Does Selenium Cause Hair Loss?

The health of your hair depends on a host of factors — and that includes eating a balanced diet. Nutrients like selenium are critical for overall wellness, but can this essential mineral cause hair loss?

The simple answer: Yes, you can have too much of a good thing — vitamins and minerals included. Too much selenium can mess with your body in various ways and even impact the natural hair growth cycle.

Read on to find out more about this vital micronutrient, its link to hair loss, and other potential health concerns. We’ll also cover a few effective treatment options for selenium-related hair loss.

Selenium is an essential trace element that plays a vital role in fertility, immune health, DNA synthesis, thyroid hormone metabolism, and other important functions. It’s also an antioxidant that helps your body fight oxidative stress from free radicals (unstable molecules that can damage cells) to lower risk of certain cancers, cardiovascular disease, and cognitive decline.

Selenium is a mineral found in the soil that gets taken up by plants and then gets consumed by humans and animals. 

The daily recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of selenium is pretty low. Adult men, for instance, should get around 55 micrograms (mcg) a day.

Infants need about 15 micrograms, and pregnant or lactating folks need between 60 and 70 micrograms daily.

Most people get enough selenium from food sources like meats, cereals, grains, eggs, poultry, fish and dairy.

Selenium nutrient deficiency is rare. But if it happens, it can make you vulnerable to certain diseases, affect your fertility, exacerbate iodine deficiency, and potentially increase the risk of osteoarthritis.

The stress of a deficiency could even impact your hairline.

You can get selenium through over-the-counter (OTC) supplements, but taking too much can lead to health issues. A 2023 report in Frontiers in Nutrition notes that for people with selenium deficiency, supplementation may be safe and effective in bringing their levels up to a healthy range. However, if you are already getting enough selenium in your diet, consuming more through supplements may be dangerous.

 If you think you might have a vitamin or mineral deficiency, it’s a good idea to talk with a healthcare professional before shopping the supplement aisle.

Can too much selenium cause hair loss? Potentially, yes.

Experts recommend adults get no more than 400 micrograms of selenium daily. Consuming more than that on a regular basis (whether through supplements, food, or both) may lead to potential health issues.

Some of these issues are typically mild, and may include nausea, rashes, or temporary hair loss. But there are severe associated health risks, too, including difficulty breathing or kidney failure.

FYI: Brazil nuts are very high in selenium. Eating them every day might cause your selenium levels to skyrocket.

Before we look at how selenium may contribute to hair loss, it’s worth knowing a little about how selenium — consumed in modest amounts — may actually support hair health.

Selenium is a common ingredient in anti-dandruff shampoos because it helps fight various types of fungus, including the kind that causes dandruff.

Selenium’s antioxidant properties also help protect hair follicles from UV radiation damage and other conditions that can weaken follicles. Findings from a 2023 study in Skin Research and Technology suggest that selenium, when combined with hydrolysed fish-origin collagen, iron, and other nutrients in an oral supplement, help counteract hair loss in people with androgenic alopecia and other similar conditions. This study includes multiple variables, however, so it’s important to emphasize that the findings are not on selenium alone. 

Selenium may also benefit hair health by supporting better thyroid hormone production, which in turn stimulates healthy hair growth and hair cell production.

While a single daily overshoot of your recommended selenium levels probably won’t cause major issues, chronically high levels can mess with your system — including your hairline.

According to the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements, selenium toxicity over time can cause symptoms like:

• Bad breath

• Metallic taste in the mouth

• Nail brittleness

• Nausea

• Diarrhea

• Rashes

• Fatigue

• Irritability

Other possible side effects of too much selenium include nervous system abnormalities and dental issues, including tooth loss.

And then there’s the selenium hair loss problem.

In some cases, selenium supplementation can be beneficial. For example, there’s a link between selenium and decreased hair loss in people going through chemotherapy.

Selenium sulfide is also an effective treatment for scalp conditions like dandruff that can contribute to excess hair shedding. Dandruff shampoos and other hair care products often contain selenium sulfide.

However, too much of this trace mineral can lead to hair brittleness, thinning hair, and hair fall-out.

