Do low levels of ferritin (iron storage protein) cause hair loss?

If you're experiencing a lot of hair loss despite changing your diet, it's time to see your doctor for a diagnosis. Low ferritin levels can be the main cause of hair loss. To remedy this condition, you should consult your doctor before taking any supplements or making lifestyle changes.

Hair loss has many different causes and it tends to affect both children and adults of all genders. One of the main reasons why you lose a lot of hair is an iron deficiency. Without enough iron, your body won't be able to produce enough hemoglobin in your blood. These hemoglobin carry oxygen, which helps repair damage to cells in the body, including cells that stimulate hair growth.
Iron-deficiency hair loss can resemble traditional male and female hair loss. If you experience hair loss, you will notice more hair loss than usual when brushing or washing your hair. In severe cases, you may see bald spots appear on the scalp.

The term “Ferritin” may be quite new to many people. In fact, Ferritin is a protein in the blood, capable of storing iron for the body. If you have low ferritin levels, it means you are iron deficient and prone to hair loss.
Some Ferritin is stored in the hair follicles. Many people believe that when you lose a lot of hair, you will lose a large amount of this iron-storing protein. However, the actual loss of ferritin can happen before you have problems with hair loss.
Any time your body is iron deficient, it "borrows" ferritin from your hair follicles and other less important sources of iron when sick. Therefore, you need to get enough iron from foods or iron supplements to help you maintain healthy levels of Ferritin in your body.
In addition to iron deficiency, low ferritin levels can also be caused by the following reasons:
The body loses a lot of blood Celiac disease Women during menstruation Adopt a vegetarian or vegan diet Gluten intolerant body Hypothyroidism Women in pregnancy

Low ferritin levels interfere with your body's role in the production of red blood cells. These blood cells play an extremely important role in transporting oxygen everywhere in the body. Without enough red blood cells, your body's major organs and systems won't work as efficiently as they should.
Symptoms of ferritin (iron storage protein) deficiency will be similar to those of iron deficiency. The most typical sign of low ferritin levels is excessive hair loss. In addition, it can also be accompanied by a number of other common symptoms, including:
Extreme fatigue Dizziness Shortness of breath A pounding sensation in the ears Headache Restlessness in the legs Restlessness of the fingernails Difficulty concentrating

Excessive hair loss is often one of the first signs of hypothyroidism - a condition that causes your body to not produce enough thyroid hormone as it should. In addition, a deficiency of thyroid hormone can also lead to signs such as weight gain, lethargy, dry skin and poor cold tolerance.
In some cases of hypothyroidism, excessive hair loss may not be directly related to a lack of thyroid hormone, but rather to an iron deficiency. This causes low ferritin levels and hypothyroidism to occur at the same time.
When there is not enough ferritin (iron storage protein) in the body, your thyroid will have difficulty producing enough thyroid hormone. If you notice symptoms of hypothyroidism, you should see your doctor and have your ferritin levels checked.

The best way to treat excessive hair loss related to low ferritin levels is to increase your iron intake. If you don't eat enough iron-rich foods, such as beef and animal liver, you may want to consider taking an iron supplement with your doctor's prescription.
Although animal meat contains much higher levels of iron than plant-based foods, you can still ensure you get enough iron for your body through eating. whole grains, legumes and seeds. In addition, you should also add some foods rich in iron and vitamin C at the same time to enhance the body's ability to absorb iron.
In addition, your doctor may recommend that you perform blood tests or apply a diet if he suspects that your body has a food sensitivity. Gluten intolerance is considered one of the main causes of poor iron absorption. This also leads to a decrease in the ferritin stores and causes a lot of hair loss.
Vitamin D deficiency is also another factor leading to hair loss. Therefore, you need to try to get an additional source of vitamin D through sunbathing or incorporating other vitamin D-rich foods into your diet, such as cheese, fatty fish and eggs.
And yet, zinc deficiency is also common in people with a lot of hair loss. To prevent hair loss caused by zinc deficiency, you should add more zinc-rich food sources to your diet, including dairy products, meat, and whole grains.

For hair loss related to low ferritin (iron storage protein), your hair should be able to regrow once the underlying iron deficiency is effectively treated. However, it will take up to several months for your hair to regrow like before, so patience is an important key in determining the success rate of hair loss recovery.
Also, you should avoid using any hair loss treatments unless directed by your doctor. For severe hair loss, your doctor may prescribe minoxidil (Rogaine), a medication that helps treat hair loss.
Some studies also show that people with excessive hair loss may have a large amount of iron deficiency. Therefore, to stimulate hair regrowth, you should first overcome iron deficiency to help the body produce more ferritin stores.

While iron supplementation is an important thing for your overall health, too much iron can lead to the opposite effect. The normal ferritin ratio is 20-200 nanograms per milliliter for women, and 20 to 500 nanograms per milliliter, according to healthcare professionals.
Even if your Ferritin levels are low, taking too much iron can cause health problems, including:
Stomach upset Irritability Black or bloody stools Increased heart rate Vomiting Decreased blood pressure Even Iron overdose can even lead to liver failure and death. Therefore, you should not use any iron supplements to increase ferritin levels without your doctor's prescription.
A blood test is the only way for your doctor to diagnose low Ferritin levels. Therefore, in order to prevent and detect hair loss due to decreased ferritin, you should see a doctor as soon as possible.
Blood test is one of the tests performed in the General Health Checkup packages at Vinmec International General Hospital in addition to other tests. The package of health screening and general health examination of Vinmec International General Hospital is completely different from performing a regular health check. The program is scientifically and practically designed to approach your entire health condition, and at the same time, early detection, timely intervention and treatment in order to minimize the complications of diabetes. Critical illnesses threaten your life.

References: healthline.com, webmd.com