As we age, we notice small, telltale visible signs of the aging process. Perhaps you noticed a few laugh lines or crow’s feet the last time you put on your makeup. Or maybe it takes a little longer to get up off the floor than it used to. For me, it was when I noticed my part becoming wider and realizing I was experiencing hair loss. This experience led me on a journey to learn more about how to combat hair thinning and loss and, ultimately, helped me realize there are all-natural methods I can use each day to support hair health. And one of these is to eat foods for hair growth.

That’s right—there are delicious foods right at our fingertips that we can consume on a daily basis to help regrow our hair and restore our confidence each and every time we look in the mirror. These foods are filled with nutrients known to not only fight hair loss but also support the regrowth of thicker, stronger, healthier hair than we’ve ever experienced before! Sound too good to be true? Keep reading to learn all about the best foods for hair growth, including how and why they work.

Why Hair Needs Nutrients 

Before we discuss what foods are best for hair growth, we must first review why nutrition is so important for hair health. While hair loss results from a variety of causes, some of which cannot be controlled, such as genetics, there are several causes that are within our control. From hormonal changes and stress to a lack of autophagy and dietary changes, there’s a common lifestyle element: nutrition. 

When your body experiences hormonal changes, such as during menopause or even postpartum, it utilizes your nutrient stores in new and different ways. The same holds true for when high periods of stress result in higher cortisol production and fatigued adrenal glands. And, finally, when you’re deficient in nutrients, your cells don’t have the energy they require to repair and restore themselves. This common thread is the very reason why topical hair loss treatments aren’t great long-term solutions. They simply don’t address the core cause of hair thinning and loss because they don’t apply the inside-out approach through ensuring proper nutrient sufficiency, which is what truly supports stronger, shinier, healthier hair growth.

So, why is nutrient sufficiency so critical for healthy hair? Your hair shaft is made up of specific proteins and nutrients known to keep your hair strong and healthy. Let’s take a closer look at the top nutrients your body needs in to help slow and even prevent hair thinning and loss while supporting hair growth. 

Best Nutrients for Hair Growth

Here are some of the best minerals and vitamins for hair growth.

1. Biotin

Biotin is a water-soluble essential vitamin that’s also sometimes referred to as vitamin B7 or even vitamin H. It’s critical to help your body break down other nutrients so that they are bioavailable, or available to be used immediately or stored for future use. As a result, having sufficient amounts of biotin is essential for everything from providing energy to supporting healthy hair and skin.

In fact, you may be surprised to learn that 95 percent of the structural protein in your hair is made up of a protein known as keratin—and biotin is responsible for stimulating your body’s production of keratin. This means that without enough biotin in ready and available in your body, your hair can’t maintain its health and becomes more prone to breakage and even loss. And research has shown that biotin not only helps to prevent hair loss but also promotes hair growth.

2. Omega-3 fatty acids

Research has shown that consuming omega-3 fatty acids supports virtually every process in your body, including the production of keratin in your hair. But that’s not all. Omega-3 fatty acids are also known to help cool inflammation, which can impact your hair follicles. Plus, because consuming healthy fats is known to support moisture, it may help to combat dry, brittle hair. Finally, the essential fats also stimulate blood flow to your scalp, which help to promote hair growth.

3. Vitamin A

Vitamin A is one of the vitamins for hair growth because it’s known to help regulate the stem cells in your hair follicles. This fat-soluble vitamin is also rich in antioxidants, which help to cool inflammation, support cellular growth, and even boost sebum production—the latter of which keeps your scalp healthy and moisturized. Just be aware that too much vitamin A can actually cause too much sebum production, which can actually have the opposite effect on your hair and cause hair loss. 

4. Zinc

Finally, it’s important to note that while keratin is largely dependent upon biotin, it also requires zinc for proper synthesis. If you’re deficient in zinc, keratin ceases to form. Plus, zinc is known to boost collagen production, which supports hair growth. Finally zinc is known to support balanced hormone levels, which is a common cause of stalled hair growth and even hair loss. Just keep in mind that zinc requires copper for optimal absorption, so look for a zinc formula that also contains copper.

Best Foods for Hair Growth 

Now that you know which nutrients best support healthy hair, let’s take a look at the best foods for hair growth. As you may suspect, the top-recommended food for hair growth and thickness centers around the nutrients biotin, omega 3-fatty acids, vitamin A, and zinc. But before we discuss what specific foods are good for hair growth, let’s take a moment to look at the overall diet that supports the growth of healthy, thick hair. 

