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Medical Conditions that Cause Excessively Dry Hair

It your hair is dry and frowsy and absolutely impossible to deal with, it could be that you have an underlying medical condition that is wreaking havoc on your hair. Chronically dry hair may stem from an internal source and have nothing to do with over-processing.

  1. Malnourished

    • Is it possible that you are malnourished? According to Sixwise.com, malnourishment is one of the main reasons that hair becomes dry. If you aren't eating properly or regularly, your body does not have the fuel it needs to maintain a healthy head of hair. If your hair is nutrient deprived, it will become damaged, dry and brittle. Dry hair can be a red flag that your diet is lacking in omega-3 essential fatty acids, which are found in flax seeds, fish oil, walnuts and salmon.

    Even Worse: Anorexia

    • The eating disorder anorexia can be devastating on your body and hair. Like malnourishment, but even more extreme, anorexia deprives the body of essential nutrients. Dry hair, dry skin and hair loss may result. Hair cannot be soft, shiny and healthy if you are starving yourself.

    Hypoparthyroidism

    • A condition called hypoparthyroidism can lead to dry hair, cataracts, muscle spasms and cramps, dry, scaly skin and seizures. This condition is caused by an injury that has occurred in the parathyroid glands as a result of neck or head surgery. Hypoparthyroidism prompts calcium levels in the blood to fall and phosphorus levels to rise.

    Hypothyroidism

    • On the other hand, hypothyroidism, which means a sluggish and underactive thyroid, not only causes fatigue, weight gain, depression, muscle pain, but also dry, brittle hair that becomes thin due to a lack of the thyroid hormone.

    Menkes Syndrome

    • According to the Health.nytimes.com, there is a condition called steely hair syndrome or Menkes syndrome, that results in brittle, dry, kinky hair. The condition is caused by the body's inability to distribute and absorb copper.

    Call Your Doc

    • If your hair does not respond to any of the treatments that you give it at home, including moisturizing it, avoiding blow-drying and excess heat, covering it up while out in the sun, not over-processing it and cutting it routinely, then you may have a medical condition that is contributing to the dryness of your hair. Your doctor can run blood tests on you and look at your hair under a microscope to determine if there is, in fact, something going on that is affecting your hair.

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