What Causes Female Hair Loss?
For a female, hair loss can feel incredibly shameful. Our hair speaks volumes about our personality and is a big factor in the way we evaluate our looks. A healthy head of hair indicates vitality, youthfulness, and health. When women begin to lose their hair, it can be a huge blow to their self esteem, but there are ways to restore it. Before seeking treatment, it’s important to understand it’s causes.
Hair Style
For some women, hair loss may be attributed to hairstyle! Wearing your hair in styles that pull tightly such as pigtails, braids, and cornrows can pull hair out at a faster rate than normal. At any given time, about 90 percent of your hair is in a growth state and 10 percent is in a relaxed state where it will eventually fall out naturally. If your hairstyle causes the growing hair to become pulled out, this can severely reduce the amount of hair on your scalp.
A hair follicle will grow for approximately 2 to 6 years. If you suspect that hair style may be at the root of your female hair-loss condition, change your hairstyle right away, but expect that it will take several years to grow back to it’s natural fullness.
Hormones
Hormones are perhaps the most common cause of female hair loss. Women tend to experience loss after having a baby, after surgery, during menopause, or at other times in their lives when hormones change. The onset of female hair loss may be an indicator of an over or under-active thyroid gland. If you are experiencing hair-loss at a time in your life where your hormones should otherwise be stable, you may want to have your doctor run some tests to check your thyroid.
Medications
Some types of medications such as blood thinners, vitamin A, anti-depressants, birth control pills, and medications used to treat cancer or gout can cause female hair loss. One way to determine if medication is the cause of your condition is to see if the condition improves when you stop taking the medication. However, many of these medications cannot just be stopped, and because hair growth is such a slow process, it may be quite some time before you can tell if the condition has improved. Ask your doctor if any of the medications you are taking cause female hair loss and look for alternatives.
Diseases and Infections
Female hair loss may be an indicator of an underlying disease such as lupus, diabetes, or a fungal infection of the scalp. If your hair loss symptoms don’t seem to have other causes, it’s a good idea to check with your doctor about possible diseases or infections that could be the core of the problem.
Unfortunately, in many cases losing hair is not something that can be reversed by changing hairstyle or stopping a medication. For many women, hair loss is a fact of life. However, this doesn’t mean that women have to live with thin hair and bald patches. Today’s hair restoration technology has improved dramatically in recent years and can quickly and painlessly give women back a full head of hair and their sense of self-esteem.
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Know About the Female Hair Loss Types and Causes
Hair loss problem is a universal problem and there is possibly no one under the sky who never undergoes through this problem in entire life time. Although hair loss is a common issue that has become an embarrassing problem for unisex, but female hair loss pattern largely differs from male ones.
Hair is known as an ideal indicator of one’s optimum health. If you have healthy, shinning, growing hair, it means you have a healthy health as well. So any change in the condition of hair, be it falling than normal or looking dull, should be considered very seriously, because it may function as a warning sign of upcoming physical hazards. So if you are suffering from any unusual amount of hair fall or uneven hair texture, you should not be late to consult with health expert regarding this problem.
Female hair loss pattern is different from male hair loss pattern. It has been categorized mainly under three heads – Androgenetic Alopecia, Alopecia Areata and Telogen Effluvium.
Androgenetic Alopecia
This pattern is considered as the most common in female hair loss. This is also known as female pattern alopecia. Alopecia refers to baldness. But this differs from male baldness. If someone is suffering from alopecia, it doesn’t mean that she is suffering from complete baldness. Alopecia is featured as hair thinning, most prevalently on the top and crown part of the head.
The onset of the complication is identified as the shrinking of hair follicles and leading to cause finer hair within a short life span. Gradually, the cells in these areas stop producing hair. This type of female hair loss is actually occurred during hormonal changes such as during pregnancy or post menopause phase. You may also suffer from female pattern alopecia, if you take birth control pills on a regular basis or if you undergo through prolonged stress.
Alopecia Areata
Not as common as Androgenetic Alopecia, but it is identified as a round bald patch initially followed by an inevitable progress of total hair loss in the entire scalp area. The primary cause is identified as autoimmune disorder that may be elicited by several factors like high fever, acute stressors, allergy, bacterial, viral or fungal infection and traumatic experience.
However, it is seen that the hair follicles remain alive but non-active for an indistinct period of time. So there is always a possibility to avoid from this type of female hair loss and to enhance follicles for re-growth if proper therapeutic measure is taken on time. In practice, it doesn’t really depend on the reason of hair loss all the time, but you can be free from any sort of female hair loss if the hair follicles are not destroyed.
