The Top 5 Hair Loss Causes in Men and Women

Hormonal Imbalances and Hair Loss

Hormonal changes can substantially affect your hair’s growth cycle and cause different types of hair loss. You can identify and fix the root cause of hair loss by learning how hormones affect your hair.

Thyroid Disorders Impact on Hair

Thyroid hormones are vital in regulating hair growth and maintenance. A malfunctioning thyroid disrupts your hair’s natural cycle. Studies show that hair loss affects about 50% of people with hyperthyroidism and 33% with those who have hypothyroidism.

A thyroid condition might cause:

• Diffuse thinning across your scalp
• Changes in hair texture and strength
• Loss of hair in other body areas
• Delayed hair regrowth

Pregnancy and Postpartum Hair Loss

Your hair becomes thicker and more vibrant during pregnancy due to increased hormone levels. The story changes after giving birth. Nearly half of new mothers experience postpartum hair loss. Most hair shedding peaks between four to five months after delivery.

This hair loss, called telogen gravidarum, happens because estrogen levels drop after childbirth. The increased shedding might worry you, but note that this condition doesn’t last forever. Your hair should return to its normal fullness by your baby’s first birthday.

Menopause-Related Hair Thinning

Hair thickness and density often change as menopause approaches. Research shows that more than half of women deal with some form of menopause-related hair thinning. Declining estrogen and progesterone levels cause these changes by disrupting your hair’s growth cycle.

Menopause can bring:

• Overall hair thinning, especially at the crown
• Slower hair growth
• Changes in hair texture
• Thinning in other body areas

Hormonal changes during menopause can boost androgens, which may shrink your hair follicles. This process usually starts during perimenopause and continues through postmenopause. It affects both your scalp and other areas where hair grows.

Your hair’s growth cycle responds differently to thyroid health, pregnancy, and menopause stages. Understanding these relationships helps you take the right steps and get treatment when needed.

Stress-Related Hair Loss

New research shows a deep link between stress and hair loss. Your body’s stress response can directly affect how your hair grows. Scientists have found that stress hormones can force hair follicles to rest longer than they should.

Acute vs. Chronic Stress Effects

Your body reacts differently to short and long-term stress. A brief stressful period might temporarily mess with your hair cycle. Long-term stress leads to ongoing hair loss problems. Studies show that ongoing stress puts you at risk for health issues like depression, anxiety, and severe hair loss.

Long-term stress makes your body pump out more stress hormones, especially cortisol. These hormones can:

• Stop hair follicles from working normally
• Make the resting phase last longer
• Slow down new hair growth
• Cause inflammation around your follicles

Telogen Effluvium Explained

Telogen effluvium is the most common type of stress-related hair loss that affects your whole scalp. You might lose up to 300 hairs each day, which is way more than the normal 50-100 hairs.

You’ll start to notice more hair falling out about 2-4 months after something stressful happens. This happens because stress forces more of your hair into a “resting” phase. The actual hair loss comes months later as new growth pushes out the resting hairs.

There are two types of telogen effluvium:

• Acute: Lasts less than six months and usually starts after a specific event
• Chronic: Goes on for more than six months with no clear trigger

Stress Management Techniques

Your hair needs protection from stress-related loss. Here are some proven strategies that work:

Lifestyle Modifications:

• Eat a balanced diet full of proteins and vitamins
• Exercise regularly to keep stress in check
• Sleep 7-9 hours every night

Mental Health Support: Try stress-reduction methods like meditation, deep breathing, or yoga. Research shows that just a few minutes of daily meditation can help break the stress cycle that leads to hair loss.

Stress-related hair loss usually doesn’t last forever. Most cases of telogen effluvium go away within 6-8 months once you get your stress under control. If your hair keeps falling out or really bothers you, a healthcare provider can help you find the right treatment plan.

Nutritional Deficiencies

Your diet is a vital part of healthy hair growth, and lack of nutrients can affect your hair’s health by a lot. Studies show that micronutrients play major roles in the normal hair follicle cycle and affect cellular turnover in the follicle bulb.

Essential Vitamins for Hair Health

Several key vitamins help your hair grow:

Vitamin D: This nutrient helps create new hair follicles and boosts your immune system. Supplementation might help if you have hair loss with low vitamin D levels.

Vitamin C: This vitamin does more than boost general health. It has a vital role in:

• Helping your body absorb iron
• Supporting collagen production that strengthens hair
• Protecting hair follicles from oxidative stress

B-Complex Vitamins: Many companies market biotin (B7) for hair growth. Yet research shows that hair loss links only to deficiencies in riboflavin, biotin, folate, and vitamin B12.

Mineral Deficiencies and Hair Loss

Iron deficiency leads the list of nutritional deficiencies worldwide that cause hair loss. Women who experience hair loss should pay special attention to their iron levels:

• Women who menstruate face higher risks of iron deficiency
• Your serum ferritin levels need to stay above 40-70 ng/dL to prevent severe hair loss

Zinc levels can affect your hair health too. A study with over 300 people who had hair loss showed low zinc levels consistently. But it’s worth mentioning that too much of certain minerals, like zinc and selenium, can make hair loss worse.

