7 Amazing Health Benefits of Cantaloupe You Didn’t Know About (and a Word of Caution)

Cantaloupe is good for your hair

Cantaloupe’s most potent vitamins—A and C—are essential to helping us maintain strong, healthy hair and just one serving (about one-quarter of a melon) contain 100 percent of the recommended daily allowances of both. Vitamin A, also known as retinol, is required for sebum production, a compound that keeps our scalp and hair moisturized and healthy while vitamin C is needed for the building and maintenance of collagen, which provides structure to skin and hair, explains Melissa Majumdar, RD, and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. “Vitamin C also helps with the absorption of iron,” she explains. Iron deficiency is linked to hair loss, but you should always have your iron status checked before supplementing—too much iron can be toxic to the body, she says. Here are other essential foods you need for healthy hair.