Why Intermittent Fasting May Be Killing Your Hair - AI Podcast
Jun 26, 2025•9 min
Episode description
Story at-a-glance
- Research shows intermittent fasting triggers hair loss by flooding follicles with toxic free fatty acids when your body shifts from glucose to fat as fuel
- Hair follicle stem cells prefer glucose for energy and begin dying when forced to metabolize fat during fasting periods, causing them to remain in a dormant state
- Clinical trials confirmed fasting slows hair regrowth in humans regardless of calorie intake or timing, with the damage occurring from the fast-feed cycle itself
- The stress response starts in adrenal glands, which release hormones that prompt dermal fat cells to release fatty acids that damage follicle stem cells
- To reverse fasting-related hair loss, eat nutrient-dense meals regularly with approximately 250 grams of digestible carbohydrates daily to stabilize energy supply
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