5 Top Nutrients To Reduce DHT and Prevent Baldness

There are various reasons that causes balding. One of them is Dihydrotestosterone (DHT). DHT is responsible forgiving male their male characteristics - deep voices, hairy chests and increased muscle mass. DHT is converted from testosterone.
Testosterone is another male hormone responsible important male characteristics such as sex drive, bone mass, etc. All in all, these hormones are essential. Male body needs it for healthy bodily functions but it does comes with one side effect. Baldness. Excessive DHT can reduce hair follicles and causes balding. But hey, don't put DHT into your bad list because of that. Rather than lowering DHT into an extreme level, what we really need is to have it in a controlled manner.

So, here, we list out the top nutrients one can consume not only to control DHT but also to boost better hair health.

1. Biotin

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Biotin is not stored or generated by our body. Hence, we have to get them from food. Biotin is needed for healthy hair, nail and skin growth. That's just one of its roles. It doesn't reduce DHT but other healthy bodily functions need it. Excessive biotin will be excreted through urine. So, we have to replenish it through our diet. There are abundant of biotin sources that are easily available. The list below shows foods that are rich in biotin:

• Nuts & seeds: almonds, peanuts, walnuts, hazel nut, cashew nut, sunflower seeds
• Eggs 
• Seafood and meat
• Vegetables: onions, carrots, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, cucumber
• Fruits: tomato, banana, raspberry, strawberry, watermelon, grapefruit, avocado

Sure there are other foods that has biotin. But, if you're looking for foods with significant biotin content, look at those heroes up in that list.

2. L-Lysine

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L-lysine is an amino acid that our body needs to produce collagen, hormones, enzymes and antibodies. It also helps in hair loss prevention by inhibiting the formation of DHT. That is why this nutrient is famous in the hair care industry. However, caution has to be taken when consuming this nutrient especially in supplement form. Excessive intake may increase cholesterol level. Natural sources of l-lysine are as follows:

• Fish: sardine, salmon, cod
• Dairy products: cheese
• Legumes
• Spirulina
• Red meat
• Nuts

3. Beta-sitosterol

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This nutrient helps in reducing cholesterol level. That means less risk of having heart attack. On top of that, it reduces DHT production. Why is that? Well, cholesterol is needed for DHT production. Beta-sitosterol competes for cholesterol resulting in less production of testosterone. A study has been done to support its effectiveness in inhibiting 5-alpha reductase.

Natural sources:

• Dark chocolate
• Oil: Canola, corn, flaxseed, olive
• Fruits: avocado, orange, bananas, apples, pears
• Nuts & seeds: almonds, walnuts, cashew nuts, hazelnuts
• Vegetables: beets, carrots, cabbage, cauliflower

4. Lycopene

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Another member of the 5-alpha reductase inhibitor team is the lycopene. Lycopene is an antioxidant that helps prevent cancer and heart disease. This nutrient is like a bonus to our health. Lack of lycopene will not have side effects. But, having them is an incredible boost to our immune system. A unique thing about this is that lycopene is the substance that gives a fruit its red color.

That pretty much gives us an idea on what fruits or vegetables that has an ample amount of lycopene:

• Fruit: mango, papaya, tomato, watermelon, guava
• Vegetables: carrot, red cabbage, red peppers

5.  Cathechins

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Tea lovers would know this! Cathechin is another antioxidant that plays huge role in preventing cancer. It also acts as inhibitor of 5-alpha reductase as shown in this study. This nutrient is the heart and soul that makes a tea (green tea in particular) special. Tea has higher amount of catechin compared to fruits. Catechin is a natural chemical that is only found in plants:

• Green tea
• Fruit: blackberries, raspberries, cherries, cocoa
• Vegetables:  
• Red wine

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