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Having problems with dry mouth possibly from medications
Aging Well | Last Active: Jun 18, 2023 | Replies (55)Comment receiving replies
Update. I went the Biotene products way for dry mouth. Toothpaste, mouthwash, lozenges, and mouth spray. Water and spray seem to be working. Does anyone know if Gabapentin or Cyclobenzaprine cause hair loss? I seem to be "shedding" a lot of hair. I have to figure out what in my body is doing that. I have started weaning off Gabapentin. Down from 3 100's to 2 a day for 2 wks then one tab for 2 wks. If my hair is still shedding then I will get off Cyclobenzaprine. My doctor says I had such a traumatic shock to my body and losing weight on WW she thinks hair is falling out because I am not getting enough red meat in my diet. I think it's those pills! We shall see. I can't have my hair falling out!
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Replies to "Update. I went the Biotene products way for dry mouth. Toothpaste, mouthwash, lozenges, and mouth spray...."
My hair is falling out also, but I blame it on aging. I’m 83, and was in pretty good health until diagnosed with PMR. But I have a Lupus type illness, and have dry mouth, oral sores, arthritis, etc. I believe all of this things attribute to hair thinning.
Your doctor might be thinking of low iron when she mentioned the red meat. Low iron can cause hair loss. And of course red meat has the best source of iron that our bodies can absorb. Also protein…hair needs protein. But if your diet contains these types of foods, that’s good. High cortisol (stress hormone) can negatively affect the thyroid causing it to slow down. Even though blood work shows normal, levels could still be low for you. We are all different. Drs need to consider symptoms and not just lab numbers. Anyways, just a couple of ideas.
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I had been on Flexeril, not every day (Cyclobenzaprine) for years and no hair loss (I recently was switched to another muscle relaxant....Flexeril can cause short term memory loss..I surely don't need that!). I will say the following caused hair loss for me:
1) I lost a lot of weight in 2016 and quickly....
2) I had an intense surgery in 2016
3) I started with Thyroid disease (unknowingly) at the end of 2016.
The combination of all of these caused extreme hair loss. I was not getting enough fat in the diet I was on or carbs, surgery/anesthesia puts a lot of stress on your body & thyroid disease causes hair loss. It took several months for it to stop extreme shedding. I am not versed on Gabapentin so I can't say. Stress & Covid can cause hair loss as well. It's traumatic when your hair starts coming out. Praying for you...I understand.