Anyone that has ongoing hair loss is bound to be concerned. You’ve more than likely been asking yourself at least some of the following questions. Why is it happening? When will it stop? Is there anything I can do about it before I go completely bald? We understand you may have ongoing trepidation and so we want to share information about what may be going on and what can be done about it.
The first thing to keep in mind is that just because you've detected hair loss does not mean you're going to go bald. There is an assortment of things that can interfere with the normal growth of hair. Medication is a common one as is illness, infection or chemicals. Any of these can interfere with the normal growth cycle of your hair.
According to the American Academy of Dermatology, most people lose an average of 50 to 100 strands of hair each day. When you wash your hair you can potentially lose up to 250 strands. If you don’t have the time or desire to count the hair you loose every day, there are other ways to determine if your hair is thinning or your hair loss has increase at a higher rate.
•Are you finding hair on your pillow when you wake up in the morning?
•Have you noticed a distinct receding of your hairline? This is more apparent in men than women.
•Are you finding more hair in your comb or brush than you used to? Clean your brush and comb on a daily basis so you can tell.
•If you’re a woman have you seen thinning on the top third to one half of your scalp?
•A small amount of thinning of the hair comes naturally with age.
There are tests that your doctor can do to rule out disease or infection that may be causing your hair loss. Blood tests can be done to make sure your thyroid gland or an undiagnosed autoimmune disease isn’t to blame.
Take a look at your older family members and see if there’s a pattern of similar or greater amounts of hair loss. It could be it’s just in your genes. A woman’s hair loss can be female pattern hair loss (androgenetic alopedia) and can be detected by measuring the thickness of a woman’s hair follicles under a microscope. This hereditary condition affects over 30 million women in this country, according to the America Academy of Dermatology, and happens to about 50% of women.
Normally, every time a hair follicle is shed it is replaced by hair that is the same size. In women with female pattern hair loss, the new hair is finer and thinner -- a more miniaturized version of itself. This is due to the hair follicles shrinking and eventually they stop growing altogether. If hair follicles are uniform in size, or if the hair loss is sudden, it is likely to be caused by a medical condition rather than heredity.
Conditions that can cause hair loss, both permanent and temporary, include pregnancy, thyroid disorders, anemia, autoimmune diseases, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and skin conditions such as psoriasis and seborrheic dermatitis. Other reasons may include extreme stress, physical trauma or illness, dramatic weight loss or change in diet causing a depletion in certain vitamins and minerals, and taking too much Vitamin A.
For many of these issues, the hair will grow back in time, but if it doesn’t or if you’re impatient with what the future may or may not hold, we can help you at William Collier Design. We offer free initial consultations and would be happy to meet with you.