Posted By Pamela (Usa) on 11/17/2014

It started 7 years ago after what appeared to be a virus with chest pains and breathlessness. We developed spots in the scalp, me more so. After we had tingling and pain all over our scalps which appeared like nerve pain as if all the hairs were affected. the hair then went excessively greasy with a thick white stuff that would scrape off on the scalp, to then dried out and fluffy. I initially lost a patch which regrew but then had diffuse hair loss and it is gradually just disappearing, although I have experienced a very some regrowth recently.

It has just been like a nightmare trying to fathom out the reason for the past 7 years with the time bomb ticking away as I try and sort the problem for all of us but primarily my children. I have been through menopause but it happened to myself and my daughter at the same time and my son's hair texture changed then and his gradual hair loss followed slightly after.

When it started myself and my daughter had ferritin levels around 25/30 so not optimal for hair growth but mine had been much lower at times over the years and I had never lost any hair before apart from a very brief period after pregnancy.

We have had numerous blood tests and a few scalp tests. The spots in my scalp were quite deep and just wouldn't seem to heal and although they are not as deep now I still have them.The general condition of our scalps is ok but there just seems to be no moisture in the hair and no weight.

My son's ferritin levels when it started was 48, so not excessively low for a 7 year old. We were vegetarian but my son has been eating meat for about 5 years and if anything his level has gone down. I have tried virtually every form of iron for us and it doesnt seem to suit us at all. It affects my mind so badly and makes us all feel aggressive. I think the hair loss seems to increase when I put my son on iron, although I didn't know if this was because initially it is pushing out the very fine hairs as the circulation is getting better.

I have been very poorly myself over the last few years culminating in complete collapse/chronic fatigue, urticaria, breathing problems, rashes, swellings etc. My daughter also keeps getting very run down with throat virus etc etc. she has also experienced bad chest pain and breathlessness periodically since the virus. She has had bad acne since the age of 16, probably around the time I also introduced meat. She suffers terribly hormonally and took Agnus Castus for about a year, then had the pill for 2 months which seem to make matters so much worse, and an antibiotic only furthered the problem.

I have been gradually introducing some supplements over a long period which seem to be helping but I haven't got there at all yet.

I believe that the virus possibly affected our thyroid as I have had so many of the symptoms and so has my daughter but we seem to fluctuate possibly between overactive and underactive although nothing has come up on the blood tests. My daughter's neck looks swollen and her face is very puffy. She has put on a lot of weight, despite eating very healthily and doing a lot of exercise.

I have been taking a hair skin and nails supplement with vit A, Vit E, C, B1,B2,B6, Biotin,Zinc,Selenium,silica, Evening primrose oil in. Also take extra vit c, B5,B12, A bit more Zinc, Omega blend oil, probiotic. Just cannot take iron as my body won't seem to process it and it feels like it becomes badly toxic in my system.

My throat seems to enlarge slightly each time I have iodine. Something more I should mention, is I think around the time it happened we had started eating fish and I did wonder if we were sensitive to the iodine or didn't have enough iodine in our systems to cope with any toxic elements in the fish. At present I also have hives all around my neck/thyroid area.

I have been experimenting recently with very small amounts of iodised salt with almost immediate things to notice. It has made my son's and my hair look probably more dry and started to get lighter in colour in just no time at all with just minute quantities. I am not sure if it is a good or bad effect.

My son is also having a small amount of zinc, vit c and B12. On starting the zinc his hair looked less greasy in between washes. Although I said it was dried out and fluffy, in between washes it still got very greasy.

My daughter having the same hair supp with evening prim, vit , probiotic and tiny amount of zinc. She has started an omega blend oil and that with the E primrose oil has made a slight improvement with her skin.

We have always eaten healthily and were vegetarian for years without a problem apart from lowish ferritin levels. I always included iron rich foods and with vit c and after introducing meat and giving some iron supps it just seems we don't absorb it well.

I have considered coeliac and we had the blood test which was negative. My daughter and I also followed the candida diet for about 5 weeks plus and the hair loss slowed right down. Since then I am not losing huge amounts but it is not replacing properly and so thinning. My daughters has got bad again, probably due to low ferritin,26, but more likely the disruption of her hormones again with the pill and antibiotic.she also does not seem to have the regrowth. And my son's although not losing loads is just getting thinner and there is no new hair coming through.

I did consider the mould aspect. We have damp under our house which causes mould in our cupboard under the stairs and one of our kitchen cupboards. We have recently got dehumidifiers which seem to be drying out the cupboard. My daughter was also give a course of capryllic acid recently to combat any possible mould/bacteria.

I am really sorry this is such a lot of information, poorly written. This is only a tiny bit of what I have gone though in the last 7 years. We have seen so many health professionals including dermatologists, cardiologists, homeopaths, endocrinologists, tricologists etc etc etc.

It has nearly driven me insane as I try and right this problem for my children. I am sure that we all have the same deficiency/problem triggered by the virus or ingestion of something toxic/environmental but doctors just can't seem to help.

Please please try and help me. This has caused me and my husband so much distress as we have tried to solve the mystery for 7 long years whilst trying to protect our children from the knowledge of whats happening and dealing with arrogant and useless doctors.

I can tell you more info if it can help. Our family life is being so devastated by this. I am really helping you can offer some idea of what it might be. I have tried so hard to find out the cause/cure. It is just so strange the way it has happened to all of us. As a mother you feel so responsible for everything that happens to you children and I just don't seem able to right it. I am scared to give more iron incase it increases the problem. Please try and help me solve this nightmare and get our lives back.

My husband also has diabetes so there maybe insulin resistence thrown into the mix.

Do hope you can help, it would be a miracle, please help me achieve this for my children, many many thanks.

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