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Everyone who has gastric bypass surgery is concerned about hair loss. We want to lose as little as possible and see regrowth right away.
Your hair needs nourishment. The reason it begins to fall out is that your body is being forced to live on a drastically lower amount of calories.
It can be very traumatic the first time you see a pile of your hair in the shower drain, or when you realize you can run your fingers through your hair and come out with a handful.
But the good news is that while everyone seems to lose some hair, nobody goes completely bald. Most experience some thinning that often isn't even noticeable to anyone but themselves.
Fortunately, there are things you can do to both minimize the loss and maximize the speed and amount of regrowth.
Your hair needs nourishment. The reason it begins to fall out is that your body is being forced to live on a drastically lower amount of calories. All available nutrients are sent to the organs that need them most.
So getting enough protein is vital. And taking supplements like biotin certainly helps. But it helps a lot more if those nutrients actually arrive at the roots of your hair where it's needed.
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Scalp massage helps that happen in two ways: first, it stimulates blood flow to your scalp right away. This increased blood flow brings more nutrients to the roots of your hair. Second, it helps loosen tight scalp muscles. If your scalp muscles are tight due to stress or simple lack of being massaged, they will allow less blood to your hair throughout the day.
My massaging your tight scalp muscles, they relax and allow more blood, and therefore nutrients, to reach the roots of your hair 24 hours a day.
So how do you properly massage your scalp?
First of all, remember that you want to use finger tips not fingernails. You want to rub, not scratch. So make claws with both hands and place your fingertips at your temples. Make a clawing motion with your fingers (remember to keep the tips and not the nails in contact with your scalp). At the same time, begin making a circular motion with your wrists.
You want to press pretty hard - hard enough that your scalp begins to tingle, but not hard enough to make it hurt.
Work slowly from your temples to your crown, until your hands meet in the middle. Then move back to the edges of your hair, right beside where you started, and repeat. Keep working from the edges of your hair to the crown until your entire head has been massaged.
You can keep doing this for 5-10 minutes (or until your arms get tired). It's OK to go back over areas you've already massaged, but if your head starts to feel sore it's time to stop.
Massaging your scalp 5-10 minutes every day (perhaps in the evening when you're watching TV or just before bed) will help those extra nutrients you're consuming reach the roots of your hair.
After gastric bypass surgery, this can help minimize hair loss. And it will certainly help stimulate regrowth. Best of all, the hair that grows back will be healthier and stronger than it was before!
Lisa Packer - EzineArticles.com Expert Author Source
Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass
A type of gastric bypass procedure which combines restrictive and malabsorption techniques - meaning, it reduces the amount of food a patient can comfortably eat (restriction), and also reduces the amount of calories that can be digested in the small intestine (malabsorption). This combination of bariatric methods leads to greater weight loss and the roux-en-y procedure is seen as one of the best ways to treat clinically severe obesity.
One of the three nutrients that provides calories to the body. Protein is an essential nutrient that helps build many parts of the body, including muscle, bone, skin, and blood. Protein provides 4 calories per gram and is found in foods like meat, fish, poultry, eggs, dairy products, beans, nuts, and tofu.
Proteins are an essential human nutrient, obtained from both plant and animal foods. Though their greatest commercial use is in food products, they are also employed in adhesives, plastics, and fibres.
Re: Hair Loss After Gastric Bypass - Stimulate Regrowth With Scalp Massage
Hey Ms. J!
I agree with this. Ironically, I am a retired hairdresser. Massage does many things for our health.
It helps ease tension. It relaxes the scalp which will also help promote better blood flow to the scalp.
It allows us to take some time for ourselves. (Something we usually do not do for ourselves...)
Scalp Massage will stimulate and enable blood flow to be directed to the hair follicles that are stimulated. Blood is the nourishment that our follicles need to produce healthy hair. The more food (blood) that is available, the more the follicle will grow.
