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At Healthfully, we strive to deliver objective content that is accurate and up-to-date. Our team periodically reviews articles in order to ensure content quality. The sources cited below consist of evidence from peer-reviewed journals, prominent medical organizations, academic associations, and government data.
- The Vitamins and Nutrition Center: Vitamins for Your Hair
- National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements: Vitamin E
The information contained on this site is for informational purposes only, and should not be used as a substitute for the advice of a professional health care provider. Please check with the appropriate physician regarding health questions and concerns. Although we strive to deliver accurate and up-to-date information, no guarantee to that effect is made.
Benefits of Vitamin E on Hair & Nail Growth
Hair growth occurs from the inside out and relies heavily upon the health of the body as it uses the body's energy, vitamin and mineral supplies to produce approximately 0.35 millimeters of growth per day. Inadequate amounts of certain vitamins and minerals may lead to sparse and slow hair growth, according to The Vitamins and Nutrition Center 2. Adequate amounts of the needed vitamins and minerals, on the other hand, result in strong and healthy nail and hair growth 2.
Increased Blood Circulation
Oral vitamin E increases blood circulation, thus improving the amount of blood flowing through the hair and nail-growth structures. Your nails and your hair are both created from dead keratin cells. The dead cells accumulate as a result of activity in the hair and nail-growth structures. The activity, consisting of cell formation and division, would not be possible without an adequate blood supply.
An increase in blood supply increases growth efficiency and may lead to faster, stronger and healthier hair growth.
- Oral vitamin E increases blood circulation, thus improving the amount of blood flowing through the hair and nail-growth structures.
Hair Loss Prevention
What Vitamins Help Your Fingernails Grow?
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According to The Vitamins and Nutrition Center, any nutritional deficiency can play a contributing role in hair loss and thinning 2. Blood circulation naturally becomes more sluggish with age. To combat the effects that this slow down has on hair and nail growth, certain oral vitamin supplements, including vitamin E, can increase the amount of vitamins available in the blood stream 2. This allows the growing components of hair and nails to absorb more of what they need.
Correct Nail-Growth Problems
Vitamin E, in a topical liquid form, can help correct certain nail-growth disorders and problems, including yellow nail. In this condition, nail growth takes on a yellowish, thickened appearance. In addition to topical treatment, oral vitamin E supplements have also been effective at treating this condition. Yellowed, thickened nails can also be a symptom of a fungal infection. Consult your doctor before self-treating this condition.
- Vitamin E, in a topical liquid form, can help correct certain nail-growth disorders and problems, including yellow nail.
- Yellowed, thickened nails can also be a symptom of a fungal infection.
Growth Protection
Damaged Hair Cuticles
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As an antioxidant, vitamin E destroys free radicals that damage hair and nails. Ultimately, this damage contributes to an aged appearance. By protecting the hair and nails from damage, both topically and through oral supplementation, vitamin E protects healthy growth.
Vitamin E Intakes
The recommended dietary allowance of vitamin E is 15 milligrams, or 22.4 international units according to the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements 5. Food sources of vitamin E include wheat germ oil, nuts and seeds, corn oil and boiled spinach. Excess vitamin E intake may cause internal bleeding and increase your risk of stroke. For this reason, the Food and Nutrition Board has set the upper tolerable safe intake limit at 800 milligrams or 1,200 international units 2.
Related Articles
References
- Disabled World: Vitamins for Hair and Nails
- The Vitamins and Nutrition Center: Vitamins for Your Hair
- DermNet NZ: Yellow Nail Syndrome
- Milady's Standard Textbook of Cosmetology; Milady, et al.
- National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements: Vitamin E
- Phillips TG, Slomiany WP, Allison R. Hair Loss: Common Causes and Treatment. Am Fam Physician. 2017;96(6):371-378.
- Watras MM, Patel JP, Arya R. Traditional anticoagulants and hair loss: a role for direct oral anticoagulants? A review of the literature. Drugs Real World Outcomes. 2016;3(1):1-6. doi:10.1007/s40801-015-0056-z
- Urysiak-czubatka I, Kmieć ML, Broniarczyk-dyła G. Assessment of the usefulness of dihydrotestosterone in the diagnostics of patients with androgenetic alopecia. Postepy Dermatol Alergol. 2014;31(4):207-15. doi:10.5114/pdia.2014.40925
- Vincent M, Yogiraj K. A descriptive study of alopecia patterns and their relation to thyroid dysfunction. Int J Trichology. 2013;5(1):57-60. doi:10.4103/0974-7753.114701
- Peters EMJ, Müller Y, Snaga W, et al. Hair and stress: A pilot study of hair and cytokine balance alteration in healthy young women under major exam stress. PLoS ONE. 2017;12(4):e0175904. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0175904
- Pratt CH, King LE, Messenger AG, Christiano AM, Sundberg JP. Alopecia areata. Nat Rev Dis Primers. 2017;3:17011. doi:10.1038/nrdp.2017.11
- American Academy of Dermatology. Alopecia Areata: Overview.
Writer Bio
Kathy Mayse began her writing career as a reporter for "The Jackson-County Times Journal" in 2001. She was promoted to assistant editor shortly after. Since 2005, she has been busy as a successful freelancer specializing in Web content. Mayse is a licensed cosmetologist with more than 17 years of salon experience; most of her writing projects reflect this experience.