Whether you have perfect hair and want to maintain it, or your hair dries out in the fall and frizzes in the summer, we can all add hair healthy foods to our diet. And having hair all starts with choosing the right foods.
Some foods are better for hair growth and health than others. For example if your diet is low in Vitamin D you may have a worse case of AGA or TE hair loss. Eating more foods with Vitamin D, getting the right amount of sunlight or taking a supplement may help.
Other foods that are good for hair growth contain biotin, fatty acids, riboflavin, niacin, iron, and vitamins like B12, C and A.
Citrus Fruits
Oranges and other citrus fruits may help with hair growth because they are rich in riboflavin, niacin, vitamin C and other hair healthy B vitamins (source). And incorporating citrus fruits into your diet is easy.
If you don’t want to have a glass of orange juice in the morning, try squeezing some fresh lemon juice to your water with each meal. Or use grapefruit or lime to add flavor to soda water as an alternative to a sweet soda.
Strawberries
Strawberries are rich in Vitamin C which is vital in the production of collagen which is used to make keratin, or your hair. But that’s not the only thing strawberries can do for you. These berries are packed with antioxidants which may also lower your risk of cardiovascular disease according to this study by the NIH.
An easy way to add strawberries to your diet is by slicing them and placing them on a salad. If you have a bagel with cream cheese in the morning, place slices on top to sweeten it. And strawberries are a perfect topping for ice cream, cakes and flans after dinner.
Salmon
Even if you don’t love the slimy fishy taste, Salmon and other foods that are high in Omega-3 have been known to increase hair density and help to reduce hair loss (source). These foods for hair growth go “swimmingly” into your diet.
For breakfast try adding a few slices of lox to your meal. You can do Salmon sushi for lunch, and a nice lemon and dill salmon dinner could be a healthy alternative to fast food. Not to mention lemons are citrus fruits for an added dosage of vitamin C.
Eggs
Eggs are a great food for hair growth as they contain vitamin a, zinc, riboflavin, vitamin b-12 and many other nutrients that promote hair growth (source). The easiest way to get these vitamins into your hair is by turning the egg yolk, or all the liquids into a hair mask. But that’s also gross!
Instead, slice an egg and incorporate it onto a sandwich at lunch. Or add a hardboiled egg to your breakfast or for an afternoon snack. At dinner, make egg drop soup or add a hardboiled egg to a bowl of ramen.
Bananas
These sweet snacks are one of the most affordable fruits, and they contain biotin which is used to help prevent hair loss. As a bonus, biotin can also work to help alleviate brittle nail problems too. (source) And it is easy to incorporate bananas into your everyday eating habits.
You can add a banana to a smoothie for breakfast each morning. Cut it up with some oats and have a healthy snack while you’re at class or work. Bananas also taste great on avocado toast, and guess what, avocado is another hair growth food!
Spinach
Like it or not, spinach is a super food and known to potentially help with getting healthy hair due to the high concentrations of vitamins A and C (source). But you don’t have to eat the leaves.
Try blending spinach into a smoothie or combining it into an omelet in the morning with eggs. As a bonus you’ll be checking two of these hair growth foods off your list for the day. And don’t forget an easy to make and tasty sauteed garlic spinach as a side dish at dinner.
Avocado
Avocados contain vitamin C, niacin and a ton of other healthy hair vitamins and minerals (source). Outside of being a super food, they taste great with other foods that are good for hair growth and hair health.
You can mix avocados with eggs for a delicious egg salad. Add lime juice to your guacamole. And don’t forget tossing avocado slices in with your spinach salad or into a smoothie. And you haven’t lived until you’ve tried avocado brownies.
Beans
Beans are rich in iron and in addition to being good for your hair, the iron in the beans may also help with brittle nails (source). And there are tons of health benefits to beans since they are high in fiber and proteins making them a smart decision to add to your diet.
Refried beans and eggs make a perfect breakfast and once again check two healthy hair foods off your list. A bowl of chili is perfect for a fall or winter lunch, or a bean based burger or soup. And for dinner, baked beans make a classic side dish.
Hamburger Meat
Believe it or not, a 3oz hamburger patty is one of the top sources of biotin according to the NIH (source). It’s easy to make a burger for lunch or dinner, and it can be topped with eggs, avocado, spinach and multiple other foods from this list. But burgers can get boring.
Try making a nice meat marinara sauce for dinner. You can also go back to the kids’ classic sloppy joes. Burger meat can be seasoned with chorizo spice to make a delicious egg scramble in the morning, and it is a perfect way to make a hearty pot pie for dinner. Want to learn more, here's our dedicated post to how hamburgers are good for your hair.
You may be surprised when you learn burgers and bananas can be foods for hair growth. And that is why it is important to look at the ingredients and combinations. Knowing what is in your food helps you make healthy hair choices without having to modify your eating habits much.
