Hair Loss Part Of Celiac Disease?

[BeckyW]

My 15 year old daughter is 6 months gluten-free, dairy free, soy free and peanut free. She has improved some but the improvement has been very, very slow. She has been losing hair and it is not getting any better. Is this a common Celiac problem? She is not anemic and her thyroid is within normal ranges, according to blood work. I wonder if it can be something lacking in her diet or just the trauma of removing all the foods from her diet.

We have no doctors in the area that seem to be knowledgeable of Celiacs. We have learned more from this message board than anywhere! Thank you all for your help!

Does anyone have any ideas or suggestions they can offer us?

Thanks again!

[mamaw]

Hi & Welcome

Does your daughter's hair fall out all over or in balding patches??? Does she take multi mins & vits daily?

You can learn alot on this board-- a great group.... I do not have a support group close enough so this is my lifeline so to speak.

My final thought about you saying her thyroid levels were normal.We all don't fit in that mainstream idea.... many of us have found out the hard way .. It doesn't fit all. The classic fit did not work for me.

I would suggest thinking if there are any other symptons to go along with the hair loss, that would be a big issue for a teenager so there may be some that your not picking up on.

Can you find a excellent holistic doctor in your area?Alopecia comes to my mind.

mamaw

[mamaw]

oops I forgot, have you checked out her hair supplies for wheat & gluten??

[mn farm gal]

I am 34 and had lost alot of hair a short time prior to going gluten free. I also have thyroid problems, sever animia are just a couple of the major factors with me. Since starting the diet and some personal care product changes, I now have my hair growing back. Ya!!

[abigail]

hi, I dont know a lot about that, but my son didnt have much hair, and when we started the gluten free diet it started to grow much more .... (and his nails too).

Abi

[BeckyW]

Hello, thanks for your responses. My daughter is just "shedding" hair, more than usual. There are no bald patches or anything. Her hair is just thinner than it used to be. All her hair products are gluten and soy free.

I have considered the thyroid issues as I have them and had to have my thyroid removed. I guess its time to try a new doctor and get another opinion. We do go to a holistic naturalpath doctor who is working on her hormones and says she has anemic symptoms.

The more I am reading I am thinking it could be the lack of nutrients. She takes gluten free vitamins and supplements but it is so hard to get her to eat enough.

Thanks for all your help and support!

[Carriefaith]

About 3 years ago I was shedding more than normal hair when I was at my worst (around diagnosis). This improved after being on a gluten-free diet. However, I've noticed recently that I seem to be losing more hair than normal so I've started taking a multivitamin to see if that helps. My hair is also damaged and dry which is very unusual for me. If it doesn't seem to improve soon, I'm going to have to go see a doctor and maybe get my thyroid checked.

[4BUTTERFLIES]

I'm so glad I just read thi- after ignoring my symptoms for 2 years i was finally diagnosed in early november at age 31...and my hair has started to fall out more than normal...leaving me in tears many many days. my dr. says that it will come back..i am encouraged by all of your reponses..i am on a gluten, wheat, lactose free diet and so many symptoms have gone away- sometimes i still feel 8 months pregnant after i eat ANYTHING - still gassy and bloated but the severe pain from the spastic gallblader has gone away or at least been dormant since i started this diet...

the hair thing i struggle with everyday...but i will try to believe it is going to get better- we really have nowhere to go but up. I feel for all of you:)

[nikki8]

I just saw my doctor this week and I asked him about this very issue. He explained the process the hair shaft goes through (which I didn't really understand) and said that stress or a major change in diet can cause several hair shafts to shed at once. It's called Teleflovanuvia or something like that. I'm not explaining this well at all, but what he told me made me feel better. He said it's temporary and will replenish soon. So I felt better. I hope this helps.

[GFNC]

Before my diagnosis I, too, was losing a lot of hair. I would have to clean my brush every couple of days. It took a good year of being gluten free for my hair loss to return to normal. Now, it seems to be back to normal or just slightly more than normal, but very manageable. I believe sometimes it just takes the body a while to heal and get adjusted.