(TRIGGER WARNING) How long can you go without eating before you suffer hair loss?

[glitterbug]

TRIGGER WARNING: eating disorders

OK, I am not going to be not eating, I am talking about people who do eat but very little, and those who go without food for the majority of the days. Although they take multivitamins etc. and another scenario is about people who do not eat at all.

How long can a person do this, before they start losing hair?

[NoRush]

It depends on the general state of health of the individual to begin with, but heavy hair loss will happen as soon as the body starts to run out of nutrients and as such has no "left over" protein to build hair. It wouldn't take too long i think, maybe a few weeks of fasting if that. Fasting/extreme low calorie diets are a bad idea because they simply do not provide enoguh nutrients to kep the body going and since hair is essentially waste product, like nails, it's one of the first things to go, also because after a considerable amount of weight loss temperature regulation becomes a problem, so alternate mechanisms have to be activated, enter lanugo... And so on, I could write on for hours... XD

[Firefox7275]

It's individual, different people will start to get negative effects at different points. It's possibly never been formally studied, wouldn't be the most ethical piece of research.

[Maktub]

I think any stress on the body can cause hair loss, physical or psychological.
Not eating of course also cause nutrient deficiencies in very short time, but the mere stress of it can cause some sudden shedding.
Hair is always growing, so if the roots lack nutrient, it will either slow or weaken the growing hair at the root, or lead to shedding. It might not show right away, because the hair fragility might show only later when the hair is longer (breaking, splits, etc. at that place on the hair).

So I don't think it would take very long !

[Audhumla]

I used to be anorexic. I suffered for a few years and at one point I went two weeks without eating or drinking except for 50mL of water a day and some days I'd take vitamin tablets (zinc a kelp I think and sometimes some emu oil. I didn't really think it would help or have any logical reason for taking them.) The rest of the time I was just not eating anything for 3 days at a time and then if I felt like I was going to pass out or something I'd eat the next day and then the day after that would be the start of another 1-5day not eating period.

My hair did definitely fall out. I've still got a widow's peak and a high forehead that I'm somewhat convinced started in that time about 6'ish years ago and it ended about . . . 2 or 3 years ago I guess. Really my eating disorder stopped because I didn't want to have bad skin and thin hair anymore and the main thing that has kept me from relapsing is my hair and helping it grow. So I kind of have you guys to thank :p

As for how long it took me for it to start falling out in my opinion it's more about nutrition. It's not really about calories it's more about how serious your vitamin deficiencies are in my experience. If you "don't eat" which for most people means having soup or smoothies or juice or something or have a sandwich here and there and then go back to a healthy diet in a few days or even a little longer and weren't malnourished beforehand then your hair probably wouldn't suffer that much. It's not healthy and I could derail the thread talking about all the side effects of not eating but being realistic eating a bit less in the short term say if you've had oral surgery (like I had a few days ago to have a wisdom tooth out meaning I can't eat very much and it's all mushy food) won't cause the biggest shed of your life. It might increase your shed by a few hairs but nothing major.

I can say I didn't notice any difference when I had my eating disorder between the times that I didn't eat and took various vitamin pills and the times I just didn't have anything. My hair had the same high shed/thinning with both and obviously even if I went back to eating for a week it didn't really help because there were other parts of my body that needed the vitamins and minerals and I was pretty much malnourished the whole time.
That would be my summary I guess. If you eat normally for years and then have an off week it's not so bad but if every second week you're in some kind of fast or huge restriction then it _will_ affect you and no amount of vitamin pills or eating ok the other half of the time will stop that. You have to remember that your body will prioritise your internal organ function over hair growth so if you get into any situation where you're depriving your body of nutrients your hair and nails and skin will be the first to suffer and the most obvious and if you have got yourself into a state where you're malnourished you can't just snap your fingers and take a magic pill and get better. You have to commit to healthy eating and slowly over time your body will get better and your hair will start to grow again and shed less.

