Hair Loss

People often deem hair loss as a typical occurrence due in part by aging, but is rarely considered a disease. Hair loss or balding may begin with a few extra strands draining down the sink, entangled in combs, or left on the pillow every morning. People essentially lose about 50 to 100 hair strands a day, but these grow expectedly in the same follicle, which is normal.

Causes Of Hair Loss

Hair loss or baldness occurs when people lose hair excessively and may begin noticing it months after the hairs hasn't grown back. Although hair loss is a common occurrence in adults, teens can sometimes lose their hair as well. There are several causes of hair loss. Some medications has hair loss as a side effect, as well as poor nutrition and underlying medical conditions, medical treatments, hormonal imbalance, heredity, chemicals, trauma, surgery, hair loss after pregnancy or childbirth, infancy, and scalp infection such as ringworm, and hairstyling.

Hair loss after pregnancy is due to hormonal changes. After 3 to 6 months after childbirth, hormones begin adjusting to the normal, pre-pregnancy state. It may have to take about two hair growth cycles, or several years later, before the texture of your hair completely returns to normal. The body has different reactions to pregnancy, but it's only temporary.

Birth control and hairloss are also somewhat related because contraceptive pills contain the female hormone estrogen that retards the resting phase of the hair cycle. Birth control and hairloss occur about a month or two after taking the contraceptive pills. However, this is only temporary and should go away soon. Otherwise, doctors would recommend switching to another type of contraceptive to stop hair loss from birth control pills.

Symptoms Of Hair Loss

Hair loss in medical terms is alopecia. Androgenetic alopecia (caused by heredity) affects about 30 percent of the population, which unfortunately is permanent. Having androgenetic alopecia can cause your hair to fall as early as in your teens that begins at the crown and temples.

Most people don't notice their hundreds of their hair falling until they look at themselves in the mirror. You might notice hair strands stuck on your comb or hairbrush, or on your pillow upon waking up and women may find their ponytails or braids thinning. For other people, hair loss may mean seeing more scalp each month without hair regrowing.

Hair Loss Treatments

Men often ignore their hair falling and sometimes cover it up by wearing different hairstyles, wigs, and hairpieces. You can also try hair loss shampoos also these have not been proven to effectively stop hair loss. However, you can try your luck at these hair loss shampoos formulated with keratin (a type of protein for healthy hair) and other hair-friendly ingredients.

A couple of hair loss drugs have also acquired the approval of the FDA as a medicine to stop hair loss. The drug Minixidil (Rogaine) is an over-the-counter medication to treat androgenetic alopecia as well as alopecia areata. This drug is in liquid form that patients rub on the affected area of the scalp to hasten regrowth of hair and prevent further sloughing.

Finasteride (Propecia), meanwhile, is a prescription medication in pill form for the treatment of male-pattern hair loss that patients take twice daily to prevent further hair loss. This drug acts differently to patients – some showed positive results several months after, other experience a delay in hair loss, while some actually showed the growing of new hair.

Cortiscosteriods is the type of hair loss treatments wherein cortisone is injected into the scalp to treat alopecia areata. Cortiscosteriods are usually repeated every month. Doctors may sometimes prescribe cortisone pills, ointments or creams but these can be less effective.

Although excessive hair loss or baldness can be an unpreventable occurrence when it's hereditary, always see your doctor to ensure there are no underlying reasons to hair sloughing.