When you're dealing with CCCA hair loss, it's hard to know what to do.
You want to help your hair grow back if possible, but sometimes it's hard to know exactly how to do that.
But when you're dealing with CCCA, there are some steps you can take to make sure your diet is helping your body and not hurting it.
Eating a healthy, non-inflammatory diet is a great way to help not make CCCA worse!
Since CCCA can be made worse by inflammation in the body, eating the typical diet full of unhealthy foods like processed meats, sugar and fat can actually make the condition worse.
The way inflammation works in the body is that it leads to a host of other issues. When your body is inflamed, it produces proteins and chemicals that can prevent your body from healing itself after an injury or illness. So when you're dealing with CCCA, you want to make sure that you're not eating foods that could be causing inflammation and making things worse for your condition.
The highest inflammatory food types are:
Sugar: Sugar may be the most inflammatory food in your diet. It's found in almost every processed food and drink, including things you might not think of as sugary, like breads, pasta sauces and cereals.
Cutting down on sugar can help reduce inflammation and improve overall health.
Gluten: Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye and barley. It's also used as a thickening agent in many processed foods like soups and sauces. If you have CCCA, it's important to avoid gluten because it can trigger inflammation and worsen your symptoms.
Junk food: Junk food includes items that are high in fat, sugar and salt. For example, chips, cookies and candy are all considered junk food. It also includes processed meats like hot dogs and bacon. Eating too much of these foods can cause inflammation and lead to weight gain.
Trans fats: Trans fats are a type of fat that's found in many processed foods. They're also used to deep-fry foods like french fries and chicken nuggets. Avoiding trans fats is important because they can increase inflammation in your body.
Omega-6 fatty acids: Omega-6 fatty acids are a type of polyunsaturated fat that's found in vegetable oils and some processed foods like margarine. You should aim to get no more than 5% of your calories from omega-6 fatty acids.
Nitrates: Nitrates are chemicals that are used in the production of processed meats like bacon, ham, and hot dogs. They're added to these foods to help preserve them and give them a longer shelf life. Avoiding processed meat is important because it can increase your risk of developing inflammation.
So what should you eat instead?
The best thing you can do for building a CCCA diet is to eat a diet full of fresh fruits and vegetables that actually lowers the amount of inflammation in your body. Food groups like:
Dark green leafy vegetables: They're full of vitamins and antioxidants, which is why they're one of the best foods for building a CCCA diet. They can help lower your risk of heart disease and reduce inflammation.
Cruciferous vegetables: These veggies like broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts are packed with fiber and vitamin C. They also contain sulforaphane, which has been linked to reducing inflammation in the body.
Fruits: They're a great source of vitamins and antioxidants, which can help reduce inflammation. Choose berries like strawberries and blueberries, which are packed with vitamin C, as well as citrus fruits like oranges and grapefruits, which contain vitamin C and flavonoids.
Nuts: These crunchy snacks are full of healthy fats that can help lower inflammation levels in your body. They’re also a good source of magnesium, which has been shown to reduce inflammation. Nuts are high in calories, so it's important to choose unsalted varieties and eat them in moderation. Fish: The omega-3 fatty acids in fish can help reduce inflammation by fighting pro-inflammatory compounds that can cause pain.
Fish: The omega-3 fatty acids in fish can help reduce inflammation by fighting pro-inflammatory compounds that can cause pain. Fish is also a great source of protein, which may help you feel satisfied between meals. Salmon and tuna are good options for people with arthritis because they contain less mercury than other types of fish, such as swordfish and king mackerel.
Having said all of the above, let's face it: the last thing we have time for is a complicated diet plan. But, in this case it's super important that you give yourself the best chance to manage CCCA and not make things worse by making the wrong food choices.
If it's hard, just make small changes every day and over time you will have made a big change!