Causes of Hair Loss

If you watch too much television and believe the advertisements you see, you are probably convinced that hair loss is due to not using the right cosmetics (“right” being the most aggressively advertised ones, of course). Sure, hair cosmetics plays an important part in hair care but to blame everything on cheap shampoos, especially when there are more expensive ones with a more devastating effect on your hair, is too much. Yes, there are cases when hair loss is due partially or entirely to bad cosmetics and poor hair care but these cases are rare, compared to the vast majority of hair loss cases, which are due to other reasons.

First, it is necessary to clarify that there is temporary hair loss and permanent hair loss. Second, many cases of hair loss are due to a combination of reasons, rather than only one of them. This is very important to know because if you have not identified correctly the cause of hair loss, its treatment might not be that effective.

Among the most often quoted reasons of hair loss are stress, illnesses and medical conditions, hereditary factors, chemotherapy and medication as a whole, hormonal problems, pregnancy, infections, improper hair care. All these causes will be examined in detail in this and the subsequent articles because as it turns out, in many cases hair loss can be prevented or at least the regions it affects can be minimized in size and number.

Hormonal imbalance is one of the most frequent causes of hair loss, especially when it is combined with a disease. Hormonal imbalance occurs when the hormone-producing glands are overactive or underactive and as a result male and female hormones (androgens and estrogens) are not balanced. When the hormonal balance is restored, most likely hair loss will stop and new hair will start to grow.

A frequent case of hormonal hair loss is during and above all after pregnancy. Although most women suffer from hair loss a couple of months after they had given birth, occasionally there are cases of hormonal hair loss during pregnancy. Basically when the hormonal balance is restored to its normal, pre-pregnancy level, hair loss stops but if it doesn't then a consultation with a dermatologist is necessary.

Another very common reason for hair loss is stress. People react to stress in a different way and even if the same individuals were subject to the same amount of stress (as if it were possible), only few of them would lose their hair as a result of the psychological pressure. Very often hair loss due to stress is temporary and after the stress factors are not present anymore, your hair will start to grow again.

The same applies to illnesses and medication as a cause of stress but here the probability is higher. Unfortunately, there are illnesses, which lead to permanent hair loss and even after you recover, your hair will not start growing again and you will have to resort to special treatment and maybe even surgery. But again, this is up to the individual and not all people who suffer from a given disease develop hair loss. One of the most frequent illnesses that leads to hair loss is cancer and the worst is that the chemotherapy that is part of its treatment, causes even more hair loss.

Infections and skin diseases are also a common reason for hair loss. Depending on the type of infection, it might take some time and medication to cure the infection. Fungal infections are common mainly in children and the good news is that they are easily treated with antifungal medicines. Different bacteria can also cause hair loss and it is your dermatologist, who will tell you how to proceed.

Last but not least, comes improper hair care. Here the list of activities is really long and impressive. Improper hair care includes washing your hair frequently (for example, every other day), not combing it regularly (or at all), using shampoos, razors and cosmetic that cause allergic reactions and make your hair fall off in larger quantities than the normal. Some hair styles, like pigtails or cornrows strain your hair quite a lot - in a way, they just pull it from your head. This pulling causes scarring to your scalp and when you see scars, be prepared that you will need serious efforts to regain your hair back. Various hair oils and above all dyes, can cause inflammation, which in turn leads to hair loss.

The list of reasons is by no means exhaustive but in any case it gave you the idea that hair loss is a complex phenomenon, which can be the result of many unfavorable factors and which most often than not requires treatment from a qualified person.