Hair Loss Causes and Risk Factors

Interesting Facts About Hair And Hair Loss

Hair loss is related to the tendency of hair follicles to stop producing hair growth. Partial or complete loss of hair is called alopecia. Hair loss usually develops gradually and may be patchy or diffuse.

Facts About Hair And Hair Loss

• Hair is the fastest growing tissue in the body, second only to bone marrow.
• The average scalp contains about 100,000 hairs.
• Roughly 100 hairs are lost from your head every day.
• Each individual hair survives for an average of 4 - 7 years, during which time it grows about half an inch a month.
• You need to lose about 50% of your hair before hair loss becomes noticeable.
• In the United States, 30 million women experience hereditary hair loss. 70% of women with thinning hair can attribute it to hereditary hair loss.
• Hereditary hair loss or androgenetic alopecia is the most common form of hair loss for men, representing more than 95% of all male cases.
• Androgenetic alopecia affects many more men than women. About two-thirds of men experience some degree of appreciable hair loss by the time they are 35 years old, and about 85% have significantly thinning hair by age 50.
• In the United States, there has not been an elected bald President since the television age began.

The Most Common Cause Of Hair Loss
The most common cause of hair loss is genetics - inherit the tendency to lose hair from either or both of parents. The medical term for the genetic predisposition for hair loss is "androgenetic alopecia".

In androgenetic alopecia, the genes affect how the hair grows. They trigger a sensitivity to a class of hormones called androgens, including testosterone, which causes hair follicles (which hair grows from) to shrink. Shrinking follicles produce thinner hair and eventually none at all. Thus, androgenetic alopecia is caused by the body's failure to produce new hairs and not by excessive hair loss. Heredity also affects the age at which you begin to lose hair and the developmental speed, pattern and extent of your baldness.

Androgenetic alopecia accounts for more than 95% of hair loss in men. By the age of 35 two-thirds of American men will experience some degree of appreciable hair loss and by the age of 50 approximately 85% of men have significantly thinning hair.

Men generally develop bald spots on the forehead area or on the top of the head. In men, the hairs on the top of the head have a genetic sensitivity to the male hormone testosterone while the hairs on the sides and back of the head do not possess this genetic trait and therefore are not affected. For this reason hairs removed from the sides and the back (donor hair) will maintain their genetic predisposition when transplanted and continue to grow when moved to the top of the head where hair loss has occurred.

For woman, female pattern baldness is the most common type of hair loss. It can begin at puberty, but is most often seen after menopause. Women have an overall thinning of the hair throughout the scalp while the frontal hairline generally remains intact.

Other Hair Loss Causes And Risk Factors

Hair loss is not usually caused by a disease, but is related to aging, heredity, and testosterone. In addition to the common male and female patterns from a combination of these factors, other possible causes of hair loss, especially if in an unusual pattern exists, include:

• Side effects of medications or medical treatments. Certain drugs used to treat gout, arthritis, depression, heart problems and high blood pressure may cause hair loss in some people. Drugs that can cause hair loss include:

             * cholesterol lowering drugs: clofibrate, gemfibrozil
             * parkinson medications: levodopa
             * ulcer drugs: cimetidine, ranitidine
             * anticoagulants: coumarin, heparin
             * medications for gout: allopurinol
             * antiarthritics: penicillamine, auranofin, indomethacin, naproxen, sulindac, methotrexate
             * drugs derived from vitamin-A: isotretinoin, etretinate
             * anticonvulsants: trimethadione
             * antidepressants: tricyclics, amphetamines
             * beta blockers: atenolol, metoprolol, nadolol, propranolol
             * antithyroid agents: carbimazole, Iodine, thiocyanate, thiouracil

• Delayed shedding from stress. This common form of hair loss happens two to three months after a major body stress. The stressful event induces a higher proportion of hair follicles to enter the resting stage all at the same time. A few months later, all of the now-resting follicles begin to shed their hairs at about the same time. Because the stressful event happened months ago, most people do not connect it with their hair loss. It is a temporary condition, and new hairs begin growing within a few months. Stress can also trigger genetic hair loss. If your already losing hair stress will cause you to lose hair even faster.

• Inadequate protein in diet. Some people who go on crash diets that are low in protein, or have severely abnormal eating habits, may develop protein malnutrition. The body will save protein by shifting growing hairs into the resting phase. Massive hair shedding can occur two to three months later. This condition can be reversed and prevented by eating the proper amount of protein and, when dieting, maintaining adequate protein intake.

• Iron deficiency. Iron deficiency occasionally produces hair loss. Iron deficiency is common to women during menstruation and pregnancy and can be corrected through proper diet or iron supplements.

