How Common Is Hair Loss With Levothyroxine

Taking levothyroxine might cause hair loss

Levothyroxine is a thyroid medicine given to regulate the body's energy and metabolism by replacing a hormone that thyroid does not produce enough on its own.  Each month doctors currently hand out nearly 23 million prescriptions for Levothyroxine, making it the most popular medication to treat thyroid disease.

Most common causes of thyroid malfunction include autoimmune disorder, known as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, which is 10 times more common in women than men. Another possible cause of low amounts of circulating thyroid hormones is thyroid cancer.

If you are taking Levothyroxine as your thyroid hormone replacement and suffering prolonged or excessive hair loss, it might be a side effect of these drugs on some people. When the thyroid hormone level is stable, hair grows back in normal rate.  It seems to be common within the first month of treatment and more often in children than adults.

How hormonal imbalance causes hair loss

Thyroid disease is a common culprit among many medical conditions that cause hair loss.

Healthy hair growth depends on the proper functioning of the thyroid gland. Unusual levels of thyroid hormone produced by this gland can result in hair loss and other side effects if left untreated. Too much thyroid hormone can cause hair thinning. The deficiency of this hormone, known as hypothyroidism in medical terms, can lead to hair loss.

Stress can influence your hormone balance. Cortisol, known as the stress hormone helps your body deal with stress in a long term. Adrenaline, commonly known as the fight or flight hormone, is produced by the adrenal glands after receiving a message from the brain that a stressful situation has presented. In primitive days, these hormones were provoked in survival mode as responses to threats from predators. Nowadays, they are triggered when people are overwhelmed by the fast-paced lifestyle, resulting in an increase in hormonal imbalances.

Symptoms of hair loss due to levothyroxine

Rapid hair loss is one of the most common symptoms of thyroid medication. If you notice prolonged thinning hair and a frightening amount of hair stuck in the shower, along with drastic changes in hair texture such as dryness, coarseness and tangle, it might be an alarming signal that you are experiencing side effects of levothyroxine.

Besides hair loss on the head, thyroid disease also weakens hair roots from other areas such as eyebrows, starting from the edge.

It is likely that your hair loss is caused by the thyroid medicines you are taking if the you also notice the following symptoms:

• Increased anxiety, fatigue and irritation
• Tendency to feel cold
• Feeling sleepy in daytime or insomnia
• Unusual weight changes
• Abnormal menstruation

Thyroid disease affects different functions of your body besides hair growth so make sure to see a doctor promptly if you suspect that a thyroid problem could be the cause of your hair loss. As you get your thyroid disease diagnosed and treated properly, your thyroid hormone levels are regulated and hair loss will fade away.  

If you experience excessive hair loss, consider replacing levothyroxine with another medication. You should get advice from your practitioner about alternative drugs that help to reduce hair loss.

Treat hair loss by balancing hormones

Managing to balance your hormones naturally will save you from depending on thyroid medication like Levothyroxine and minimize the risk of hair loss.

There are some basic things you can do to boost your body’s ability to create and balance hormones by strictly following a nutritious diet and other healthy lifestyle behaviours to stabilize your hormones level and regulate the body's energy:

• Add healthy fats in your diet. Favour fats like coconut oil, real butter, olive oil and animal fats (tallow, lard) from healthy sources and eat lots of high Omega-3 fish.
• Cut down on the caffeine to avoid wreaking havoc on your endocrine system
• Get enough sleep to remove toxins, recharge the mind and create hormones
• Avoid overusing supplement
• Do the right exercise for your health condition. Avoid intense workout.
• Consider adding herbs to your treatment.

After 27 years of research, Dr. Yu has combined traditional Chinese formula with modern research results and successfully created a formula approved by Health of Canada in Pro Hair 1.

A mix of American ginseng, Ren shen, Zinc, Chaenomeles speciosa, Scutellaria baicalensis, Pinellia ternata and other traditional Chinese medicine ingredients were incorporate into the product to treat stress and anxiety, some of which cause hormone imbalance. Pro Hair 1 helps to boost your immune system, provides anxiety relief which helps sleeping disorder and constant nervousness.

For a guaranteed result, it is recommended to take 4 tablets in 2 times a day for adults. You can consume with food. Do not take it along with other medications or natural health products. Consider a few hours before or after.