Unless you’ve been living under a digital detox rock, have never followed anything the Kardashians have said or done, and do not have a functional Instagram account, you’ve heard about gummies. Hair gummies, that is.
In our series of articles about holistic health - the first one will cover what are hair gummies, the benefits or claims they come with, who should consume hair gummies, the works!
Okay, so let’s get to the basics - what are hair gummies?
Depending on the brand, they contain a unique blend of vitamins, minerals, as well as beneficial proteins like collagen and biotin. These are mixed with flavouring agents - natural or artificial - to create a more palatable supplement that you can basically just pop and chew.
Seems simple enough, right? But do hair gummies work? And more importantly, who should take hair gummies?
As you would’ve figured already, we’re a brand that scratches or rather, digs deep beneath the surface. Even when it came to the efficacy of hair gummies, we turned to doctors - some are friends, some colleagues, but all are experts who can give a professional opinion.
“Supplements should not be consumed blindly and just basis the packaging or marketing, which is what a lot of young people end up doing. Consult a professional who knows about your constitution, who can tell you what’s lacking in your diet or how to correct your deficiency, if any.”
“Nowadays, due to poor nutrition, lack of sunlight exposure, smoking - a bunch of unhealthy habits actually, most of the current generation ends up with some deficiency or the other. Now supplements are beneficial when consumed correctly but when you talk about hair gummies in particular - here’s how it works. When you read that drinking more water leads to shinier hair, you start drinking more water. Now if you’re in a deficit already, your body’s going to redirect that water to where it’s absolutely essential. And once that deficit is met, that’s when the water would go towards non-essential functions of the body - like improving the quality of your hair, your skin, your nails, etc. That’s exactly how any protein, vitamin, mineral works. First the body directs it to the absolutely crucial functions, then secondary, then tertiary functions. And if you’ve already got a good amount of say biotin through natural sources, in that case, the gummy is just adding sugar or flavouring to your diet, sorry to say! Because our body is naturally programmed to take what’s needed and flush out the rest. That’s why eating 3x the daily amount of Vitamin C needed won’t make you reap 3x the benefits!”
What does all of this mean for you and hair gummies, though? We found ourselves wondering that too - so here’s a checklist of questions that we hope is helpful!
- Do I experience hair fall that’s above average? And if so, what’s the cause?
Rule of thumb is that we lose anywhere between 50 and 100 hair strands every day. If you’re experiencing hair loss that’s greater than this, check with yourself to identify potential causes - are you on intense medication like hormonal pills, antibiotics, undergoing medical treatment? Are you hydrating, eating, and sleeping less than what’s healthy? Have you been under a lot of stress recently? Have you undergone a long-lasting illness, been pregnant, given birth recently?
- Speak to a medical professional
This feels quite obvious. But you’d be surprised at the number of people who self-prescribe and self-medicate since supplements are generally not as strictly regulated in terms of certifications as well as their purchase. If this sounds like you, well, better read the following lines!
Whether it’s a hair gummy or more, consult a professional who can take into account your genetics, your diet, your lifestyle, your vitamin deficiencies or lack thereof and only then, tell you which way to go.
There’s a bunch of natural, herbal, and backed-by-science ways to boost hair growth but let’s save that for another article!
To summarise, hair gummies seem to be beneficial when you’ve actually got a deficit. Even after consuming hair gummies, don’t expect overnight results because once your body’s essential needs are covered, only then will the biotin/collage/blend in question be redirected to your hair!
So to answer our main question of whether hair gummies are a saviour or a sham - we’d say the jury’s still out but you could reach a verdict of your own, of course while being guided gently in the right direction by a professional you trust (with hopefully, this blog also in the back of your mind!)
We explore more such holistic health topics, along with a lot about our future forward products, while focusing on the 3 types of natural hair textures, and more on our socials. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook and click here to sign up for our newsletter - that way you get such blogs delivered straight to your inbox!