• Pregnancy and childbirth. Hair loss that is connected to pregnancy usually occurs after delivery. When a woman is pregnant, her hairs grow at very high speed. However, after a woman delivers her baby, many hairs enter the resting phase of the hair cycle. This is a natural process and resolves completely in most cases.

• Birth control pills. Women who lose hair while taking birth control pills usually have an inherited tendency for hair thinning (androgenic alopecia). If hair thinning occurs, a woman can consult her gynecologist about switching to another birth control pill. If a woman has a history of female pattern loss in her family she should advise her doctor before going on the pill.

• Scalp infection. Infections such as ringworm can invade the hair and skin of your scalp, leading to hair loss. Once infections are treated, hair generally regrows.

• Thyroid disease. Both an overactive thyroid and an underactive thyroid can cause hair loss. Hair loss associated with thyroid disease can be reversed with proper treatment.

• Patchy hair loss (Alopecia areata). Alopecia areata is classified as an autoimmune disease, but the cause is unknown. This disorder causes hair follicles to stop producing hairs. Approximately 2% of all people experience an episode of alopecia areata at some point in their lives. In the vast majority of cases the condition is temporary and goes away all by itself within 6-7 months, and hair growth in the bald patch resumes.

• Hair pulling (traction alopecia). Traction alopecia is the loss of hair from constant pulling, often the result of tightly braided hair styles.

• Hair care. Pulling your hair back too tightly can cause hair loss. You may lose hair around the edge of the hairline, especially around the face and forehead. Using curling irons or dyes continually can also result in hair loss. Hair usually grows back when these activities are stopped.

• Blow-drying can worsen hair loss. The reason is that extreme heat damages the proteins in the hairs making them fragile and liable to break off. Brushing the hair during blow-drying causes more damage. If you use a hair dryer, it should be set on the coolest setting. Hair dyes, perms and hairsprays do not affect thinning hair.

• Age. As you age, your hairs tend to break more easily, and hair follicles do not grow as much hair.

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Hair Loss Stress Related Condition

A hair loss stress related condition affects many people especially in the years between 20 and 40. Many treatments are available for hair loss but you've to first look at what causes you to lose hair.

It is only then that you can look at how to deal with a hair loss condition. When you identify what causes your hair to fall out you then can apply the right treatment. One area that cause the problem is a hormonal imbalance, which is brought about by stress. This can easily be treated with various supplements and vitamins.

First you need to understand your hair.

Your hair is made up mostly of protein. So a good balanced diet that is rich in silica, calcium and iron will help to put your hair into a good state. The best treatment, actually comes from within so eat plenty of green mineral rich leafy vegetables together with berries and fruits. There are many other foods such as potato, cucumber, bean sprouts and peppers that are especially beneficial for the hair so find them out and eat them. Nutritional studies have shown that soy protein such as tofu, soy milk and yogurt actually stimulate hair growth.

You also need to identify any bad stress in your live that could be a trigger for your hair loss stress related condition and take action to eliminate it or to manage it. Stress of course is relative and very personal. It is up to you to root out the cause and to deal with it. This together with a healthy, well-rounded diet will deal with the seat of the problem. And then you can move on to actual treatments for the hair.

Treatments for your hair.

There are many treatments available today to stop or reduce hair loss and promote new hair growth. Your hair needs internal nutritional support and good grooming will maintain hair growth and healthy hair follicle function.

One way is to use shampoos that contain silicon as these tend to slow down hair loss while making your locks a lot stronger too.

There are also many home remedies passed down from days gone by and between cultures that many people claim has worked for them. The writer makes no claims as I haven't used them. And as with anything you should do your own research before using any of the treatments mentioned in this article.

Here are five from the many.

1. Massage your hair with olive oil and leave on overnight while you sleep. Washout in the morning. Olive oil works well as a hair tonic because it is rich in essential fatty acids that keep the hair follicles moisturized.

2. Rinse your hair with mixture of apple cider vinegar and sage tea as this is said to help in hair growth.

3. Beat an egg in henna powder and curd. Then apply to you scalp as a hair mask. This prevents hair fall.

4. Massage coconut milk into your hair roots and make sure you cover the entire scalp. Leave for an hour and then wash off with warm water. Use it three to four times a week. Instead of coconut milk you can also use aloe vera gel.

5. Boil a handful of henna leaves in mustard oil to a ratio of four tablespoons to a cup. Filter and store in a sterilised glass bottle. Massage this herbal oil into your scalp before washing your hair. If possible, leave overnight or at least thirty minutes before washing your hair. This is said to be very effective in treating hair loss.

There are also many hair loss products available today and if you do a simple search online you will realise how many there are. The secret is to find the best one that suits you and your hair loss stress related condition.

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