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Intermittent Fasting Probably Isn’t Making You Bald
Why recent headlines aren’t as convincing as they might seem.
As with most fad diets, intermittent fasting is somewhat controversial. Proponents claim that it can extend your life and cure any manner of diseases, while opponents have raised fears that it could damage your organs in various ways. There’s also some concern that it’s just a hard thing to do, and so may not be the best dietary recommendation for most people to follow.
The latest news story about intermittent fasting seems to agree with the skeptical claims. Scientists have apparently shown that intermittent fasting may slow hair regrowth, potentially causing hair loss, which in turn could make adherents of the eating pattern go bald. For anyone trying intermittent fasting as a method of losing weight, that’s a pretty scary claim to hear.
As someone who lost most of their hair in their 20s, and also someone who has used intermittent fasting for a while to help manage my weight, I found these claims fascinating. Fortunately, while the headlines are very worrisome, the underlying data is not nearly as problematic as you might’ve heard.
Let’s dig into the science.
