Many of you may or may not know that i'm a hairfanatic! Not in the usual sense, but a serious, can tell you the chemical breakdown and properties of hair and all type hairfanatic! I had the surgery on Thursday, December 20, 2012, and because I am such the hair fanatic I am, this was the one downfall that almost turned me away from this awesomeness I'm experiencing. With that said, I did tons of research on different supplements and their properties and have figured out how to keep our hair after WLS. I'm almost 5 months post op, have followed the below regimen to a tee, and have about 2 new inches of Hair growth. No thinning and no shedding at all.
Before I begin, please visit my hair blog thehairyfairy.blogspot.com for more in depth info, but here's the skinny on how hair works!
Understanding You Hair
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Hair grows about 1/2 in per month. In order to keep and maintain hair, one must do things: Increase growth rate and prevent shedding. The hair strands in your head are in 1 of 3 phases at all times: the Anagen phase is the growth phase. Most hairs are in this stage. Short hair usually results from short Anagen phases. The Catogen phase follows this stage and its sort of the transitioning phase that prepares the hair follicle to shrink and allows the hair strand to enter resting phase. Finally you have the telogen phase which is the resting stage where no hair grows at all and the old strand is pushed out and the new strand re-enters the anaogen phase. This is important because the tendency for hair to be in each of these stages influences how long the hair will actually be able to grow before it sheds and starts a new cycle. With pregnancy, many women experience hair growth because all hairs kick into the anagen phase and hair is growing continually for the duration of pregnancy. Protein is what keeps this cycle going. For WLS patients, many experience Hair loss because the reduction in Protein slows this cycle and much of the hair is kicked into the Telogen (shedding) phase. Fortunately for us, the solution awaits...
MSM
First and foremost everyone should add some form of MSM (METHYLSULFONYLMETHANE) into their diets after weight loss surgery. You can google it and find a wealth of health benefits, but in short it's a sulfur compound that our body needs but can only take in from food sources. Unfortunately because of the way food is processed much of the sulfur contained in it is broken down so we don't get the proper amount we need. MSM has been used to treat joint and arthritis pain, alergies, digestive disorders, etc. But it is also the miracle beauty drug as it helps to synthesize Proteins in the hair skin and nails. In hair particularly, it increases the anagen phase of hair allowing hair to grow longer and for a longer period of time. A truly great hair supplement will have some amount of msm in it for this reason. MSM helps us WLS patients to keep our hair strands in that growth phase and out of that dreaded shedding phase.
Collagen
Collagen is also another key item we should all have in our diets. collagen increases skin elasticity, smoothes away scars, and regenerates hair and nails. Collagen makes up 25% of the body's protein and is used particularly for hair loss because it supports the body's hair building protein. It is also one of those beauty drugs that targets many of the problems associated with WLS including hair loss, saggin skin, and protein loss. If your looking for something to help hair growth and keep your skin in snap-back mode, this product will not let you down!
Garlic Oil
I cannot stress enough, garlic oil is the key to our problem! Garlic oil is great for a healthy heart, but unknown to many, is the number one natural product people with alopecia use to combat hair loss. Garlic oil prevents shedding. GARLIC OIL PREVENTS SHEDDING. Every product I own contains garlic - Shampoo, conditioner, and hot oil treatments. The garlic extracts increases the blood flow in the scalp, thus allowing more oxygen to circulate the proper amount of nutrients to the hair follicle. Msm and garlic working together allows for hair to grow longer and stronger without shedding. Use garlic oil as a supplement and topically. There are great odorless garlic supplements and I take about 4000mcg daily and you would never know it! I also give myself garlic hot oil treatments monthly, and wash my hair bi weekly with garlic shampoo and conditioner.
Biotin
For obvious reasons, Biotin should be included. Everyone has a wealth of information on Biotin, but why many people fail using Biotin is because they use it as a standalone. Biotin works well with other supplements as far as growing the hair, but alone, they do little to keep hair from coming out. Hair will grow, but the strands due to shed will shed. Every hair supplement you buy if its worth anything will contain Biotin and MSM. But they are best used as stand alone products together because the dosage of each is so much higher.
I'm not the expert.. don't get me wrong. This is my approach to combatting hair loss during this incredible journey, and thus far, it has worked! If anyone is interested in specific brands for the items above or regimens, PM me. I'd be happy to help. I love hair and would do anything to help my fellow WLS friends keep theirs too!
alene
WLS in July - woo hoo
sorry to rain on your parade
but........
now is the time to try and follow/get used to rules that you will have post op - for the rest of your life
you have WLS in about 6 weeks
drink alot of Water (64 oz is required)
NEVER drink with your meals(people have been shot for less!!! )
stop drinking 15-30 minutes before you eat
don't drink for about 45 minutes after you eat
IMO the Water "situation" rules are the hardest but most important rules to follow
i'm gonna give you a case of "do as I say, not as I do"
about 3 weeks prior to my WLS, my feelings of eating to my hearts contents were similar to yours
eat like there is no tomorrow
I GAINED 10 lbs
many people do eat "alittle crazy" prior to WLS - because they figure they will never eat certain foods again
you will be able to eat anything though PO at a later time
if you gain weight pre-surgery, thats all the more weight you have to take off after you have been sleeved
couple days before surgery - 'maybe" its ok if you "splurge" alittle (if you don't have a pre-diet to follow per NUT/surgeon)
go ahead and have those couple of sweets or something or that nice dinner - then stop!!!!!
hope you enjoyed it!!!!
you will eat again
the WLS is not the end of your life - its the beginning of your new healthier, happier, longer life!!!!
i know you will be successful before and after surgery
i can see the determination combined with your smile in your lovely face
see you on the other side
take care
happy WLS
speedy recovery
You have come too far to give up. Dont let others talk you out of it..Be strong. Say a prayer for peace, and Put God in Control..then relax and let the best thing happen for the rest of your life!!
Well it's not TOO terrible! It's not shopping til I drop. Too poor for that. It's not smoking : been there and done that as a teen. It's not drugs: I got surgery to make me healthier.
It's baking. And cooking. I LOoooove looking through cook books, especially the old church type or "my grandmas favorite recipes" types and finding yummy goodness to bake. The whole process from reading, imagining the steps, buying the ingredients, laying everything out, Mixing it all up, the smells floating through the house, My children and husband giving me a rating on a five star scale, Smiles on happy chocolate covered faces, cleanup, all of it.
Only bad part is, I've been making mostly junk and I'm working so hard to keep it out of my body and now km feeding it to Mu family more than ever before. I just have so Let's extra time now as a stay at home mom who's not eating all day, so I want to do this entire process about four times a week.mostly sweets, I don't like cooking as much as baking. I have 6 picky-ish eaters and a hubby who will eat anything so I like I stick to basic stuff for them really.
Note to self: find healthier things to mix in the kitchen.
i am trying to navigate this page! I have made my decision to have VSG instead of RNY! I am in my 5th month of Dr Monitored weight loss, had my Psych Exam, and Nutrition Classes because my Insurance demanded..So..I supose I will have surgery hopefully in June...I am enjoing reading these posts, its all the little things I wonder about...
I have lost about 20 lbs .and even started having Sunday be an ALL liquid day..to prepare for the 2 wk before surgery pre-op diet...getting excited/nervous...but not giving up!!
LiveWire got a reaction from gibson_girl in Hola from TJ 3 days post op with Dr Kelly pics
LiveWire got a reaction from wynk11 in Mom not handling this well
LiveWire got a reaction from kvlasy in May 2013 Sleevers!