Telogen Effluvium
This is also referred to as diffuse hair loss. If you are suffering from recent thinning of hair throughout your entire scalp area, it is a high chance that you are susceptible with this type of female hair loss problem. In general, it is triggered by internal health complications such as nutritional deficiencies, hormonal disturbances, elongated and intense experience of stress, chronic illness and others. This type of female hair loss does not necessarily promote a complete baldness and can be cured totally if proper intervention is taken to correct underlying malfunctioning.
However, at the onset of hair loss we may not be as careful as required. Most of the time, we simply underestimate the condition and give it a light and secondary priority. This makes the problem getting worse day by day. Hence, it is highly recommended that if you feel your hair is falling than usual, you must not neglect the condition and take immediate action. The treatment of hair loss largely varies depending on several factors. It may be done with chemical-based medicine or using herbal supplements, depending on preferred health-expert’s advice, individual preference and individual health condition. In the severe case, the treatment may include surgical intervention as well.
Dr John Anne is an herbal specialist with years of experience and extensive research on herbs and alternative health. If you are looking for more information, read about Female Hair Loss Treatment at http://www.ayurvediccure.com/hair-loss/hair-treatments-you.htm. AyurvedicCure.com is the World’s Largest Alternative Health Portal. You can also Participate in Health Questions & Answers, Discussion Forums and Blogs.
Also visit Dandruff Causes and Cures to get rid of Dandruff
Causes of Female Hair Loss ? Arrest Your Hair Problem At The Earliest!
Female hair loss increases as they age. The causes of female hair loss are different from men this could be due to the different hormones present in men and women. Hair problem is often known as alopecia and in women it is commonly known as androgenic alopecia.
Hormonal imbalances
Menopause
Polycystic ovarian syndrome or pcos
Emotional and physical stress
Lack of protein
Lack of calorie
Lack of zinc and iron
Thyroid problems lead to hair thinning and hair loss.
White blood cells attack hair follicles evident in Alopecia Areata.
Women face hormonal imbalances at various stage of their life. There can be hormonal changes during menopause which may result in hair problems. This can also lead to stress and tiredness. Stress be it emotional or physical by itself hampers the hair growth. You can see that all these causes are interlinked with each other.
If you are facing Polycystic ovarian syndrome there is a great possibility of hair loss and thinning of hair. Improper diet and lack of exercise can also lead to such problems. Lack of protein, zinc deficiency, calorie deficiency and iron intake leads to anemia which results in female hair loss. If you are looking forward to have healthier hair then you should include foods like roast beef, chicken breast, bananas, cereals, and potatoes in their diets as it is rich in Vitamin B-6 and protein. Folic acid certainly adds volume to your hair and makes it thick. Food products rich in folic acid are chickpeas, cooked lentils, boiled asparagus, collard greens, papaya etc. In addition to food, you can also buy tablets rich in folic acid and iron as a supplement to your diet.
Most foods that are rich in protein will contain Vitamin B-6 so people who are looking to have healthier hair should include foods like roast beef, chicken breast, bananas, cereals, and potatoes in their diets. When it comes to Folic Acid, you may want to eat more boiled asparagus, medium papayas, chickpeas, collard greens, and cooked lentils.
Vitamin A deficiency will cause conditions such as thick scalp, dry hair or dandruff – all these will eventually lead to hair problems. Thyroid medications, high doses of Vitamin A, Anti-inflammatory drugs if consumed in high amount will result in hair problems. In a condition such as Alopecia areata there may be slower growth of hair due to the female hair follicles being attacked by white blood cells. Consult a doctor and treat your problems at the earliest.
Gyan K, Expert author. For more information on: Causes of Female Hair Loss
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Hair Loss in Females: What Causes Female Hair Loss and What You Can Do to Prevent it
Hair isn’t described as a woman’s crowning glory for nothing. Hair is often a physical attribute that can make a woman look more or less attractive, and it is one of the reasons why women are greatly affected when they realize they are suffering from it.
Hair Loss in Females and Androgenetic Alopecia
Androgenetic alopecia is the most common cause of hair loss in females. It begins with noticeably hair thinning especially at the top and side areas of the scalp. An estimated one-third of susceptible females suffer from female alopecia or female-patterned baldness. This type of hair loss occurs usually when women are in their postmenopausal stages but there are unfortunate instances when they take place at puberty stage.
With female alopecia, the only time you should start worrying is when hair shedding has exceeded 125 hair strands per day or when your body stops reproducing hair strands to replace what has fallen out. With regard to genetics, loss of hair in females may come from either parent.
