Normal Hair Loss – How Much is Too Much?
There’s probably not a phrase that strikes more dread for middle age people: hair loss. The American Hair Loss Association says that by the time a man turns fifty years old, about 85 percent of them will have experienced some hair loss, if not a significant amount of hair loss. Women aren’t immune either – about one-quarter of women who will experience hair loss will start to see the signs before they turn twenty-one.
Looking at hair loss is a stressful topic. Learn how to determine what’s normal hair loss and what’s something you should take action on.
What Amount is Normal Hair Loss?
When you take a shower, you might stress every time you see the hair that sheds in your drain.
However, if you weren’t losing some hair, that would be abnormal. The amount of hair you lose can vary from person to person depending on genetics. You might lose anywhere from sixty to a hundred strands a day – that all falls into the normal range.
If you’re losing more strands than this, then that likely qualifies as abnormal. Keep in mind that most hair loss is temporary, and consider the factors that are causing the temporary hair loss in order to reverse it. Losing more hair than 125 strands a day could be signaling to a great problem.
Sometimes, you’ll experience an uptick in hair loss that’s normal if you’ve had a stomach bug, a period of extremely high stress, or rapid weight loss. Washing your hair less often also causes more to shed when you actually do.
Factors That Lead to Hair Loss
Why does hair fall out? Environmental and genetic factors all combine to lead to hair loss that counts as too much hair loss.
Physical Stress
Car accidents, severe illnesses, surgeries – any type of extreme stress can cause hair loss. The good news about this type of hair loss is that it’s usually temporary, because your body isn’t used to this type of shock and is compensating.
Hair loss isn’t noticeable right away after the traumatic event. Sometimes it can take three to six months to show.
Emotional Stress
Luckily, if you haven’t started losing your hair yet and are very stressed, it’s less likely that emotional stress will kickstart the problem. However, it will compound on a hair loss problem that already exists, so taking active steps to combat anxiety can help prevent your hair loss.
Weight Loss
Weight loss is great if you’re trying to shed a few pounds, but more dramatic weight loss can lead to what you don’t want to lose: your hair. Your body is looking at this as a form of physical trauma, and again, compensates with potential hair loss.
Additionally, you could be eating less and unintentionally be depriving yourself of the vitamins your hair needs to grow. Deficiencies in supplements like vitamin B, for example, are going to keep your hair from growing. Luckily, this is also correctible if you take vitamin B supplements or eat fish and non-citrus fruits.
Medications
Drugs known as beta-blockers can lead to hair loss, commonly blood thinners and blood-pressure drugs. Some antidepressants can also cause thinning of hair, along with lithium, which treats bipolar disorder. Your doctor may be able to determine if your medications are causing hair loss and recommend switching you to a lower dose.
Heredity
It’s no surprise that genetic factors cause us to go bold. If your family has a tendency to bald, you most likely will too. If the females in your family have thinning hair, it’s an even higher likelihood that you’ll follow down that path.
Hypothyroidism
When you have hypothyroidism, you have an underactive thyroid gland. Your thyroid produces hormones that help your metabolism function and cause hair growth. When you’re not getting these hormones, your hair can start thin.
Thyroid medication can return your thyroid levels to normal, and stabilize the problem.
Female Hormones
The hormones associated with pregnancy can lead to hair loss, and so can switching your birth control routine. Going on birth control or going off birth control, depending on the person, can cause telogen effluvium. This type of hair loss is temporary, as it’s also a reaction to trauma.
Similarly, the changing balance of hormones that occurs when going through menopause can also start thinning the hair.
How To Prevent Hair Loss
If you’re going beyond normal hair loss, there are steps you can take to prevent any further damage.
You can prevent hair loss from weight loss by dieting the smart way. A crash diet is not the way you want to go when losing weight healthily, as it puts your body under huge amounts of stress. When you’re dieting, get your supplements, exercise, and your hair shouldn’t start to thin due to trauma.
Eating a lot of protein can help to prevent the chances of shedding your hair too rapidly, and is often a dietary element that’s cut out when you diet. Eat modest portions of protein if you’re looking to shed wait – a little bit of protein is still necessary to prevent loss of hair. Omega-3 fatty acids present in fish and meat helps to control loss of hair.
You can try home remedies to help revive your hair growth. Hot oil treatments are common in rejuvenating the growth of your hair.
Mix together almond oil, coconut oil, and olive oil together equally, and massage it into your scalp. Leave it overnight for the oils to soak in and take effect in your hair, and wash it out the next morning.
You can also stop doing damage to your hair in order to prevent it from thinning. Don’t wear ponytails too tight and restrictively on your head, and skip shampooing as much by using dry shampoo that’s more gentle on your scalp.
Not using heating tools helps keep your hair stronger and healthier. Wearing your natural hair helps reduce the stress you’re putting on your hair.
You can also switch your shampoo routine, and instead of using cheap shampoos, you can opt for a fortifying shampoo that helps to protect new hair growth. Wheat proteins in the shampoo help to repair hair fibers that may be damaged, which not only hydrates the hair, but makes it appear softer and shinier.
Hair loss is a serious problem, but if you take the steps to combat it, then you can start feeling more confident about yourself.