What to Do About Slow-Growing Hair

If you think you have slow-growing hair or that your hair periodically stops growing, you’re probably not imagining things. To understand why your hair is like this, consider how it grows: A strand of hair grows out of its follicle during a period that can last from two to six years (this is called the anagen phase). Then, as its follicle shrinks and starts to die, the strand stops growing for a few weeks (the catagen phase). In the final stage, called the telogen phase, the hair follicle renews its activity, beginning the process all over again and making the old hair fall out to make way for new growth.

If you have slow-growing hair, this means your active growth phase is on the short end — it’s closer to two years than six. This gives you hair that stops growing at a shorter length than someone else’s might. Many factors can lead to slow-growing hair. Heredity plays a part. So does your level of a male hormone called androgen, which both men and women have. Hair growth also naturally slows as we get older and more hair follicles go into the final, or telogen, phase.

How to Help Slow-Growing Hair
You can give slow-growing hair a boost by keeping it — and yourself — as healthy as possible. Here’s how:

• Eat a healthy diet. Though eating well won’t magically turn your short hair into long locks, nutrients that promote growth do help. These nutrients can be found in fish and poultry, dark green vegetables, whole grains, eggs, low-fat dairy products, beans, and nuts.
• Avoid crash diets. Trying to drop too many pounds too quickly can affect the cycle of your hair growth. If you want to lose weight, talk to your doctor about a sensible eating and fitness plan.
• Let your hair go natural. Washing, bleaching, and dyeing your hair too often can make hair weak and brittle. So can too-frequent use of blow-dryers and curling irons. Letting your hair do what it naturally does is the best way to keep it healthy.
• Get your hair trimmed regularly. This will keep split ends from making your hair break off, which can leave you feeling like your hair doesn’t grow at all.
• Go easy on nutritional supplements. Taking megadoses of vitamin A can contribute to slow-growing hair or hair loss. It’s safest to stick to the recommended daily allowance of this nutrient.

Dealing with Hair Loss
Sometimes hair is not just slow-growing, it actively falls out. If you’ve had a serious illness or severe stress, it can make more hair than normal fall out two or three months later. Fortunately, this will grow back on its own after a few months. If hair falls out in patches (in a condition called alopecia areata), your doctor can prescribe oral or topical medication to remedy the problem.

Certain medications can slow hair growth or make hair fall out, including those used to treat acne and control blood pressure and heart disease. Drugs used in cancer treatment can also cause hair loss. If you suspect that a medication is affecting your hair growth, ask your doctor if you can switch to something that doesn’t have this effect.

You can’t make slow-growing hair grow faster, but you can make sure it looks and feels healthy at any length.