Vitamin B12 Deficiency and Hair Loss: What's The Connection?

When you start noticing hair loss, you may start questioning your diet or wondering if you’re not getting enough of a certain vitamin. If you’re reading this, you’re probably curious if a vitamin B12 deficiency could be the reason for your thinning hair. 

B12 plays a vital role in maintaining healthy hair growth, and a lack of it might be causing more than just fatigue. Read on to learn more about vitamin B12 for hair health and what steps you can take to prevent hair loss.

Vitamin B12 is a vitamin in the B family (as you may have guessed) that helps to make DNA and form healthy red blood cells. It’s thought that vitamin B12 plays a role in cell formation, as well as nerve function. 

The body does not make vitamin B12, but it’s found naturally in a wide variety of animal foods. Fish, eggs, meat, poultry, and dairy products are all B12-rich foods. Some breakfast cereals are also fortified with vitamin B12.

Most people’s everyday diet contains enough B12, but because it’s not produced in plants, strict vegetarians and vegans are at a higher risk of a B12 deficiency. In some cases of severe deficiency, a healthcare provider may suggest taking B12 supplements or getting B12 injections.

Additionally, some people have trouble absorbing vitamin B12. In fact, anywhere from three to 43 percent of older adults may have a vitamin B12 deficiency. 

Aside from vegetarians, people at risk for a B12 deficiency include those with pernicious anemia, people who have had intestinal surgery such as gastric bypass, those with Crohn’s or celiac disease, and anyone whose stomach does not produce enough hydrochloric acid to absorb the vitamin B12 that’s naturally present in food.

Most people do not need to worry if they are deficient in vitamin B12, but if you are a vegetarian or have had weight loss surgery, it’s a good idea to ask your healthcare provider for a blood test to check your levels.

Vitamin B12 deficiency symptoms include numbness or tingling in the hands, legs, or feet, difficulty walking, anemia, swollen tongue, weakness, fatigue, and cognitive difficulties, including memory loss.

Other common symptoms include pale skin, loss of appetite, weight loss, heart palpitations, and infertility. If you are not getting enough vitamin B12, you may also experience anemia, a type of iron deficiency, as inadequate amounts of the vitamin can disrupt healthy red blood cell formation. Anemia can also result in hair loss.

Hair loss is not listed in the National Institutes of Health’s Office of Dietary Supplements Vitamin B12 Fact sheet as a symptom of vitamin B12 deficiency. But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible that the two are linked.

The vitamin B complex contains eight different kinds of water-soluble vitamin substances, all of which aid in cell metabolism. These eight vitamin substances include thiamine (B1), riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3), pantothenic acid (B5), vitamin B6, biotin (B7), folate (found in leafy greens), and vitamin B12.

Of those eight, only riboflavin, biotin, folate, and vitamin B12 deficiencies have been associated with hair loss. Still, only a few studies have been conducted, and they do not always prove this connection true.

For example, one study saw no significant difference in serum folate levels of patients with diffuse hair loss compared to controls. 

Similarly, vitamin B12, like folate, plays a role in nucleic acid production, which may stimulate hair follicle growth. 

A study evaluating subjects with vitamin B12 deficiency found that reducing vitamin B12 levels had no adverse effects on hair shedding or hair growth. That may make you wonder, does B12 help with hair growth? Unfortunately, you can’t just pop a B12 supplement and expect to accelerate hair growth, especially if you’re not deficient.

While no significant link has been found between many vitamin B substances and hair loss/growth, biotin is a bit different. While biotin deficiency is rare, it may cause alopecia. 

Biotin supplements will likely only help hair grow back in people with a true deficiency in the vitamin.

When it comes to B12 or B complex for hair, the latter is a better choice as it contains biotin.

While hair loss is often discussed as something outside the norm, it’s actually normal and expected that you shed hair every day. Most people lose about 50 to 100 hairs a day, and normally, new hair grows back where old hair falls out. 

However, when hair-shedding outpaces hair growth, the result is alopecia — which is just the medical term for hair loss. It’s actually pretty common — androgenetic alopecia (male pattern baldness) affects 30 percent to 50 percent of men by age 50. 

The most common cause of hair loss is androgenic alopecia, a hereditary condition caused by aging and genetic sensitivity to the male hormone known as DHT, which is produced as a byproduct of testosterone. It’s more common in men than women and occurs gradually, usually as a receding hairline or bald spots.

Medical conditions, such as hormonal changes (like menopause in women) and health issues that affect the immune system, like alopecia areata, may also cause hair loss.

The loss of hair can also be a side effect of some drugs, like those used for cancer, arthritis, depression, gout, and high blood pressure. 

Additionally, emotional stress can cause hair loss — but it’s generally temporary hair loss. 

The good news is that when you start to lose your hair, you’re not at a total…um…loss. There are some medications that will help if you have androgenic alopecia. 

Minoxidil or minoxidil foam is a non-prescription, over-the-counter treatment that can come in the form of shampoo, foam, or liquid. When used regularly, it can help slow the rate of hair loss, and even start hair regrowth. If you have questions about how to use minoxidil, we have a guide on how to apply minoxidil for you.

Another option is finasteride. This prescription drug for men is taken as a pill, and like minoxidil, it can help slow down hair loss and promote hair regrowth. 

Minoxidil and finasteride can also be used together. Research shows that when combined, the two ingredients are more effective at treating hair loss than alone. Our topical finasteride and minoxidil spray is an easy way to use both ingredients at once.

While a vitamin B12 deficiency is sometimes linked to hair loss, there have been no clinical studies that prove this to be true. Instead, hair loss — also called alopecia — is generally caused by genetics and age. It can also be caused by medical conditions, hormonal changes, some medicines and stress. 

Vitamin B12 is essential for a healthy body — but it’s probably not going to affect your hair. If you want to help manage hair loss and encourage hair growth, stick with what’s tried and true: minoxidil and finasteride are probably your most effective options. 

If you’re interested in learning more about nutritional deficiencies that may cause hair loss, check out our guide to vegan hair loss and vitamin deficiencies that can lead to hair loss.