If your hair is falling out, it can be a distressing experience. Naturally, you want to keep as much of it as you can. But sometimes, it just seems to want to flee your body. And that’s bad news if you’re attached to it.
Fortunately, this post is here to help. We look at some of the reasons why your hair might be falling out, and what you can do about it.
Read on to learn more:
Pattern Baldness
One of the most common reasons your hair might be falling out is pattern baldness. This can happen to men and women, but shows up more in men most of the time.
Unfortunately, there’s not much you can do in terms of lifestyle to prevent this process. Researchers are still trying to figure out exactly why it happens and what is ultimately driving it.
The good news is that things like microneedling and hair transplants can help. These work by either refreshing the hair or replacing it with follicles that won’t eventually die off and lead to the familiar baldness pattern.
Hair Shock
Another reason you could be losing your hair is due to hair shock. This occurs when the hair goes through some sort of stress and then falls out.
Called telogen effluvium scientifically, this mostly happens when you feel stressed because of work, you lose all your money, you go on a crash diet, or you’ve just given birth. It causes up to 30% of hair follicles to go into their shedding phase at the same time, simulating the idea of hair loss.
The good news is that this form of hair loss is usually reversible. As long as you remove the stressor, you should find that it grows back pretty quickly.
The best way to deal with this is to fix the trigger. For example, if you’re on a crash weight loss diet, monitor thyroid health and ensure you’re getting all the micronutrients your body needs, like iron.
Deficiency Anemia
Speaking of which, you can also lose hair due to deficiency anemia. This pattern of baldness is most common in younger women, since hair follicles are sensitive to low ferritin.
The best way to deal with this particular cause of hair loss is to go to the clinic for regular blood tests. You want to ensure your iron levels are above 70 nanograms per milliliter, as this puts you in the normal range. Supplementing iron should be a last resort, so focus on improving your folate and B-vitamin status first.
Thyroid Issues
Finally, you can sometimes lose your hair because of thyroid issues. If the organ isn’t working properly, then it can lead to poorly regulated hormones and generalized thinning of hair coverage.
Unfortunately, dealing with thyroid conditions requires direct intervention. Sometimes, the thyroid can return to health by itself, but your doctor may also prescribe the hormones it generates directly in the form of pills, or give you an antibodies blood test to check for autoimmune conditions.
