Food for Your Follicles: 10 nutrients that support healthy hair, and where to find them.

This free guide is for women experiencing hair loss, and the dietitians who support them, who want a clear, evidence-based starting point for nutrition and hair health. It explains the 10 nutrients hair follicles rely on, the everyday foods that provide them, and what to know before reaching for a supplement.

Why I created it
I’m Holly Forbes, a registered dietitian who has experienced hair loss myself. When hair starts shedding, women are told to take biotin, cut out sugar or buy expensive “hair foods.” This guide replaces that noise with the basics that matter: eating enough, eating a variety of foods, and knowing which nutrients your hair depends on.

What makes it different

Most hair loss nutrition handouts are a list of supplements. This guide starts with food: everyday foods from the grocery store, both plant and animal sources, plus honest notes on when a supplement may help. It’s written by a dietitian who has been through hair loss herself.

What’s inside

  • (5 pages)
  • The 10 nutrients hair follicles rely on: protein, carbohydrates, iron, zinc, vitamin D, vitamin B12, vitamin C, biotin, omega-3 fats and folate
  • For each one: why follicles need it, everyday food sources (plant and animal) and simple ways to eat more of it
  • “Supplement smart” notes on when a supplement may help, when it won’t, and why more isn’t always better
  • Why eating enough matters for the hair growth cycle

Benefits

  • Gives clients a clear starting point
  • Helps clients see why eating enough, and eating a variety of foods, matters for hair
  • Helps clients avoid buying supplements they may not need

For dietitians
Use it as a first handout for clients experiencing hair loss: to start the nutrition conversation, to explain why restrictive eating can affect hair, or as take-home reading after an assessment. It works in one-on-one sessions, group programs and workshops.

Details

  • 5-page PDF (US Letter, full color); read on a phone or computer, or print
  • Updated October 2026 with a new design and expanded nutrient information

This guide is for general nutrition education. It doesn’t diagnose, treat or reverse hair loss.

You must log in and be a buyer of this download to submit a review.