Gastric Bypass Hair Loss

Welcome to GastricBypassHairLoss.com! Surprisingly, hair loss is one of the major reasons female pre-operative patients have trouble deciding to have gastric bypass surgery. Obese people, and more commonly obese women, often have lush gorgeous hair.

Hair loss usually occurs in the fourth of fifth month following weight loss surgery. During the phase of rapid weight loss, caloric intake is marginal. This puts the body in a state of panic called starvation. A healthy body normally sheds ten percent of hair follicles at any given time. When a body is starving roughly thirty to forty percent of hair follicles are sacrificed as the body channels nutrition to more vital areas. During this phase hair loss is dramatic, often patients find clumps of hair on the shower floor. Remaining hair becomes drab and lifeless.

The hair loss is a transient effect of your gastric bypass surgery and will be resolved when nutrition and weight stabilize.