Also since I feel it's related I now use an awesome site to make sure I get all my nutrients. It's a section on the SELF magazine site called "Nutrition Data" and you can sign up for free and enter all your food for the day and it tells you what nutrients you're getting and if you're lacking any etc. You can also set your own vitamin/mineral RDI values if you know you have different needs or it has a calculator for you I believe. It does show you calories but they are by no means the focus of the information it gives you.
Anyway here's a link http://nutritiondata.self.com/
Eat healthy everyone! It's the best thing you'll ever do for yourself (and your hair :p )

[PetuniaBlossom]

Thanks for your post, Audhumla. I wish it was required reading for anyone with anorexic tendencies. You are obviously bright, and generous and courageous for sharing your story. I'm so glad you've recovered and wish you many happy, healthy years of good eating and gorgeous hair!

[Audhumla]

Thanks for your post, Audhumla. I wish it was required reading for anyone with anorexic tendencies. You are obviously bright, and generous and courageous for sharing your story. I'm so glad you've recovered and wish you many happy, healthy years of good eating and gorgeous hair!
Thanks :)
Just tryin' to spread the learnin'

[Nadine <3]

Well, I was homeless at a time in my life. I went days at a time without eating and my hair never fell out. When I did get to eat, my stomach couldn't handle it and most or all of it came back up...I think it just depends on the person. My hair was fine.

[jacqueline101]

I had a friend tell me in highschool when she was starving herself to lose weight that her doctor told her it would start taking a toll on her in 72 hrs she wouldn't drink water this was in the summer heat. I know this is different then just hair issues but since water is good for hair I'd say it would start to maybe not on the outside but on the inside feel the difference.

[biogirl87]

It depends on the general state of health of the individual to begin with, but heavy hair loss will happen as soon as the body starts to run out of nutrients and as such has no "left over" protein to build hair. It wouldn't take too long i think, maybe a few weeks of fasting if that. Fasting/extreme low calorie diets are a bad idea because they simply do not provide enoguh nutrients to kep the body going and since hair is essentially waste product, like nails, it's one of the first things to go, also because after a considerable amount of weight loss temperature regulation becomes a problem, so alternate mechanisms have to be activated, enter lanugo... And so on, I could write on for hours... XDNoRush, one part of your post really struck me and I felt I needed to comment on that. The part of your post I felt I needed to comment on is the part that I bolded. While I agree that extreme low calorie diets done with little knowledge or information are a bad idea in general, fasting generally tends to not be a bad idea if it is done correctly (in a Biblical way). When done in a Biblical way, following Biblical principles, letting God guide you in fasting, fasting can be beneficial for you. I know several people for whom regular times of fasting have been beneficial. One of them has actually been able to gain weight after fasting and this person does both short-term fasting and up to twenty-one fasting on a regular basis. I should also mention that fasting is not starvation. When people have times of proper, regular fasting, the times that they don't spend preparing and eating meals are the times they spend in prayer with God. As far as I know, this is the only proper way of true fasting and to my knowledge all other fasting (as some people may call it) is just people depriving themselves of certain foods. I would agree that depriving your body (using your in a general sense here, not meaning your body specifically) of certain foods for long periods of time is a bad idea.

[kaydana]

NoRush, one part of your post really struck me and I felt I needed to comment on that. The part of your post I felt I needed to comment on is the part that I bolded. While I agree that extreme low calorie diets done with little knowledge or information are a bad idea in general, fasting generally tends to not be a bad idea if it is done correctly (in a Biblical way). When done in a Biblical way, following Biblical principles, letting God guide you in fasting, fasting can be beneficial for you. I know several people for whom regular times of fasting have been beneficial. One of them has actually been able to gain weight after fasting and this person does both short-term fasting and up to twenty-one fasting on a regular basis. I should also mention that fasting is not starvation. When people have times of proper, regular fasting, the times that they don't spend preparing and eating meals are the times they spend in prayer with God. As far as I know, this is the only proper way of true fasting and to my knowledge all other fasting (as some people may call it) is just people depriving themselves of certain foods. I would agree that depriving your body (using your in a general sense here, not meaning your body specifically) of certain foods for long periods of time is a bad idea.

