What causes baldness? Understand why people lose their hair
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How and what we eat can have a big impact on our entire body, including our hair. By eating a healthful, well-balanced diet, you can promote hair growth and prevent future loss. Telogen effluvium (TE) is a scalp condition most commonly triggered by a sudden change in the number of growing hairs. During TE, your hair is thrown into the resting phase earlier than usual.
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Best known by its brand name Rogaine, minoxidil is an over-the-counter hair loss treatment approved by the FDA. There are online options to obtain minoxidil as well, through companies like Hims and Keeps. While acute stress boosts the immune system, chronic stress suppresses and over-activates the immune system, leading to inflammation. Not all hair loss is because of stress, but a person may shed significantly more when they experience extreme stress. The hair may grow back and fall out repeatedly over a period of time. AA can affect men and women of any age, affecting over six million people in the United States.
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What can I do to slow or reverse thinning hair?
Alopecia areata is another type of hair loss that can be triggered by stress. This type of alopecia is believed to be related to the immune system. It usually causes a very distinctive type of hair loss, where small coin-sized bald patches appear across the scalp, face, and body. Stress symptoms are linked to the body’s “fight, flight or freeze” response. This is a survival response to stressful or potentially dangerous situations.
Does stress-related hair loss grow back?
Hair loss can precede, accompany, or follow an episode of nervousness, anxiety, fear, and elevated stress, or occur "out of the blue" and for no apparent reason. Robynn Lowe is a board certified Family Nurse Practitioner with over 15 years in the medical field. Robynn received her Bachelor's and Master's degrees from Florida Atlantic University and has been practicing in rural family medicine since. Robynn is married to her college sweetheart, Raymond and they have three awesome children.
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He says topical steroids can help slow shedding, while treatments such as minoxidil or finasteride can help stimulate hair growth. Anti-inflammatory red LED treatments may help slow the shedding, and there is also growing evidence that treating TE with PRP injections may be beneficial, Dr. Bhanusali adds. As mentioned, the inciting trauma or stress can be either physical, emotional, or both.
Male or female pattern hair loss
The hair on the scalp may be thinning, but the scalp looks healthy and does not have scales or rashes. Telogen effluvium is the excessive hair shedding of resting (telogen) hair. In a typical person’s scalp, 85% of hair is anagen, while 15% is telogen.
In particular, nicotine can result in hair loss due to damaging hair follicles. Any type of hair thinning can feel particularly worrying, especially if the reason behind it is unknown, therefore it’s important to understand what might be causing the issue. Dr Bhavini Shah from LloydsPharmacy Online Doctor explains eight possible causes of thinning hair in women. According to Agbai, genetics, hormonal shifts, stress, underlying medical conditions, nutritional deficiencies, and scalp inflammation are notable factors.
If needed, your doctor might also suggest treatment options for your hair loss. ‘Traction alopecia is hair loss caused by repeated pulling or tension on the hair follicles. Tight hairstyles like braids, weaves, or ponytails are common culprits. “Bleaching, perming, and extreme hold hair sprays contain harsh chemicals that can cause hair loss by damaging the hair follicles and strands.
The hair follicle naturally cycles between growth and rest, a process fueled by hair follicle stem cells. During the growth phase, hair follicle stem cells become activated to regenerate the follicle and hair, and hairs grow longer each day. During the resting phase, the stem cells are quiescent and hairs shed more easily. Hair loss can occur if the hairs shed and the stem cells remain quiescent without regenerating new tissue.
The hair pulling may also be more intentional and used as a means to relieve stress or other negative emotions. Evidence notes that when a person quits smoking, it is possible to undo some of the damage caused by the harmful effects of smoking. For example, within a couple of weeks to a few months, a person’s circulation may improve.
And if you get your stress under control, your hair might grow back. In addition to nicotine, cigarettes and cigarette smoke contain more than 7,000 components. Health experts recognize smoking as a major preventable cause of premature death and disability in the United States. The core reasons as to why this happens are ambiguous, but studies suggest a strong relation to unexpected stress as the trigger.
Traction alopecia is the result of environmental factors, such as wearing your hair in tight hairstyles, Agbai says. Telogen effluvium refers to the excessive shedding of hair follicles, and it occurs when hair follicles prematurely skip to the end of the hair growth cycle, she adds. Prolonged or intense stress can also cause the immune system to overreact, contributing to hair loss, Proudman told Live Science.
These results reveal a key pathway involved in hair loss from chronic stress. These findings may also lead to further insights into how stress affects tissue regeneration in other parts of the body. Long-term, or chronic, stress puts people at risk for a variety of health problems. These can include depression and anxiety, as well as problems with digestion and sleep.
Evidence highlights that smoking has an adverse effect on hair health. Nicotine, tobacco, and other components present in cigarettes can build up in hair follicles and the hair shaft. Understanding the underlying cause of your hair loss is absolutely necessary in determining the best approach to halt and reverse any further damage to your hair and scalp. If you’ve noticed an excessive amount of hair shedding, a receding hairline, or that the hair on the crown of your head becoming increasingly sparse, you’re probably experiencing a form of hair loss. Losing your hair can be a distressing experience, but you’re not alone.
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