​Causes of Hair Loss that you Need to Know

It is normal for most people to shed about 50 to 100 strands of hair every day. The loss is negligible and it doesn’t cause visible thinning of scalp hair since a new growth replaces every lost strand. Hair loss happens when the cycle of shedding and hair growth is disrupted or when there is damage in the hair follicle.

If the hair follicle is destroyed, it is highly likely that a scar tissue appears, hence, there is no new hair growth. Experts have yet to pinpoint the exact causes of hair loss, but they believe it is related to any of the following factors:

Heredity  

Heredity is the most common cause hair loss, and it is called “male-pattern baldness” or “female-pattern baldness”. Hair loss happens gradually. It is visible in predictable patterns, like a receding hairline and the presence of bald spots in most men and thinning of hair in most women.

While visible hair loss doesn’t manifest until the signs of aging appears, pattern baldness often begins as early as puberty. Thinning of the hair may occur, in addition to the hair becoming soft, short and fine.

Certain Medication Conditions and Hormonal Changes  

These may include:

Hair loss in patches – The medical term for this is alopecia areata. This happens when your immune system attacks the hair follicles, resulting to sudden hair loss, leaving smooth and round patches on the scalp and skin.

Common scalp infections – Your scalp is vulnerable to infections, like ringworms can invade your scalp. This results to hair loss and scaly patches on the scalp. Generally, hair grows back after treatment.

Other skin conditions – There are certain skin disorders that may cause scarring alopecia, which can lead to permanent hair loss and scarring in the affected areas. These illnesses include sarcoidosis, lichen planus and some lupus.

Hair-pulling syndrome – This is also referred to, medically, as trichotillomania. People suffering from this condition have an irresistible urge to pull out their hair, from the scalp, or the eyebrows, or from other areas of the body.

Radiation – When radiation therapy is needed to treat any medical condition affecting the head, it can cause hair loss and it is highly likely that hair won’t grow back as it was before.

Hormonal changes – Hormonal imbalances and changes result to temporary hair loss, due to pregnancy or childbirth, or the start of menopause. Thyroid problems may also cause imbalances.

There are other possible causes of hair loss:

“Trigger events”, like when one is under a lot of emotional stress or physical shock. There is generally thinning of the hair, but it is temporary. “Trigger events” can be high fever, surgery, sudden weight loss, or traumatic event like a death in the family.

Side effects of chemotherapy treatment – Since this cancer treatment is potent, using different kinds of strong chemicals, one of the effects is hair loss. This is temporary, though. Once chemo sessions are completed, hair can grow back.

Other types of medications – There are medications for arthritis, high blood pressure, heart problems, depression, and birth control that are known to cause hair loss. Doctors say that taking over dosages of Vitamin A also leads to hair loss.

Certain hair treatments and hairstyles – Excessive styling, constant use of hair products, certain hairstyles (like ponytails that are too tight), hair coloring treatments and others, may cause inflammation to the hair follicles, leading to hair loss. In case there is scarring on the affected area, hair loss may be permanent.

Risk Factors  

The following factors may increase one’s risk of suffering from hair loss:

Age
Family history
Poor nutrition
Stress Diabetes
Lupus

Treatments  

Treatments may include surgery, laser therapy, certain medications, and wearing of hairpieces.





Article provided by http://apollohair.me/