Religion does not have exclusive rights to the word "fasting". There is no "as some people may call it", if people are abstaining from food for a period of time, no matter what the reason, they are fasting. You can fast for religious reasons, political reasons, medical reasons, health, weight loss... religion is only one of many reasons for fasting

[Audhumla]

Religion does not have exclusive rights to the word "fasting". There is no "as some people may call it", if people are abstaining from food for a period of time, no matter what the reason, they are fasting. You can fast for religious reasons, political reasons, medical reasons, health, weight loss... religion is only one of many reasons for fasting
Agreed. I'm sure the word and idea of fasting has a specific meaning and set of rules in a variety of different religions but it isn't a religious term that other people are somehow misappropriating. In a general sense it just means restricting food intake.

[Andeee]

I agree with Audhumla and kaydana. Ayurveda (much older than the Judeo-Christian bible) has different fasts for spiritual and physical reasons (often interconnected) depending on your constitutional type.

[BVU]

Thought I would give my input as someone who has to deal with this
Every once in a while (about 3-4 times a year) my jaw will lock for about 2-4 weeks, I can't eat during this period until doctors decide about 2-3 weeks in to give me an NG tube so I don't die. There was only one instance where I saw severe hairloss, when I was about 11 I didnt have food for almost 4 weeks and was living off of milk and juice, even afterwards it was very hard to be able to eat my 'normal' amount (which isn't much) and had long term effects on my hair until I had my head shaved about 3 years ago, luckily you can't tell now. If youre planning to do long-term fastings, please don't, and please eat, it sucks to not be able to. I found this thread over a week ago but now that my jaw is locked I thought I would give my input with a refresher on how much it sucks.

[lapushka]

Oh my gosh, I don't think I could deal with being without food for half a day. Girl! This is serious.

[BVU]

Oh my gosh, I don't think I could deal with being without food for half a day. Girl! This is serious.

I think so too, but I'm 16 so the doctors dont really listen to me. American healthcare vibes for real haha. Luckily I can't feel hunger so that's nice I guess.

[SeppV]

Not eating is... difficult! But, I have heard that people who take long fasts stop feeling hunger after some days. I have never tried, but people I know have, for biblical reasons anyway. Some fasting is healthy, so long as it's in the right way. Anorexia and behaviour of that sort, is not healthy, and is a different thing from fasting all together. Anyway, this thread doesn't look so good to me. I wouldn't want to give anyone information about how long they could go without food and have their hair not suffer. I wouldn't even start to think along those lines and someone who has an eating disorder tendency might use this information in the wrong way, to find a way to eat less without eating so little that it would cause hair loss or something. I have struggled with wanting to control eating too much, and it is quite sneaky! Maybe I am exagerrating though, and it's fine to have a topic like this.

[vampyyri]

I feel like this whole thread should have a trigger warning on it, tbh. This is a pretty sensitive topic.

I did this for 8 months and lost 120lbs because my eating disorder goes both ways. I lost a lot of hair over that time, from iii thickness down to i/ii, so it takes some time and unhealthy weight loss to lose hair like that. My teeth suffered too, the enamel on my front teeth got so weak that it chipped off in spots, and had to have two root canals as well along with a whole mouth of fillings. Your body starts robbing nutrients from wherever it can, and the less necessary things like hair suffers for it.

Fasting will not do this, because it's not long term.

So basically what I'm saying is don't f around and find out. Short answer, given enough time, it will happen.

[Ylva]

I feel like this whole thread should have a trigger warning on it, tbh. This is a pretty sensitive topic.

I tried, but the forum is working SOOO slowly for me right now! Every load takes a minute or more. Ugh!

[lapushka]

It's up now, thanks, because I agree that it should have some kind of warning on it... messing around with this is... tough. You don't want to do it, and nobody does this willingly. It is a disorder for good reason. :( I was on the brink of one, and up to age 40 I had it mess with my head.

[vampyyri]

I tried, but the forum is working SOOO slowly for me right now! Every load takes a minute or more. Ugh!

Thank you, very much appreciated! :flowers:

[Ylva]

It's up now, thanks, because I agree that it should have some kind of warning on it... messing around with this is... tough. You don't want to do it, and nobody does this willingly. It is a disorder for good reason. :( I was on the brink of one, and up to age 40 I had it mess with my head.

