their benefits seem to be popping up regularly. If you do decide to take Toco-8, a cheap way to boost the bioavailability of tocotrienols is to take them with sesame seeds.
Can't comment too much on Hair Gain, since the only ingredient I recognize is Eclipta Alba - but there's at least one study saying it promotes hair growth. Would be interested in hearing your results if you do decide to try it.
A general multi-vitamin is probably a bad idea, because multi-vitamins are often poorly formulated (vitamin A in the form of alpha-tocopherol only, too much folic acid, etc). I personally take 2 caps of AOR Ortho-Core, which is the best multivitamin I've found so far.
Beta-sitosterol could be worth a shot, but like saw palmetto, it might also have side effects similar to finasteride.
BioSil doesn't have side effects, there's a study to support it, and lots of anecdotal evidence about making hair thicker (but not growing new hair).
You can get most of these from www.iherb.com for a good price. That's where I order all my stuff from, except for Ortho-Core which they don't have. If you're a first time customer, use the code "NEN423" for a $5 discount (this applies to everyone).
somone uk
Experienced Member
- Reaction score
- 6
i just use holland and barret mega vitamins for the hair, more for the sake of healthy hair rather than hair loss benefits
but it's would be hard to have a diet that causes hair loss, i mean look at amy winehouse she has thick hair but she is probably one of the most malnourished people you could imagine
but it's would be hard to have a diet that causes hair loss, i mean look at amy winehouse she has thick hair but she is probably one of the most malnourished people you could imagine
ali777
Senior Member
- Reaction score
- 4
somone uk said:but it's would be hard to have a diet that causes hair loss, i mean look at amy winehouse she has thick hair but she is probably one of the most malnourished people you could imagine
She does have hairloss. There are some pics on the inernet that show the damage her lifestyle had on her hair.
The difference is, if she returns to a healthy diet she'll get her hair back, but people like us are doomed forever :sobbing:
@irishpride86, go to your local walgreens, CVS, etc. sometimes they have a bin of vitamins at reduced prices because they are expiring within a year or so.
today i went to walgreens and bought 2 120 gelcap bottles of Omega-3 oils (Fish, Flax oil) for $3.99 each, normally they are about $12 a bottle! they reduce the prices because they expire in april 2010 lol.
you just gotta look around for cheap prices.. sometimes it cost more buying online! (after shipping, etc).
biosil i bought locally at vitaminshoppe., i bought the saw palmetto there as well. the biosil was cheaper at the local store than what i found online!
good luck.
today i went to walgreens and bought 2 120 gelcap bottles of Omega-3 oils (Fish, Flax oil) for $3.99 each, normally they are about $12 a bottle! they reduce the prices because they expire in april 2010 lol.
you just gotta look around for cheap prices.. sometimes it cost more buying online! (after shipping, etc).
biosil i bought locally at vitaminshoppe., i bought the saw palmetto there as well. the biosil was cheaper at the local store than what i found online!
good luck.
irishpride86 said:
BioSil.
Since you're looking to thicken your existing hair and still have all your hair, this is what I would go with. See my blog post about the study on BioSil for more information.
The rest of the supplements you mentioned are anyone's guess. There's still no consensus whether saw palmetto works, and we know even less about beta sitosterol. They may work, but nobody knows for sure. This is as plain and simple as it gets, I'm afraid.
scub said:
Omega-3 is okay to buy at a supermarket, but you cannot get a good multivitamin at Walgreens or any other similar store. I know the common logic is that "as long as it has some vitamins in it, it's better than nothing", but that logic is flawed. You'll be better off saving your money than taking a poorly formulated multivitamin. As I said, I'm taking AOR's Ortho-Core, which is the best one I've found.
By the way, biotin is useless for hair growth unless you have a deficiency, which you probably don't.
decro435 said:
I get mine from Relentless Improvement.
No, I haven't seen anything from using it, but I'm not expecting to either. It's just a multivitamin.
I recommend downloading CRON-O-Meter and calculating what your daily nutrient intake is like; then when you know which ones you may be deficient in, you can decide whether a multivitamin or a single vitamin/mineral supplement is the way to go. Although, no multivitamin will have enough vitamin D3, for example. I take Ortho-Core just to cover the basics - the ones my diet doesn't.
irishpride86 said:
I take the liquid because it's cheaper. It has 1 mg per drop, so I take 10 drops (increased from 5 after seeing no results), which is what they used in the study I mentioned earlier. Don't remember how much silica is in the pills, but 5-10 mg is what you should aim for.
I would not supplement with Omega-6; the whole point of taking fish oil, for example, is to increase the ratio of Omega-3 to Omega-6. We get way too much Omega-6 from diet anyway.
Basically any Omega-3 supplement will do the job: fish oil, fish oil capsules, EPA/DHA capsules, etc. Pharmaceutical grade is probably best, because they contain less heavy metals, which you may or may not be worried about.
Are you asking me if you should take more supplements for hair loss or more supplements for general health? If it's hair loss we're talking about, I doubt even a good multivitamin will do much; there's too much evidence that shows otherwise (people with terrible diets and great hair). If it's general health we're talking about, there's a lot you can do.
If you've read my blog then you probably know that I take all kinds of supplements, some for experimentation, and others because I think they'll be good for me in the long run. At the moment, I'd say the top 3 supplements for anyone would be:
- Vitamin D3
- Vitamin K2
- Fish oil / Omega-3
Plus a healthy diet of course
irishpride86 said:
No.
irishpride86 said:
No, I recommend BioSil for hair loss and Omega-3 for general health. If the inflammation theory is true (meaning that inflammation is one cause of hair loss) then I would also recommend Omega-3, but it hasn't been proven true.
irishpride86 said:
I would say something like 1-2 grams of Omega-3 per day. Note that salmon for example contains a large amount of Omega-3, so if you eat lots of fish, you may not really need a supplement. Use CRON-O-Meter to find out how much you're getting from your diet.
EDIT: Yes, there are different forms of Omega-3. Forget ALA (which is found in flax oil and poorly converted to EPA and DHA) and get something with EPA and DHA. There are various theories as to which is better, so my bet at this point is to take both.
Nashville Hairline
Experienced Member
- Reaction score
- 9
If you're looking to thicken up the best things are the shampoos IMO: Nizoral, Body Shop Ginger Anti-Dandruff, Alpecin Double Effect and Clinique Hair Maximimizing all work(ed) well for me. Clinique and Body Shop are best if your scalp is sensitive.