Category Archives: Hair Loss General

If you are suffering with a form of hair loss, don’t despair, there are many options available to you in terms of treatment. However, prior to starting treatment for your hair loss condition, you will need to find out what type of hair loss condition that you suffer from.

There are many reasons why women lose their hair, but the most common form particularly in women is called telogen effluvium. Not only do you lose the hair on your scalp, it is also common for other body hair such as eyebrows to fall out too.

Telogen Effluvium is usually caused by an intense amount of stress being placed on the body. This can be both physically and mentally and it affects your physical and hormonal systems in your body. It is your body’s way of reacting to the stress that is being put on it and it is normally a sign that you are putting too much strain on your body.

Thankfully though, this type of hair loss does get better with time and more often than not, women don’t necessary experience bald patches, but more that their hair thins and becomes very wispy. You will find that provided you reduce the amount of stress in your life that your hair will return over time once the hair follicles start to produce hair again.

There are many causes for hair loss in women, so it is important to get a proper diagnosis from your GP if you think you are suffering from a hair loss condition. Only when the correct cause of your problem is identified can the right solutions or hair loss management options be found.

One cause of hair loss in women is down to the thyroid gland. Found in the back of the neck, the thyroid gland is responsible for three main functions, such as:

• The production of proteins
• How quickly energy is used in the body
• The sensitivity of the body to other hormones

An underactive thyroid is known as hypothyroidism, whilst an overactive gland is called hyperthyroidism. Both of these conditions can cause female hair loss, thinning or brittle hair.

Hyperthyroidism – overactive

A condition more common in women than in men, hyperthyroidism occurs when there is too much thyroid hormone in the body. It causes many changes in the body, such as weight loss/gain, a loosening of nails and patchy hair loss known as alopecia.

Hypothyroidism – underactive

This is when the underactive thyroid gland is not producing enough of the hormone known as thyroxine, causing symptoms that may not show up for several years. When they do, sufferers may notice hair loss, muscle cramps, tiredness, depression and many other symptoms.

Many people wonder why they suffer with alopecia and whether there are any prerequisites for explaining why some people suffer from it and others don’t. Hair loss is a mine field when it comes to explanations for certain types of hair loss and there are many differing options about why it happens and what causes it.

There are many different types of alopecia but the most common known forms are alopecia areata and traction alopecia.

Alopecia areata is the sudden loss of hair, generally in patches on the scalp. It is due to the hair follicles prematurely and rapidly entering into the telogen phase which is better known as the resting phase. Unfortunately, the cause of this type of alopecia is unknown but some experts believe that it should be catagorised as an autoimmune disorder. It is unusual for this type of alopecia to become widespread and tends to be in random patches all over the scalp.

Traction alopecia is caused by excessive amounts of tension being placed on the hair shaft. This causes damage to the hair follicle and over long periods of time, the hair will cease to be produced and will eventually lead to patches of baldness.

It is not uncommon for women of all ages to experience hair loss during their lifetime. A large proportion of women find that they lose some of their hair when they go through the menopause. This can be particularly distressing, especially given all of the other symptoms of menopause such as hot flushes, hormone changes and mood swings so you really don’t want to have to contend with hair loss as well.

For some women have loss comes in patches, rather than all over. This is sometimes a sign that the condition relates to alopecia and in some instances, alopecia is curable and treatable in the majority of cases. However, alopecia is brought on by a range of different things and often the cause of the hair loss can be easily adjusted and their hair returns.

It must be remembered when it comes to hair loss that our hair and their follicles that produce hair work on a cycle of approximately 7 years. Whilst some follicles are producing hair, others will be lying dormant and the cycles alternate to ensure that there is always a full head of hair. However, for those who suffer with hair loss, the follicles that should be producing hair have become dormant and the other dormant follicles have not start to produce hair

If you are going through a stressful time in your life that has resulted in the loss of some or all of your hair, you don’t need to worry, as it happens to many women during certain times in their lives. Everyone handles stress differently and it can be a hard thing to come to terms with when you are putting yourself through a lot at work or something is going on at home. Some women feel like they can’t go to the doctor because hair loss isn’t something that should happen to women, but you definitely need to see your doctor in order to get a formal diagnosis.

Having a formal diagnosis of your hair loss condition will ensure that you are getting the right kind of treatment for your hair loss and to ensure that there is nothing else seriously wrong with you that might be causing your hair loss. Your doctor will be able to put you on the right medication if there is any for your particular type of hair loss and advise you on other things that you can do such as reducing the amount of stress you are under or improving your home life situation.

One of the most common forms of hair loss seen amongst women of all ages is telogen effluvium. Most women who suffer with this particular type of hair loss find that their hair will normally grow back over a period of time, however this can still be a distressing time for any woman and they still find it difficult coming to terms with the fact that they have lost some or all of their hair.

Telogen effluvium occurs when a woman experience sudden or severe stress which in return causes an increase in the amount of hair that is shred from the hair. We all lose hair on a daily basis but it is a very minimal amount and usually it goes unnoticed. However, the sudden or severe episode of stress causes hair follicles to stop growing and enter into a resting phase.

The good news is that this condition is temporary for most people who suffer from it however it does mean that you need to take it easy and ensure that you are not putting yourself through any unnecessary stress. It has been found that some women who have gone through a stressful pregnancy and labour suffer from telogen effluvium.