Ironically, exercising and sweating will help achieve some of the same benefits.
Consider this, because it is proven... as our seasons warm up or we take a trip to a warmer climate than we are use to, our hair will grow like crazy. Sunshine and warm (as it is for your garden) weather is a catalyst for hair growth. It promotes more blood flow to the head-- think of it as a type of "fertilizer".
Sweating and exercise are similar in that they flush your outler layers of skin with warmth and blood.
If you have ever used a medicated shampoo, you will remember that it is cooling and tingling to the scalp... these help promote more blood flow which help the scalp heal itself.
Re: Hair Loss After Gastric Bypass - Stimulate Regrowth With Scalp Massage
I actually used Denorex years and years ago - I do remember there was a tingling sensation. Fortunately for me I haven't had any hair issues as post-op. But that's excellent advice for those who have. Interesting analogy as blood-flow to the scalp as a type of fertilizer. My exercise physiologist actually recommend to me that I use exercise as a type physical medicine - kinda same difference - in my mind anyway
Jacquii.
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Re: Hair Loss After Gastric Bypass - Stimulate Regrowth With Scalp Massage
Another thought occurred to me today that was long lost in the depths of my mind.
If you know of or have experienced Bulimia, you may know that one of the things they prescribe for you to take is Niacin. Niacin gives the body a flushed feeling which brings the blood rushing to the outer extremities and skin. Why?
When we put our bodies into stress or starvation (or what our bodies think are stress or starvation), it will pull the bulk of the blood flow that our body produces and it keeps it working harder around our important organs (heart, lungs, etc.) It is the body's way of self preservation. In that process our hair becomes dull, our skin doesn't look as well as it should, we may even seem to have more dental issues.
Niacin should be included in your daily multiple. Taking an additional supplement of Niacin by itself may be something worth looking into. The following information is from DoctorYourself.com - Niacin Saturation as you will see, it has many benefits.
Niacin is vitamin B-3, one of the water soluble B-complex vitamins. One of niacin's unique properties is its ability to help you naturally relax and get to sleep more rapidly at night. And it is well established that niacin helps reduce harmful cholesterol levels in the bloodstream. Abram Hoffer, M.D., Ph.D. explains: "Niacin is one of the best substances for elevating high density lipoprotein cholesterol (the "good cholesterol) and so decreases the ratio of the total cholesterol over high density cholesterol."
Another niacin feature is its ability to greatly reduce anxiety and depression. Yet another feature of niacin is that it dilates blood vessels and creates a sensation of warmth, called a "niacin flush." This is often accompanied with a blushing of the skin.
Hope this helps!
Cholesterol
A fat-like substance that is made by the body and is found naturally in animal foods such as meat, fish, poultry, eggs, and dairy products. Foods high in cholesterol include organ meats, egg yolks, and dairy fats. Cholesterol is needed to carry out functions such as hormone and vitamin production.
When cholesterol levels are too high, some of the cholesterol is deposited on the walls of the blood vessels. Over time, the deposits can build up and cause the blood vessels to narrow and blood flow to decrease.
Total blood cholesterol levels above 240 mg/dl are considered high. Levels between 200 and 239 mg/dl are considered borderline high. Levels under 200 mg/dl are considered desirable.
Re: Hair Loss After Gastric Bypass - Stimulate Regrowth With Scalp Massage
hmmmm - I've heard of the vitamin B-12 - but not B-3 --- I'm looking at my vitamins which I get from my surgeon's office - they call it the perfect pak and I see Niacinamide 75mg which is 375% of the daily recommended LOL - so I guess I'm good.
Interesting to know these things, as I'm all about making sure I'm following the regiment as recommended by my surgeon and the people rootin for my success
Please Note The Following Disclaimer: The Journey is a WLS Support Group offered as a free online courtesy. The content found here is for informational purposes only and should not be misconstrued as representing medical advice. Consult your doctor before starting any weightloss program or exercise regiment.
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