"Know the Causes & Cure of Hair Loss & Bid Farewell to Hair Shedding"
Everyone wants attractive, silky, smooth, and luminous hair, but it can seem rare today. Our busy schedule is the main reason for lacking proper hair care, which results in dandruff, an itchy scalp, dry, damaged, frizzy hair, split ends, and ultimately, Hair Loss.
Let's share some information about Hair and the Causes & Solutions of Hair Loss.
What is Hair?
A skin appendage that protects the scalp is a protein-based filament that grows from hair follicles. It primarily comprises dead, keratinized cells and is divided into Cuticle, Cortex, and Medulla layers. However, Medulla is not found in everyone’s hair; it is found in thick, curly, and Kinki hair types.
Stages of Hair Growth Cycle:
The hair growth cycle consists of four distinct phases, each with a specific timeline that can be influenced by age, nutrition, and overall health. The stages of hair growth have been studied to understand how hair grows and find ways to prevent or treat early hair loss.
The Stages are-
1. Anagen is the growth phase:
(2-7 years duration; depends on genetics, age & other factors).
The hair growth cycle starts with the Anagen phase, which lasts anywhere from 2 to 7 years for the hair on the scalp. This phase varies for different types of hair. For example, eyebrow and pubic hair have a much shorter anagen phase than scalp hair.
What happens in this phase?
During this phase, hair follicles grow new hair that will keep growing until it’s cut or falls out after reaching its lifespan. At any given time, about 85% to 90% of the hair on the head is in the anagen phase.
2. Catagen is the transition phase:
(2-3 weeks),The Catagen phase begins when the active growth phase (anagen) ends and lasts about 2 to 3 weeks.
What happens in this phase?
During this phase, hair follicles shrink, and hair growth slows down. The hair separates from the base of the follicle but stays in place for its final days of growth. At any time, only about 1% to 3% of the hairs on your head are in this phase.
3. Telogen is the rest phase:
(3-4 months), The Telogen phase usually lasts 3 to 4 months, and about 9% of the hairs on your scalp are in this stage.
What happens in this phase?
During this phase, hair doesn’t grow, but it doesn’t typically fall out either. Meanwhile, new hairs begin forming in follicles that have recently released hairs during the previous catagen phase. Some experts include the shedding phase as part of the telogen phase, but many scientists consider it a separate stage called the exogen phase.
4. Exogen is a shedding phase:
(It’s a natural hair-shedding phase). The Exogen phase is an extension of the telogen phase.
What happens in this phase?
During this stage, hair naturally sheds from the scalp, often when washing or brushing. It’s normal to lose 50 to 100 hairs daily in this phase. While old hairs fall out, new hairs start growing in the follicles. This phase can last several months.
What is Hair Loss?
As new hair cells are produced at the hair bulb, old cells are pushed out through the skin’s surface about six inches a year. 50-100 hair falls daily are average. This is called a natural occurrence. But when the quantity of hair falls increases and comparatively new hair growth decreases, your hair thins, which is called Hair fall.
Stages of Female Pattern Hair Loss:
According to Ludwig’s scale (1977), there are three grades of female pattern hair loss.
Grade I: Hair thinning on the top of the head, starting about 1–3 cm behind the front hairline, leaving the frontal edge intact.
Grade II: Noticeable hair thinning on the top of the head, in the same area as in Grade I hair loss.
Grade III: Complete baldness in the area affected by Grades I and II hair loss.
Types of Hair Loss:
Involutional Alopecia:
A natural condition in which the hair gradually thins with age. It occurs in people aged 50 with no history or evidence of hereditary baldness.
Androgenic Alopecia:
It runs in families and is influenced by hormones, leading to the gradual thinning of the hair on the scalp after puberty, which affects up to 50% of men and women.
Alopecia Areata:
It is an autoimmune disorder that can happen to anyone, including young adults and even children, in which the immune system attacks hair follicles, leading to hair loss.
Telogen Effluvium:
It is temporary hair thinning caused by disruptions in the hair growth cycle in the telogen (resting) phase due to significant physical or emotional stress, illness, or hormonal changes.
Scarring Alopecia:
An inflammatory condition that destroys and damages hair follicles, causing scarring and permanent hair loss due to health conditions, burns, and tight ponytails or braids.
Other Types of Alopecia in Women:
Alopecia in Girls: It appears between the ages of 6 and 10, during an adrenarche phase, when hormone levels rise. Since adrenarche happens earlier in girls, this could be noticed earlier in girls than in boys.
Alopecia and Menopause: Menopausal women don’t always experience hair loss, but sudden hair loss may occur, often showing specific hair loss patterns due to genetics.
Postpartum Alopecia: It occurs when the rapid drop in estrogen after pregnancy causes more hair to shed. Women with a condition called female androgenetic alopecia (FAGA) may lose more hair after pregnancy because their hair is more sensitive to hormones.
Iron Deficiency Alopecia: Iron deficiency, often from blood loss during delivery or a lack of iron in the diet, can lead to hair loss by causing follicles to enter the shedding phase. Low ferritin levels can worsen hair loss, while upper levels help maintain healthy hair growth.
Alopecia and Vitamin B12: Low vitamin B12 may be linked to depression, and many women with hair loss experience emotional and social challenges.
Causes of Hair Loss:
Hormones:
Various hormones highly affect the hair cycle and the structure of the hair follicle. Excess androgens, or male sex hormones, and hormonal imbalances are the most common causes of hair loss, such as androgenetic alopecia. Androgens play a role in female and male pattern baldness.
Genetics:
Genetic factors from the maternal and paternal sides of the family can influence hair loss. If these genes are linked to conditions like androgenetic alopecia, hair thinning may begin as early as your 20s or 30s.
Childbirth:
Hair falls in women after childbirth are expected due to low hormonal levels. But it can be reversed.
Stress:
It encourages the release of cortisol into the body and has been proven to harm the hair follicle's formation mechanism.
