Female Hair Loss

Hair Loss

Hair loss is a common problem amongst all the men and women. Many of the women of our society are facing the problems of hair fall and even going almost bald. The cause may be any but sometime it affects the confidence of women more in comparison to their male counterparts. Hair of a woman is the important asset to make her healthy and gorgeous. For many of the women hair problems are not only a biological setbacks but a part of self-esteem too. 

The root cause of hair loss in women is not genetic but it is related to several other metabolic problems like, pregnancy, stress, chemotherapy, crash diets / anorexia, thyroid hormone deficiency, major surgery, sever infection or high fever. Hair loss in female due to above mentioned factors is normally temporary, so if you are facing hair loss and at the same time going through any of the above mentioned ‘trauma’, don’t be panic, keep patience, take prescriptions and precautions and after all a diet rich in proteins, vitamins and minerals. Definitely your hair will grow again and as healthy as before. 

The pattern of hair loss in females is completely different from males. While males go bald, the baldness in females is rare. The normally occurring pattern of hair loss in females are found as thinning and lessening in shaft hair diameter around the forehead and crown of the scalp. The pattern is more to be found in females in the forties. This pattern may also found in the females with the beginning of menopause. According to clinical trial and statistics, about 13 percent of females experience hair problems before menopause while this number is alarmingly high, about 37% for post menopause. 

As a female grew old, the intensity and level of a hormone called Estrogen drops in her body. The estrogens blocks the steroid hormone pre menopause, which results in low level of DHT.  Post menopause the level of DHT in females rises and some time it is so high that it causes hair problems. 

Amongst commonly occurring post menopause hair problems are decline in hair growth, thinning of hair and general effluvium. As a female enters into her 80’s, the follicle shrinks completely and hair growth stops.

The very reason of hair problems in women after post menopause is the reduction of estrogen in the body. The different estrogen opposes androgens and makes themselves unavailable for the cells, by blocking androgen receptors.

Opposing estrogens reduces heavily at onset of menopause but androgens remain available to the hair follicle and stem cell that is converted to DHT.  

Major Causes of Hair Loss in Females

The most common type hair problems diagnosed in females is Androgenetic alopecia inherited. However, this is most common cause of hair problems in males as well.  Androgenic alopecia in females is seen as hair thinning which means the number of hair on female head heavily reduces. Since the reason of hair loss varies individual to individual and hence proper medical help is of utmost importance.

Some other common causes of hair problems of females are mentioned here:

1.Alopecia areata- This is patchy loss of hair from the scalp. Sometime eyebrows and other hair bearing parts begin losing hair. This type of hair loss is considered to be due to autoimmune.

2.Traction alopecia- This type of hair loss occurs because of continuous traction pressure on hair follicles. Sometime this may occur because of tight braiding or corn – rowing of hair.

3.Trichtotillomania- This type is supposed to be cause of stress or result of some other psychological disorder.

4.Telogen effluvium- This is associated with poor nutrition, drugs and stress.

5.Loose anagen syndrome- This disease is more common in fair haired ladies. This is the situation in which bunch of hairs drops down while combing, shampooing, etc. Normally the scalp hair comes out very easily and this lessens the hair density on your head.

6.Triangular alopecia- In this situation hair around temples lost.

7.Scarring alopecia- This type of hair loss in females is caused, when one goes through some type of physical trauma etc. Sometime traction alopecia introduce to scarring alopecia

Best Hair Loss ProductsSo if you are a female and suffering with hair loss problems, go for professional medical help, take a diet rich in nutrition and prevent hair loss.

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Female Pattern Baldness

Female Pattern Baldness

Female pattern baldness a.k.a. alopecia in women is the most common form of hair problem that women come across. It involves a typical hair loss pattern, resulting from hormones, aging and genetic predisposition. 

Hair loss pattern resulting from alopecia in women

Unlike in men, female pattern baldness does not cause hair loss in a well-defined pattern. The hair starts thinning all over the head though there is no hair line receding. It is rare for alopecia in women to result in total baldness. 

In the case of females, the scalp hair loss may begin at any age though usually after 40.

The patterns of female pattern baldness can vary considerably in appearance and may include:

• Diffuse thinning all over the scalp often with more noticeable thinning toward the back of the scalp.

• Diffuse thinning all over the scalp with more noticeable thinning toward the front of the scalp but not involving the frontal hair line.

• Diffuse thinning all over the scalp with more noticeable thinning toward the front of the scalp, involving and sometimes breaching the frontal hairline.  

