Stimulating Hair Growth by Taking Pregnancy Prenatal Vitamins

Often when women get pregnant and start taking pregnancy prenatal vitamins, they swear that the prenatal vitamins are somehow stimulating hair growth. Is it possible? Can a simple multivitamin supplement cause hair growth? Could it be a natural hair loss treatment for women? Taking vitamins for women's hair loss would be a nice solution.

Well, studies have been done to test if taking vitamins for hair loss, particularly prenatal vitamins, stimulates hair growth or if the vitamins cause hair to be thicker. The results were inconclusive and contradictory. So, the verdict is still out as to whether taking prenatal vitamins for hair loss actually works.

Some theories as to why pregnancy prenatal vitamins may stimulate hair growth is because of the composition of the vitamins themselves. Examples:

All pregnancy prenatal vitamins contain much higher doses of folic acid than normal multivitamin supplements. This is to protect against certain birth defects. Studies have shown that folic acid is needed for proper hair growth and thick, healthy hair. In fact, folic acid helps to promote hair growth naturally.

Many prenatal vitamins also contain iron. They have higher iron content than regular vitamin supplements. Iron is crucial to healthy hair. Taking iron would definitely stimulate hair growth if you don't have enough in your diet already.

Several prenatal vitamin formulas taken during pregnancy contain magnesium. Magnesium is known to be good for stimulating hair growth and helping to keep hair healthy and shiny.

So, can prenatal vitamins help stimulate hair growth and make hair more healthy? The answer is maybe, maybe not. If you are  unhealthy or your diet lacks the vitamins and minerals that your hair needs to stay healthy, then prenatal vitamins may help you have healthy, thicker hair by stimulating hair growth.

However, if you're healthy, eat a healthy diet, and take a multivitamin and mineral supplement already, taking prenatal vitamins to help with hair loss may not be effective.

If you decide to take prenatal vitamins to stimulate hair growth, be aware of a few health precautions. The extra iron in prenatal vitamins is cause for concern if you're not pregnant. Too much iron can be toxic, even fatal.

If you suspect that low iron levels may be the cause of your hair loss, seek a doctor to have your blood iron levels tested. If you decide to try taking prenatal vitamins for hair loss, take a formula that doesn't contain added iron.

Also, don't take prescription prenatal vitamins unless you're pregnant and they have been specifically prescribed for you. OTC prenatal vitamins are sufficient to stimulate hair growth and healthy hair.