Do you always get up from a bed full of hair strands? When should the condition be a cause for an alarm? When is hair loss considered a medical condition?
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How Much Hair Loss is Normal?
It’s normal for people to lose hair every second of their lives. It becomes more common when one has certain medical conditions, takes medications, or goes through a stressful event in life.
It’s normal to lose 50 to 100 strands of your crowning glory each day. This is according to the American Academy of Dermatologists.
Many people dismiss it as an everyday occurrence, but it becomes more noticeable for people with longer hair. Why is it normal to lose 100 strands of hair per day? The numbers do not make a huge difference in terms of appearance. The 100 count sounds insignificant when a person typically has 100,000 hair follicles.
On average, ladies tend to lose more strands of hair every day than males. Forty percent of these women lose more hair due to hair styling and other hair treatments, including coloring. They also undergo certain events in their lives where hair shedding is common, such as menopause and pregnancy.
What is the Lifecycle of Hair?
Mat Rezaei, Founder & CEO of UPGUYS said that most people worry too much about their hair falling out. Seeing them in the drain or on your brush may be a little frightening. But it’s completely fine to lose some hair every day. Women may lose more than average because they tend to style their hair more. The American Academy of Dermatology said that losing 50 to 100 strands daily is normal. This is because about 10% of our hair follicles are in the resting stage at any given time. This means they’re ready to fall.
Each hair follicle has a life cycle divided into three phases: anagen, catagen, and telogen. Anagen is the growth phase, which lasts between two to seven years. In this phase, the hair grows roughly 1 cm per month and reaches its full length in 12 to 24 months, Tony said from Unice.com
The catagen phase is a transitional stage between the anagen and telogen phases. This lasts for about two weeks, during which time the hair stops producing pigment (melanin), and keratinocytes (cells that produce keratin) die off in the inner root sheath of the follicle.
The telogen phase is when the follicle enters rest mode for about three months until it begins growing again with a new anagen phase.
The amount of time each person spends in each cycle varies depending on age and health status. For example, older people spend more time in the telogen phase than younger people because they have fewer active follicles.
What Causes Hair Loss for Women?
It’s common for women to lose up to 100 strands of hair. However, increased hair loss can result from an underlying health condition, including the following:
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Lupus
- Thyroid problems
- Female pattern hair loss
- Alopecia
- Hormonal imbalance
- Anemia
- Fungal infection
The health of your hair follicle also says a lot about how much hair you are losing. When you have undergone several cosmetic hair treatments, this may result in your hair strand getting split or stretched. The condition can also be worsened by excessive use of heat styling tools, brushing, bleaching, and washing.
Diet can also be a factor. Too much sugar and alcohol can contribute to thinning hair. Stress can also cause hair loss in some individuals. Medications, such as chemotherapy drugs, may also cause temporary or permanent alopecia (hair loss).
How to Stop Hair Loss
Aside from learning what causes your hair strands to fall out, you must also know what to do to stop the condition before it gets worse.
- Keep an eye out for certain symptoms.
If you notice that there seems to be more hair than usual falling off while you shower or sleep, consult a doctor at once. It’s not proper to self-medicate or use untested products you’ve seen in advertisements or online.
- Find a hair expert.
Seek a doctor whose expertise lies in the hair. However, if you feel like you are experiencing symptoms related to other health concerns that may be causing your excessive hair fall, go to a pro that can check your general health.
What is a Good Method to Prevent Hair Loss?
First and foremost, you have to understand the roots of the problem. You need to know what’s causing the hair loss to efficiently treat it with the help of the right expert.
However, if the cause is not something related to medical issues, you can follow these steps to prevent everyday hair loss and keep your crowning glory healthy:
1. Eat a balanced diet
Hair loss may signify that you are suffering from iron deficiency, lack of vitamin B12, or malnutrition. Eat the right foods filled with these nutrients to counter the problem.
2. Exercise regularly
Exercise helps prevent hair loss because it increases blood circulation in the scalp. It helps nourish the follicles and reduces stress levels, which may cause hair loss in some people.
3. Take medication as recommended by your doctor
If the medications from your doctor are causing you to lose more hair strands than usual, talk to your doctor about it. They need to be aware of the side effects to decide whether you should continue with the meds or not.
4. Use a good shampoo
Shampoos containing zinc pyrithione are usually effective in reducing dandruff caused by seborrheic dermatitis and psoriasis of the scalp. However, you should not use them more than once a week as they can cause burning, itching, and irritation of the skin with prolonged use. Find a good shampoo made from natural and organic ingredients that don’t cause hair fall.
5. Don’t wash your hair too often
Stay away from styling products that say “dry shampoo” on the label. A daily rinse with water should be enough to keep your scalp clean, especially if you have oily hair.
Conclusion
Your hair is your crowning glory. Losing some strands may be normal (up to 100). But if you are feeling uncomfortable with the lost strands and think that it’s becoming too much, make sure that you act on it fast.
Many factors can contribute to hair loss in men and women, including genetics, nutrition, hormone levels, and medical conditions. The idea here is to treat the condition at its early stages.
You have to seek a doctor’s advice if it doesn’t get any better, no matter the changes you make with your diet, exercise, and hair products. You never know, but this may already be signaling an underlying health concern you should focus on.