Symptoms of alopecia in women

In normal condition a woman tends to lose around 100-125 hairs per day. Losing more hair than that indicates that the condition is not normal. 

The following two conditions indicate alopecia in women –

• Hair thinning over the entire head

• Hair loss at the crown or hair line, from mild to moderate 

Causes of female pattern baldness

The disease is triggered by the presence of a male hormone called testosterone in female body. Testosterone is produced by androgen hormone. 

Certain women are decidedly more sensitive to testosterone than others. This sensitivity results in hair thinning on their scalp. Testosterone interacts with the enzyme 5 alpha reductase produced by the body. The interaction causes the production of DHT within the hair follicle.  

DHT causes production of shorter and finer hairs. When DHT is not received well by hair follicles, it causes reduced blood supply and it causes hair thinning on the scalp. 

Diagnosis of female pattern baldness

Women tend to have less obvious hair loss patterns than men and they face non-pattern hair loss more frequently than men. Diagnosis of female hair loss should be conducted by a trained and experienced physician. 

The physician diagnoses this hair disease on the basis of hair loss appearance and pattern. He also checks whether other possible hair loss causes can be ruled out. He may also go for a skin biopsy or other procedures to diagnose the medical disorders. 

Treatment

The diagnosis of female pattern baldness should be followed by a proper treatment. The patient is usually administered Rogaine. Another medicine is Aldactone, which is useful especially for the women experiencing hair fall after menopause. A modern and popular method used in the case of female pattern baldness is hair transplantation.

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What Causes Woman's Hair Loss? A Look at 7 Common Causes of Female Hair Loss

Female Hair Loss

Let’s face it, hair loss for anyone can be a very distressing problem but women’s hair loss can be especially distressing…

Although the causes of women’s hair loss vary from person to person, by understanding the common causes of female hair loss, this can help you find the right potential treatment or solution.

1) Hereditary thinning, or androgenetic alopecia to give its medical name, is the most common cause of women’s hair loss. The tendency to develop female pattern hair loss can be inherited from either side of the family.

Generally this leads to thinning of the hair in women rather than baldness and can start in the teens, twenties or thirties.

Unfortunately, there are no cures for hereditary female hair loss. However, there are treatments which may help some people such as minoxidil, which is a lotion applied twice daily to your scalp.

An alternative solution which women with thinning hair may consider is female hair transplantation. This procedure involves moving hair from areas of your head with normal hair growth to thinning areas.

As with all surgical procedures, you should only undertake this after taking advice from a specialist.

2) Improper hair cosmetic use is another common cause of women’s hair loss. Treatments such as bleaches, tints, hair dyes, straighteners or perms rarely damage your hair if done properly. However, overuse can cause the hair to become weak or break.

If chemical treatments cause your hair to become brittle and leads to hair loss, then it is recommended you stop the treatments until the damaged hair has grown out.

3) Alopecia areata is a type of hair loss which can affect women of any age. This usually results in hair falling out and leaving round coin sized smooth patches on the head. In rare cases there may be a total loss of hair.

Although the cause of alopecia areata in women is not clear, in time the hair usually grows back by itself. Female hair loss caused by alopecia areata can also be successfully treated by dermatologists.

4) Thyroid disease can also lead to female hair loss. Where an under or over-active thyroid condition has been diagnosed, any associated hair loss can be usually be successfully treated by your physician.

5) Severe infection, flu or a high fever can be a cause of women’s hair loss. After a bout of illness, even as much as four weeks to three months afterwards, you may be taken aback by seeing a lot of hair falling out.

This is caused by your hair going into a resting phase to redirect energy at healing. Any hair loss usually corrects itself though.

6) Some medications can also lead to women's hair loss. For example, prescription drugs used for arthritis, blood thinning, depression, gout, heart problems or high blood pressure may cause hair loss. High doses of vitamin A have also been associated with female hair loss.

7) Inadequate protein in a women’s diet can be a cause of female hair loss. If you go on a crash diet or have extreme irregular dietary habits then you may develop protein malnutrition.

As with severe illness, the body will put hair into the resting phase to conserve protein. Significant hair loss can occur two to three months later and be easily pulled out by the roots.

Hair loss can be easily reversed by ensuring you eat the correct levels of protein in your diet.

In conclusion, we have looked at several common causes of women's hair loss and suggested some solutions for treating the problem. However, because there are so many different causes of female hair loss you should always consult your physician or dermatologist to correctly diagnose your problem and the best course of action to treat  it.

By: Campbell Forsyth

Published At: www.Isnare.com

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