Anagen Effluvium and Telogen Effluvium
Anagen effluvium refers to the type of female hair loss wherein hair strands haven’t yet reached the final stage of their life cycle. Nevertheless, certain agents, usually medications that are administered internally, poison and eventually cause the death of still-growing hair follicles.
Telogen effluvium, on the other hand, refers to the type of female hair loss wherein there are more hair strands reaching the telogen stage than what’s usual. Telogen effluvium may be caused by a number of things:
Stress
Stress is not only caused by psychological factors. It may be caused by an unnatural physical condition as well such as having just undergone surgery and experiencing the changes it wrought on your body. Stress can also be a symptom of crash dieting, anemia, and various kinds of illnesses.
Of course, emotional and psychological factors inducing stress can also lead to excessive loss of hair. Grieving over the death of a loved one or experiencing a mental illness can both make the problem worse.
Medications
There are a number of medications and treatments that may require the individual to lose their hair albeit only temporarily. If you are suffering from high blood pressure, medications for your condition may also be a cause and medications for gout also have the same symptom. Lastly, take extra care with medications containing great quantities of Vitamin A as these can also induce hair loss.
Hormones
Women who are undergoing menopause – or experiencing pre-menopausal or postmenopausal symptoms – as well as those who are taking birth control measures and are pregnant are all vulnerable to hair loss. This is due to the hormonal changes or abnormalities their bodies are being subjected to.
Of course, once the underlying cause of telogen effluvium is addressed and effectively resolved then hair will generally start to return to normal.
Frequent Shampooing as a Mythical Cause for Hair Loss in Females
Although harsher or stronger chemicals in shampoo products are sometimes blamed for loss of hair, frequency of shampooing is generally not a problem and cannot cause hair loss. Shampoos may loosen up some of your hair strands and cause you to shed more than usual, but affected hair strands are those already in the telogen stage and would have fallen out eventually. Either way, they will still be replaced by your body.
About the author: John Tulley manages the: Female Hair Loss Blog. This Blog is updated on a regular basis with advice and information on the cause of female hair loss and what options are available to treat the condition.
What is Female Hair Loss and What Causes It?
Women suffer from female hair loss, too. Old men are not the only ones who are plagued with depleted scalps, think again. Female hair loss is very much a reality.
Female Pattern Baldness
Female hair loss is what is commonly known as female pattern baldness or androgenetic alopecia. Surprisingly it has been discovered that in America, the ratio of women who have it those who don’t is 1:4. Although female hair loss can’t kill in itself as a condition, it can be troubling.
Females have always been traditionally viewed by society as creatures who should have full heads of beautiful hair. A woman who has a condition of female hair loss would therefore be seen as unusual.
Normal Hair Cycle
Hair resting and growing phases characterizes a normal hair cycle. In the anagen or growing phase, the hair develops healthily for a couple of years. After this, it will enter the telogen phase in which it will begin to rest for a number of months before falling off. Normally, 80%-90% of the hair is in the anagen phase, leaving only a comparatively small fraction in the telogen and shedding phase.
For women with hair loss, it is obvious that a lot more than 10% of their hair strands are in the telogen phase. In female hair loss, something disturbs the normal cycle.
Cause of Female Hair Loss
- Hormonal Changes – Hormones play a big part in female hair loss. As some of us already know, both men and women have testosterone, a hormone which men normally have more of. In androgenetic alopecia, this hormone is acted upon by enzymes in the scalp that convert it into dihydrotestosteron (DHT).
The DHT causes the hair follicles to shrink, which eventually will result to loss of hair and inability to grow new strands. In women, the action of DHT is regulated by the hormone estrogen. Female hair loss therefore normally occurs when a woman is in a state of hormonal imbalance. This can happen when a woman is in the menopausal stage or when she has just given birth. The condition can also strike when a woman is receiving hormonal treatment for an illness.
Pattern of Hair Loss
Although there is a similarity in the reason behind male and female hair loss conditions, there is a marked difference in appearance. Men usually develop bald spots. We are very much familiar with men eventually losing all hair strands on a particular area such as the top of the scalp. Female hair loss however is different. Women usually only have diffuse balding. This means that there is an observed general thinning of the hair strands resulting in some parts of the scalp becoming more noticeable through the remaining strands. A woman who develops bald spots like men may have a more serious condition that deserves medical attention.
Hair Loss Solution
Female hair loss treatment products are now available. Now that you know what causes the condition, the best solution is to find a product that can provide extra nutritional support to the female scalp and hair. Nutrients that have been discovered to be good for female hair loss are vitamin B6, biotin and magnesium. Of course, it also makes sense to take care of your health through proper diet and good lifestyle habits.
Learn the causes of female hair loss. Use the best female hair loss treatment now!