Thinning hair can be challenging to address because of so many different causes—from hormonal changes to nutritional inadequacies to stress.

Plus, did you know that thinning hair can be accelerated by obesity?

The link between hair loss and obesity has never been well understood, but a new study sheds light on why they may be related.

Researchers at Tokyo Medical and Dental University used a mouse model to discover that obesity could lead to depletion of hair follicle stem cells by triggering inflammatory signals.

It’s not surprising that the mechanism to link obesity to hair loss is inflammation, but it is enlightening. It means that all the things we might try to do on the surface level for healthy hair—like scalp massage or shampoos or essential oils—may never do the trick until we address obesity and inflammation.

I completely understand that none of these issues are simple. When I work with my patients, we need to investigate to find what’s underneath complex issues like obesity, inflammation, and hair loss.

But at the end of the day, embracing these complexities is worth the work. It allows us to find options that are specific to each person and that will help them get the most sustainable and lasting health results.

If you want an approach that looks at you as an individual, makes sense of complex interactions in your body, and finds answers that you’ve never been able to find before, I hope you’ll let us help.