Consuming supplements packed with selenium may pose some serious health risks. A 2023 report in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology suggests that, in addition to hair loss, high levels of selenium in the blood can cause damage to a person’s nails, skin, oral health, and nervous system. 

And according to a 2018 article published in the International Journal of Trichology, excessive selenium can actually modify the hair’s structure and impair the hair cycle, causing a condition called telogen effluvium (a fancy name for temporary hair loss).

How Excess Selenium Can Affect the Hair Growth Cycle

Too much selenium could affect the hair growth cycle, which has three phases. Each hair on your head is currently in one of these phases.

• Anagen phase. The primary phase is called the anagen phase, where 90 percent of your strands will be at any given time. This is when hair grows and lengthens.

• Catagen phase. Next comes the catagen phase, a sort of wind-down period for each follicle. This lasts just a few weeks before the telogen phase begins.

• Telogen phase. The telogen phase is a rest period for your hair follicles. Ten percent of your follicles should be in this phase at any given time.

Telogen effluvium happens when more hairs than usual are in the telogen phase and don’t return to the anagen stage. This looks like even thinning across your entire scalp, making your hair look sparse.

This cause of hair loss is typically associated with stressors like:

• Weight changes

• Surgery

• Illness

• Childbirth

• Major stress

• Anxiety

• Nutrient deficiency

It can also be from an excess load of trace elements like selenium.

Is selenium hair loss reversible? Most likely, yes. Telogen effluvium is almost always temporary.

In most cases, the affected hair follicles will get back to doing their thing — assuming the stressor is long gone.

But there are some reports of permanent, severe selenium-related hair loss.

In one case, a copy machine worker experienced severe hair loss after prolonged exposure to a selenium alloy. This person’s profession likely exposed him to a high amount of selenium, and the alloy was probably different from what you’d find in foods and supplements. (Note: The full report was unavailable for this research.)

If you work with copiers daily, it might be a good idea to get a blood test to check your selenium levels to make sure they’re normal. Workplace exposure to selenium may also be higher in metal industries, paint manufacturing, and hazardous waste sites, among others, according to the CDC’s Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry.

What should you do if you’re experiencing selenium-related hair loss?

First, stop taking selenium supplements immediately. Next, contact your healthcare provider for treatment advice.

If the excess shedding is telogen effluvium, your hair will eventually start to grow back on its own. Still, you might want to speed up the process with one or more proven hair loss treatment options.

According to the American Academy of Dermatology, minoxidil and finasteride are effective hair regrowth treatments that can help with hair loss. Here’s what to know.

Minoxidil for Hair Loss

Studies show that over-the-counter minoxidil helps stimulate healthy hair growth. Research suggests it can increase thickness and raise hair count by up to 18 percent with 48 weeks of use.

This topical medication is available in a foam or liquid solution.

Finasteride for Hair Loss

Finasteride is a prescription hair growth medication that blocks DHT(dihydrotestosterone), the hormone partially to blame for male pattern hair loss (aka androgenetic alopecia).

It can reduce DHT levels by as much as 70 percent when taken daily, slowing down or even stopping male pattern baldness.

Talk to a healthcare professional to see if finasteride or minoxidil might help you. You can even use them both at once with our dual-action ​​topical finasteride & minoxidil spray.

Still looking for a supplement that might help with hair loss? Consider adding biotin gummies to your hair health routine.

Does selenium cause hair loss? It could, but likely only in very high, ongoing doses.

Here’s what to keep in mind about selenium and hair loss:

• It’s understandable to think that taking extra vitamins or minerals is always a good idea. But the truth is that balance is key.

• Though your body needs selenium to function optimally, too much can lead to problems with your skin, teeth and hair — among other things.

• If you’re dealing with selenium-related hair loss or are on the hunt for an effective hair loss solution for male pattern baldness, consider talking to a healthcare professional. Through a physical examination, blood tests, and a review of your personal and family medical history, your healthcare provider should be able to determine the root cause of your excess hair shedding and break down your treatment options.

Want to connect with a licensed healthcare provider online? Take our free hair quiz to start exploring treatment options.