Diet Recommendations for Healthy Hair

Your hair needs these nutrient-rich foods to stay healthy:

Protein Sources:

• Lean meats and poultry
• Fish, especially fatty fish rich in omega-3s
• Eggs and dairy products

Iron-Rich Foods:

• Dark leafy greens
• Lean red meat (85% lean or higher)
• Fortified cereals

Balance your daily calories this way:

• 20% from protein
• 20-30% from healthy fats
• 45-60% from carbohydrates

Sharp cuts in calories or carbs can make your hair thin and brittle. A balanced diet usually gives you all the nutrients you need. If blood tests show specific deficiencies, your doctor might suggest targeted supplements.

Medical Conditions Causing Hair Loss

Medical conditions can substantially affect your hair health. These range from autoimmune disorders to infections of all types. You should know these conditions to identify the right time to get professional medical help.

Autoimmune Disorders

Your immune system sometimes attacks your hair follicles by mistake and causes different types of hair loss. Alopecia areata, the most prominent autoimmune-related hair loss condition, affects nearly 7 million people in the United States. This condition can start at any age, and about 20% of cases occur in children.

Alopecia areata puts you at higher risk for other autoimmune conditions. People who have autoimmune diseases like psoriasis, thyroid disease, or vitiligo are more likely to develop this condition.

Your risk increases if you have:

• Asthma or hay fever
• Atopic dermatitis
• Close family members with autoimmune conditions
• Existing thyroid disorders

Scalp Infections and Diseases

Scalp infections lead to temporary or permanent hair loss based on their severity and treatment timing. A common scalp infection creates scaly and inflamed areas on your scalp that appear as small black dots – these are actually hair stubs.

Folliculitis decalvans stands out as a rare but serious scalp condition that causes ongoing inflammation of hair follicles. Round or oval-shaped bald spots appear and can lead to permanent hair loss with scarring.

Bacterial infections like Staphylococcus aureus are the most common hair problems. These can cause ongoing inflammation and destroy hair follicles without treatment. The good news is that most scalp infections respond well to treatment, and hair typically regrows after the infection clears.

Medication-Induced Hair Loss

Many medications can trigger hair loss as a side effect and disrupt your hair’s natural growth cycle. This type of hair loss usually shows up 2-4 months after starting a medication. Hair loss severity varies by medication type and your body’s sensitivity to it.

These medications often cause hair loss:

• Chemotherapy drugs
• Antidepressants, especially SSRIs, which can cause noticeable hair loss after about 8.6 weeks
• Blood pressure medications
• Arthritis treatments
• Acne medications containing vitamin A

Hair loss from medications is usually temporary. Hair starts growing back 3-6 months after stopping the medication. Your hair might take up to 18 months to look normal again.

Never stop taking your medication if you think it causes hair loss without talking to your healthcare provider first. They can adjust your dosage or switch you to a different medication that might be easier on your hair growth cycle.

Note that drug-induced hair loss can affect any part of your scalp or body. The severity depends on both the medication type and dosage. Your healthcare provider can run specific tests, including a hair pull test and scalp analysis, to find the exact cause and suggest the right treatment options.

Lifestyle Factors

Your daily choices and environment can make a huge difference to your hair’s health. We can’t control all causes of hair loss, but knowing how your lifestyle affects your hair helps prevent damage you can avoid.

Hairstyling Damage

You might be damaging your hair without even knowing it through your hairstyling habits. Up to one-third of women suffer from traction alopecia, a condition caused by tight hairstyles. This especially affects women of African descent. Your hair follicles face constant stress from tight ponytails, braids, or cornrows.

Tight styling can seriously damage your hair:

• Your first warning signs include scalp pain and small bumps
• You could face permanent scarring and irreversible hair loss if you don’t change your style
• The combination of extensions or weaves with relaxed hair creates the highest risk for traction alopecia

Heat styling damages your hair too. Your hair structure suffers major damage when you use tools above 347 degrees. This weakens your strands and leads to breakage, making your hair look thinner as time passes.

Environmental Impacts

Your hair battles various environmental factors daily that can lead to hair loss. Hair follicles become easy targets for environmental pollutants because of their high levels of proliferation and perfusion.

Key Environmental Stressors:

• Exposure to particulate matter (PM) triggers inflammatory responses and links to alopecia areata
• UV radiation creates oxidative damage and disrupts hair follicle function
• Tobacco smoke harms hair through multiple pathways, including vasoconstriction and increased cellular senescence

Billions of pollution particles can settle on your hair surface in heavily polluted areas, which changes its structure and removes its shine. People living in urban, industrialized areas lose more hair than those in rural regions.

Daily Habits Affecting Hair Health

Your routines can either protect or harm your hair health. Research shows several lifestyle factors that lead to hair loss:

1. Diet and Exercise Habits:

   • Hair growth suffers from very low-calorie diets
   • You might lose hair if you completely avoid alcohol and exercise too much

2. Sleep and Stress Management:

   • Bad sleep quality puts your hair at risk
   • You might lose more hair if you drink too much caffeine

Product Usage Impact: More products don’t always mean better hair care. Too much shampooing makes your scalp produce extra oils, which might increase hair fall. Styling products with alcohol can make your hair break easily during brushing.

These evidence-based practices can protect your hair:

• Switch up your hair partition and styles often to avoid constant tension
• Pick soft, non-static scrunchies made with cotton fibers or pure silk
• Don’t rub wet hair vigorously with a towel
• Cut down on heat treatments and always protect your hair from heat

Small habits add up to affect your hair health. Research links smoking, drinking more than four alcoholic drinks weekly, and longer stress periods to hair loss. You can keep your hair healthy and prevent unnecessary loss by making smart choices about your daily hair care routine and lifestyle habits.