Maya Golding, 48, underwent gastric bypass surgery and started losing clumps of her lustrous hair a few months after the surgery. Maya was aghast – though she was losing weight, she had not expected to lose so much of hair after the surgery. Many patients like Maya experience hair loss after having gastric bypass surgery.

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. 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. It’s advisable to take vitamin supplements after your gastric bypass surgery to provide nourishment to your hair and avoid hair loss.