I do do it willingly; fasting is a huge part of my lifestyle for its health benefits. It's a must for me to keep my body and mind healthy! But of course, I always recommend doing everything in a healthy way and slowly getting into things. And I most definitely do not live in a calorie deficit but rather switch between fasting and feasting.

[lapushka]

Oh that's not exactly what I meant by "not willingly". I mean the destitute starvation and the disorders. Not the intermittent fasting moments. Fasting is even in any type of religion. Never hurt anybody. I mean the disordered eating patterns, the not letting yourself have good food, ever. Picking it apart. And whatever else goes with a true disorder. Yeah, a little fasting never hurt!

[angel-baby]

My hair really suffered when I had anorexia. I don't like to describe the behaviors I was using because I don't want to give out "tips" even unintentionally, but I didn't fast all that often. Still, I wasn't getting enough nutrients and my hair (and skin and nails) were the first things to pay the price. I still remember the disgusting feeling of experiencing so much hair fall when I was in the shower that it felt like whole locks of hair were coming out all at once. Even after recovering (and relapsing...and recovering...and relapsing...and finally really recovering at the age of 30) it took a long time to gain back the hair thickness I used to have.
I feel so sad for my past self. I was using eating disorders as a prolonged and brutal form of self harm, and thankfully I didn't manage to do much of the lasting damage I was hoping to inflict.

[SeppV]

My hair really suffered when I had anorexia. I don't like to describe the behaviors I was using because I don't want to give out "tips" even unintentionally, but I didn't fast all that often. Still, I wasn't getting enough nutrients and my hair (and skin and nails) were the first things to pay the price. I still remember the disgusting feeling of experiencing so much hair fall when I was in the shower that it felt like whole locks of hair were coming out all at once. Even after recovering (and relapsing...and recovering...and relapsing...and finally really recovering at the age of 30) it took a long time to gain back the hair thickness I used to have.
I feel so sad for my past self. I was using eating disorders as a prolonged and brutal form of self harm, and thankfully I didn't manage to do much of the lasting damage I was hoping to inflict.

Sounds awful. You know, sometimes you want to go back and tell your past self to stop destroying your life. I have wished that was possible many times! At least it's very good that the effects were not lasting for you, but the fact that you got hair fallmaybe even before you expected it yourself just proves to show there is no way of "controling" how or how fast the body reacts when you strip nutrients and/or calories from it in an unhealthy way.

[Whirly Girly]

I’m not sure how long one can go without eating, before losing hair. I certainly wouldn’t recommend trying it, to find out!


Frankly, I would think anyone who is not eating for an extended period, would know that losing hair is the least of their worries.


I once went on a very calorie-reduced eating plan for 6 months. I was eating 3 meals a day but they were small meals, with measured and weighed portions…..doctor-approved. I did notice that I had more hair loss than normal….but shortly after I added a bit more protein, it stopped.


As a side note: I’m very leery about taking vitamins of any kind until I get a blood test to see if I’m actually deficient in that particular vitamin. So many people just pop vitamins like they’re candy….without even checking with their doctor….following bad advice from internet gurus. Vitamins can actually be harmful if you’re not deficient….many people don’t realize this.

[angel-baby]

Sounds awful. You know, sometimes you want to go back and tell your past self to stop destroying your life. I have wished that was possible many times! At least it's very good that the effects were not lasting for you, but the fact that you got hair fallmaybe even before you expected it yourself just proves to show there is no way of "controling" how or how fast the body reacts when you strip nutrients and/or calories from it in an unhealthy way.

So true!! Thank you for your empathy <3 I’m overly conscious of eating an extremely varied and nutritious diet now, as well as getting enough hydration, to hopefully counteract any longer lasting deficiencies I might not know about.

[zhivago]

it's me, i eat very irregularly, and my hair gets very dry and brittle. so i don;t recommend

[Arcticfoxes]

From personal experience: Around 3 months.

From scientific literature: Seemed to be somewhere in the region of 6 weeks, from memory of when I read trials.

