Hair Vitamins: What Are They, and Do They Work

Many cultures around the world view hair as a sign of beauty and health.
Unfortunately, for many people growing healthy hair is a challenge. This has led to an increase in hair supplements on the market.
While hair vitamins and supplements are often advertised as the secret to healthy hair, skeptics argue that they lack scientific evidence to support their use. This may leave you wondering what hair vitamins are and whether they work.

This article discusses hair vitamins, their effectiveness, and whether they’re worth buying.
What are hair vitamins?
Hair vitamins are supplements with purported benefits for hair health. For example, popular brands claim that their products can improve hair growth, shine, thickness, and strength.
A multitude of products is on the market, many of which contain similar ingredients, including biotin, vitamins C and E, collagen, folic acid, and omega-3 fatty acids. They may also contain additions like ashwagandha and ginseng, which some people believe can strengthen hair.

Though widely popular, these products are mostly endorsed by paid celebrities and influencers and rarely by health professionals.
Which nutrients aid hair health?
Hair health is determined by a multitude of factors, such as age, genetics, hormone levels, medical conditions, diet, stress, and hair treatments. This makes it difficult to determine the root cause or causes of any issues (1Trusted Source, 2Trusted Source).

Signs of unhealthy hair include noticeable hair loss or thinning, lack of growth, dryness, weakness, brittleness, and dullness (3Trusted Source).
In many cases, improving your diet and lifestyle can support healthy hair. In particular, getting enough of these key nutrients may improve the health and integrity of your hair (4Trusted Source):
• protein
• vitamin A
• vitamin B12
• vitamin C
• vitamin D
• vitamin E
• biotin (B7)
• iron
• selenium
• zinc

In particular, protein is essential for hair growth, as it’s the main building block of hair. Additionally, deficiencies in nutrients like B vitamins, iron, and vitamins C and D have been linked to hair loss, poor hair growth, and weak hair (4Trusted Source, 5Trusted Source, 6Trusted Source).
Increased hair loss and weak, unhealthy hair can also be caused by diets that are extremely low in calories and fat, such as certain weight loss diets, as well as diets that remove entire food groups, such as vegan eating patterns (5Trusted Source, 7Trusted Source, 8Trusted Source, 9Trusted Source).
If you suspect any underlying causes of hair loss or a lack of growth, it’s important to work with a dermatologist or other healthcare professional to identify them.

Effectiveness
Despite the widespread use of hair vitamins and supplements, there’s little clinical data to support their ability to treat hair conditions.
While certain nutrients have been linked to better hair health, most studies have shown that hair supplements are only effective in people whose hair issues are caused by an existing nutrient deficiency (10Trusted Source).
That said, deficiencies in the nutrients commonly added to hair vitamins — such as biotin and vitamin C — are rare. Plus, taking these nutrients when you don’t have a deficiency likely won’t improve hair growth or appearance (13Trusted Source, 14Trusted Source).
Moreover, due to the risk of adverse side effects from iron supplements, most countries require a prescription for obtaining high doses of this mineral. Thus, iron is usually only added in low doses or not at all (15Trusted Source, 16Trusted Source).

Recommendation
Rather than purchasing expensive hair vitamins, you’re better off focusing on a healthy diet that includes a variety of colorful vegetables and fruits, whole grains, protein, and healthy fats. This will ensure you get the nutrients your body needs for proper hair growth.
Additionally, be sure to focus on other areas of your health, including getting adequate sleep, managing stress, and exercising regularly. When your body is functioning well, it can better support nonessential functions like growing healthy hair.