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Hair loss, also known as alopecia can affect your scalp as well as your entire body and it can be temporary or permanent. Hair loss isn’t caused by old age alone—on the contrary, it’s caused by a variety of factors such as ill-health, hormonal imbalance, unhealthy hair care habits, poor nutrition, and major stress.
As with every other type of condition in order to properly treat and prevent hair loss in the future, one has to know the root cause of the problem. Hence, if you realize that you are shedding more hair than usual, knowing the reason why will help you in determining the best treatment. That’s why in today’s guide, you’ll be learning the causes of hair loss.
Causes of hair loss
Hair loss is caused by a variety of reasons as mentioned above. That’s why in this section, we’ll be paying attention to some of the most common causes of hair loss.
1. Thyroid issues
The medical conditions of hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) and hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid) can result in hair loss since both conditions cause hormonal imbalance.
Hormones are responsible for regulating almost every function in the human body and hair growth isn’t excluded. This means that with the right treatment the thyroid conditions will keep the hormones under control and when they are controlled it’ll stop hair loss and cause your hair regrowth.
2. Thinning hair following pregnancy
Hormones imbalances can lead to hair loss and your hormones will fluctuate widely during pregnancy and childbirth. So, if you notice loss of hair during and after pregnancy, do not be alarmed. It’s not abnormal for postpartum mothers to experience baldness or thinning hair—it’ll take time for the hormone levels in your body to return to normal.
It’s normal to notice baldness or thinning hair three months after childbirth. If and when you do, do not be alarmed, your hair follicles will recover together with the rest of your body. This goes to say that hair loss during and after pregnancy is only temporary.
3. Medications
Medications sometimes come with side effects and hair loss is one of them. You may experience hair loss and thinning as a side effect when you take medications to blood-thinning, depression drugs, calcium channel blockers, NSAIDS and beta, and oral contraceptives.
Taking too much vitamin A as well as vitamin A-based drugs known as retinoids can also cause hair loss. Cancer treatment with some chemotherapy drugs can result in total hair loss and they fight to destroy cancer cells. The same way hair grows back after chemotherapy, your hair should grow back once you stop taking any medication causing the hair loss.
4. Diet deficiencies
Essential nutrients and vitamins like protein that are obtained from a varied, healthy, and well-balanced diet ensure good health throughout your body by making sure that all your internal systems and organs are working properly. Poor nutrition (fad diet) can cause deficiencies in several nutrients which can, in turn, result in hair loss.
5. Physical trauma
When your body undergoes serious physical stress, it disrupts the natural cycle of hair growth which results in hair loss most times in the form of thinning hair.
Shocks to the system such as being in an accident, experiencing burns, undergoing surgery or even becoming very ill can shock the hair follicles causing 75% of your hair to fall out.
6. Emotional stress
Dealing with life-altering or changing events (shows being involved in an accident or going through a break-up or divorce) can disrupt the normal cycle of your hair growth. This means that significant emotional stressors can cause temporary hair loss but if the emotional stress can be controlled then normal hair growth will be restored.