Can Silica Help With Thinning Hair?

Hair loss occurs for many reasons, including age and poor nutrition. Consuming adequate amounts of a mineral like silica can maintain the health of your hair and scalp, and a deficiency might lead to hair loss. While this mineral might not be able to reverse hair loss, ask your doctor about consuming silica to help with your thinning strands.

Causes of Thinning Hair

If your hair has begun to thin over the years, it could just be a normal component of aging, says MayoClinic.com. As your hormone levels change, the rate at which your hair grows and falls out will change, too. Recent modifications to your diet also can make your hair thin out, particularly if you are trying to lose weight by following a crash or fad diet that might be deficient in certain nutrients essential for hair health, such as silica.

Function of Silica

Silica is a trace mineral, and while your body needs only a small amount, that amount is essential for your health, including that of your skin and scalp, says Vital Health Zone. This mineral helps to strengthen your blood vessels and improve circulation, which can stimulate the blood flow to your scalp and encourage growth. It also is a necessary component of your skin's connective tissues and helps to strengthen your bones, nails and hair.

Usage

Many foods and drinks contain silica, including beer, coffee, mineral water, whole grains, carrots and iceberg lettuce. You also can take silica supplements or brew a tea made with horsetail, which Holistic Online states is a good source of silica, and apply it to your hair. Steep 2 tbsp. of dried horsetail leaves in 4 oz. of hot water, then add this to a mild shampoo and wash your hair as your normally would. Do not begin using or consuming silica in any of its forms without asking your doctor.

Considerations

A silica deficiency is rare, but the amount of silica your body is able to retain decreases as you age, says Vital Health Zone. Consuming a silica supplement as you get older can help maintain adequate levels of this mineral, which might stop hair loss that results from a deficiency of it.

Warnings

As with all supplements and changes to your diet, ask a doctor before you start taking silica. If you want to consume it by using horsetail, take note that the University of Maryland Medical Center warns against it if you have heart or kidney disorders, diabetes or gout. Horsetail also can cause your body's vitamin B1, or thiamin, levels to drop, and a thiamin supplement might need to be taken to correct this imbalance.