Chemotherapy has a great impact on the body and one particularly noticeable effect is that people will often lose some or all of their hair.

When this occurs and the severity of the condition varies from patient to patient, depending on the drugs used and the person being treated. It is ordinarily diffuse hair loss, which is general, fairly even hair loss, not in patches or clumps. People may think that brushing their hair or handling it can exacerbate the problem, but this is not the case.

When hair is being shed, it is important to keep the scalp clean and this is done by shampooing as normal. As with brushing, shampooing does not increase hair loss, it is just more apparent at this time. Shampooing will also comfort the scalp and when hair regrows, it will be in the best condition. Shampooing is particularly important if you choose to wear a hat or wig to disguise your hair thinning or hair loss as your head will naturally perspire more.

In some cases, shed hairs can become entangled with hairs still in the follicles. This can occur when hair is not looked after properly and it can lead to pain. In this situation it is better to cut the hair and have a wig fitted.

People can experience hair loss at any time of their life. It is quite common for babies and pregnant women to experience hair loss to some degree, for example. In this instance, the hair loss is due to hormonal changes. When the hormones return to normal, the hair returns, although there will be a lag as hair takes a while to grow.

Both men and women tend to experience thinning of their hair as they get older as well. In women, it is more likely following the menopause. Around two-thirds of men are affected by bald patches or receding hairlines by the age of 60.

In addition to this, there are also lifestyle factors that can cause or exacerbate hair loss. Emotional or physical stress is a common cause, but malnutrition is less well-known. Certain hair styling treatments can also lead to hair loss, including hair extensions and chemical hair treatments.

If you do think that you are losing hair, go and see your GP who will either diagnose the problem or refer you to a dermatologist to do so. When you know the cause of your hair loss, you can then hopefully address the problem.

Perhaps because it is little-known, the figures for the numbers of people thought to be suffering from trichotillomania are surprisingly high.

Trichotillomania is the compulsion to pull out your own hair. It is more common in women than men, but it is thought that around two to four per cent of people suffer from it to some degree. It might be a mild compulsion or it could be more severe, with some sufferers unable to stop themselves and going so far as to pull out huge patches of hair or even plucking their entire scalp.

A trichotillomania sufferer will tend to suffer a mild endorphin rush when a hair is pulled. This is triggered by the slight sensation of pain and can effectively become addictive. Sufferers report feeling calmed by pulling out hairs. However, as hairs desensitise after several pluckings, the person is likely to expand the area they pluck in search of the same feeling as they no longer get the same feeling of relief.

Many people suffering from trichotillomania believe that they are alone, but the figure given above indicates that is far from the case.

Perhaps the most famous sufferer of alopecia areata, Gail Porter, recently appeared on British TV sporting a full head of her own hair. This is despite having spent five years with no hair whatsoever, to the extent that at one point, she lost her eyebrows and eyelashes.

This goes to show that it is quite possible that alopecia areata sufferers will recover. Although the effects of the disorder are devastating, all that is actually happening is that the hairs are entering the rest phase of their growth cycle, something which all hairs enter intermittently anyway. The effect is created by the fact that all hairs enter this phase simultaneously and remain in it, meaning no new hair grows.

However, as the hair follicles remain undamaged, it is quite possible that they can grow hairs again. Porter initially started seeing new hair growth as long ago as 2006, but it has taken until now for her to fully recover as the progress of alopecia areata is unpredictable. She believes that recent improvements have been down to a reduction in stress through finding love.

If you experience hair loss, do not assume that is alopecia areata. Pay a visit to your doctor or a dermatologist who can correctly diagnose you.

Alopecia causes hair loss in different parts of the body and it does so in different ways. Here we explain the difference between alopecia androgenetic and alopecia areata.

Alopecia androgenetic
This is a relatively common condition in both men and women, often referred to as ‘pattern baldness’. It can lead to complete baldness in men, but this is much less likely in women who will ordinarily experience general hair thinning over their entire head.

Alopecia androgenetic in men can be caused by coronary heart disease or enlargement of the prostate, while in women, a hormonal imbalance known as polycystic ovary syndrome is often the cause.

Alopecia areata
This condition tends to manifest itself in patches of hair loss. They are generally round and ordinarily on the head, although they can appear in other parts of the body.

Alopecia areata is an auto-immune disorder, which means that your body’s immune system is treating your hair follicles as if they are foreign bodies, attacking them. It does not kill the hair follicles however, merely hampering hair growth, so hair can grow back eventually.

Female pattern hair loss (FPHL) is also sometimes referred to as androgenetic alopecia. Ordinarily, the human head will shed between 100 and 150 hairs a day. Beyond this and the hair loss may become noticeable.

In FPHL, after a hair is shed, the hair that grows back is not as strong. This process continues until there is merely vellus hair, which is fine hair which is barely noticeable. FPHL can occur any time after puberty, but generally affects women who have gone through the menopause.

FPHL can be divided into mild and severe cases. Mild FPHL is not uncommon and is inherited through a person’s genes. As the hair loss is relatively minor, it can usually be addressed using only scalp make-up and hair style. You can get help and advice with this.

Severe FPHL is usually insufficient to warrant a wig, but as it is more noticeable, there are significant psychological effects for the sufferer. Alternatives to a wig are the Intralace and Medi Connections systems. These offer a greatly effective means of treating effects of this level of hair loss.