And that's not just in eating disorders, that was just on a weight loss diet. The body hates calorie restriction. It seems you would have to only reduce by 100-200 calories from maintenance for your body not to freak out. (Source: Kahm Clinic Dieticians on youtube).

[Arcticfoxes]

Sorry for double posting, don't have permissions to edit yet.

Wanted to add that my hair loss started probably around 3 months into anorexia and then I lost about a third of my hair within less than a year. This was over a decade ago, but I remember it well.

You wouldn't lose as much on a restrictive but not disordered diet.

[embee]

Alas, Hair is not particularly important to the body, so letting it fall out is not a big issue when there's not enough nutrition to go around.

[lapushka]

And you guys, I was "only" on the brink of an eating disorder (full blown) and the thoughts, the controlling behaviors stayed with me, even though my eating was *great* and without issues, but the thoughts stayed with me until I was about 40. And this happened in my teens. Only in about the last decade I feel such relief all of a sudden not having those thoughts just about at all anymore, I mean not to the point it rules my life. My thoughts and prayers are with any and all going through this ATM. Be well, you guys.

[Arcticfoxes]

lapushka, I feel like disordered eating can be a bit like an addiction, where you go through times and maybe even years of being good, but there is still a risk of relapse unless other coping mechanisms are learned and utilised. I've never had as heavy a relapse as when I was anorexic as a teen, but there have been periods of more restriction, and every so often my brain goes "hey, do you wanna do that thing?" and I contemplate it for a bit before discarding the idea. Much like how I contemplate having a smoke or a drink before I decide not to now :)

[AuroreVesperale]

This question really worries me. I'm in a bad place right now, I don't feel like eating and I have to push myself to eat just a little. I don't want my hair to fall or to lose muscle. I've read your answers to try to eat but there's such a gap between what I want and what I do for real. Thank you for your posts.
I haven't noticed hair loss yet. It's kinda strange, there's less hair loss now that I eat less. I don't understand anything but I think this little hair loss is temporary before a more important one and I'm afraid. We'll see.

[Ada-banana]

This question really worries me. I'm in a bad place right now, I don't feel like eating and I have to push myself to eat just a little. I don't want my hair to fall or to lose muscle. I've read your answers to try to eat but there's such a gap between what I want and what I do for real. Thank you for your posts.
I haven't noticed hair loss yet. It's kinda strange, there's less hair loss now that I eat less. I don't understand anything but I think this little hair loss is temporary before a more important one and I'm afraid. We'll see.

I lost a lot of hair due to stress. All I can say is: if it will happen it will happen. More importantly is to take care of yourself and have selfcompassion, even with hair loss.
My hair thinned greatly but I had to go through this, you know?

I too have the habit of not eating when stressed, but eating is the way to heal also. Exercising and eating. I have to have someone to eat with me or else I start to eat ********. Maybe this can work for you too?

[AuroreVesperale]

I lost a lot of hair due to stress. All I can say is: if it will happen it will happen. More importantly is to take care of yourself and have selfcompassion, even with hair loss.
My hair thinned greatly but I had to go through this, you know?

I too have the habit of not eating when stressed, but eating is the way to heal also. Exercising and eating. I have to have someone to eat with me or else I start to eat ********. Maybe this can work for you too?

It's true stress also does great harm to the hair >< I hope you're better now !
Eating with someone helps when I feel the need to purge, otherwise it's just stressful. But i'll figure it out, thanks ^^

[embee]

This question really worries me. I'm in a bad place right now, I don't feel like eating and I have to push myself to eat just a little. I don't want my hair to fall or to lose muscle. I've read your answers to try to eat but there's such a gap between what I want and what I do for real. Thank you for your posts.
I haven't noticed hair loss yet. It's kinda strange, there's less hair loss now that I eat less. I don't understand anything but I think this little hair loss is temporary before a more important one and I'm afraid. We'll see.

I hope you are able to get to a place where every bite you eat has great nutritional value, so you don't have to eat *a lot* of food, because all you eat is good for you. That was one of the things I liked about "low carb".