Eating a nutritionally-rich diet is to support healthy hair by combatting hair thinning and even supporting healthy regrowth. So, what are the best foods for hair growth? Personally, I’ve found that eating a diet high in healthy fats, such as a high-fiber keto diet, is optimal for achieving luxuriously thick, beautiful hair—what I call “dream hair.”

Foods high in healthy fats include:

• Avocados
• Cheeses
• Coconut oil
• Chia seeds
• Flaxseed
• Grass-fed butter
• Olive oil
• Walnuts
• Whole milk and yogurt from grass-fed cows
• Wild-caught fish (such as salmon, trout, sardines, and herring)

Meanwhile, to make sure you’re taking advantage of all the best foods for healthy hair, you’ll want to eat plenty of vitamin A-, zinc-, and biotin-rich foods, all of which are known to be foods for hair growth. See the list below for some of my favorite nutrient-rich foods in each of these categories:

• Almonds
• Beef liver
• Beta-carotene filled vegetables (sweet potatoes, carrots, pumpkin, squash, tomatoes, etc.)
• Chickpeas
• Eggs
• Leafy green vegetables (spinach, broccoli, kale, etc.)
• Milk
• Oatmeal and whole wheat bread
• Pork
• Poultry
• Pumpkin seeds
• Red meat
• Shellfish
• Sunflower seeds
• Yogurt

4 Supplements for Hair Growth

While this is a comprehensive list of the top foods for hair growth, it’s important to note that even the best diets can have nutritional gaps—often due to outside lifestyle factors such as stress, medications, and more. That’s why when anyone asks me, “What is good for hair growth and thickness?” I include these top hair growth supplements in my recommendations.

1. Keratin

In addition to eating foods for hair growth, my No. 1 recommendation if you’re looking to support hair growth is to consider taking a high-quality keratin supplement. While you may be surprised to learn that there’s a special ingestible form of keratin that helps to shorten the length of the hair shedding cycle while also supporting a longer growth cycle. 

Why is it so effective? That’s because keratin makes up the foundation of your hair shaft, and replenishing this vital protein from the inside supports your overall keratin production. 

If you’re looking for a quality ingestible keratin supplement, make sure to check out OMI Hair Nutrition, which has been clinically shown to promote hair growth and strength while also fighting hair loss.

2. Biotin

In addition to biotin’s ability to stimulate keratin production, it’s also known to help transport oxygen to the cells in both your scalp and your actual hair follicles. In fact, scientific reviews revealed that numerous studies confirmed improvement in hair growth after supplementing with biotin. This is the major reason why OMI Hair Nutrition includes 3 mg of biotin. That way, one supplement provides both the building block (biotin) and the protein (keratin) known to support beautiful, healthy hair growth. 

3. Collagen

While many of the best foods for hair growth listed above are rich in the vitamins and nutrients known to support healthy hair, it’s important to note that consuming a diet rich in collagen has also been shown to support hair health. In fact, collagen not only supports the health of your scalp but also the very structure of your hair. But it can be a bit difficult or cumbersome for some to eat enough collagen to really see a benefit. That’s why incorporating a quality collagen supplement is something I recommend doing as part of your healthy beauty regimen.

4. Multivitamin

Finally, to address any additional nutritional gaps in your diet and especially ensure you’re getting enough vitamin C, I recommend that all women consider supplementing with a multivitamin such as OMI Skin Multivitamin Women's Complete, which features a gentle and non-acidic form of vitamin C. 

So, why is vitamin C so important for hair growth and overall health? Research has shown that vitamin C is a major building block for collagen. Plus, it’s a powerful antioxidant that fights toxins known to accelerate the aging process. 

In Summary:

• One of the best all-natural ways to combat hair thinning and loss is to eat foods for hair growth.
• While some of the causes of hair loss and thinning cannot be controlled, many are actually rooted in nutritional deficiencies.
• The best nutrients for hair growth include biotin, omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin A, and zinc. That’s why eating a diet rich in these vitamins can support healthy hair growth.
• Some of the top foods for hair growth include healthy fats such as avocados, oils, nuts and seeds, whole milk, and wild-caught fish.
• In addition to eating a high-fat diet, make sure to consume other foods rich in biotin, vitamin A, and zinc, and consider taking high-quality hair health-supporting supplements such as those containing keratin, biotin, and collagen, as well as a multivitamin with vitamin C.