Surprisingly, hair loss is one of the reasons why preoperative patients feel hesitant before deciding to have gastric bypass surgery. Obese people, particularly obese women, often have beautiful, lush hair. Of course he is, he is well fed and nourished! How many of us have been described as the woman with “beautiful hair and a pretty face”? What person in her right mind would give up one of her beautiful features?

Hair loss usually occurs in the fourth or fifth month after weight loss surgery. During the rapid weight loss phase, caloric intake is marginal. This puts the body into a state of panic called starvation. Think of the photos of prisoners of war. Most of the victims of this atrocity have no hair because they are literally starving. A healthy body normally sheds ten percent of hair follicles at any given time. When a body is starving, approximately thirty to forty percent of the hair follicles are sacrificed as the body funnels nutrition to more vital areas. During this phase, hair loss is dramatic, with patients often finding clumps of hair on the shower floor. The remaining hair becomes dull and lifeless.

I knew hair loss was a potential result of weight loss surgery, but since I am a “glass half full” person, I didn’t think hair loss would happen to me! That only happens to other people, I told myself! Imagine my surprise when my blonde locks were spread out on the bathroom floor like a hairdresser’s. I shed a few tears for that.

Hair loss is a transient effect of your gastric bypass surgery and will resolve when nutrition and weight stabilize. When my hair started to fall out, my husband, who has been an advocate of vitamin supplements his entire life, found a vitamin specifically formulated to build strong, healthy hair. The vitamin I take for healthy hair and nails is Silica Complex from Puritan’s PrideÒ. Contains calcium, magnesium, zinc, boron, betaine and horsetail extract. The consumption of this supplement almost immediately delayed my hair loss and renewed my dull and lifeless hair. I will continue to take this supplement throughout my life. Three years after surgery, my hair is long, full and lustrous; one would never realize that I have suffered significant hair loss. In hindsight, I would certainly start taking this supplement before my surgery. At a minimum, I would start taking it shortly after surgery, before signs of hair loss were apparent.

Copyright © 2005 Kaye Bailey – All Rights Reserved.