Heredity, age, stress, medications and medical conditions can all cause hair loss, but in some cases diet plays a role as well. Deficiencies of protein or iron or excessive amounts of vitamin A can bring on hair loss, for example. Papaya is rich in some of the nutrients that help keep your hair healthy, but it won't necessarily help with thinning hair.

Eating papaya won't help if you're losing your hair due to aging or male-pattern baldness, and even when it does help improve the condition of your hair, it won't be fully noticeable until about a year later, as nutrition only helps with new hair, and it can take this long to grow about 6 inches of hair.

Each cup of raw papaya provides 28 percent of the daily value for vitamin A. Vitamin A is important for producing the sebum that keeps your hair moisturized. It also contains 147 percent of the DV for vitamin C, which helps produce the collagen that holds your hair together and gives it strength, minimizing breakage. A serving of papaya provides 13 percent of the DV for folate as well, and this helps blood and oxygen flow to your hair follicles and helps to keep your hair from falling out unnecessarily.