9 Common Causes Of Hair Fall That You May Not Be Aware Of
Expertise: Beauty, Health, & Wellness
Experience: 2 years
Indrani is a writer and artist who likes to add a dash of humor to everything she does. She has two years of experience in writing articles across beauty, health, and lifestyle genres. After graduatin... more
Image: iStock
Most of us are pretty conscious about the way we look. Even if you aren’t now, we bet you were at some point in time. After a certain age, many people start to lose their hair for various reasons, making them feel insecure about their appearance. An average woman loses around a hundred hairs daily, but more than that, you might be suffering from hair fall. But don’t fret; there are plenty of reasons why you might be suffering from hair fall. Hair loss is usually hereditary, but in some cases, it could be a sign of a more serious medical condition that might need treatment. Major surgery or an illness can lead to you suffering from hair loss. So if you are not sure about what the cause of your hair fall is, here are nine reasons why you may be suffering from hair fall (1):
1. Scalp Infections
Certain medical conditions such as alopecia areata can cause patchy hair loss and infections. Infections like ringworm and suffering from lice can make the problem worse. You might also be itching your scalp, which could tug at the roots of your hair and cause hair loss (2).
2. Family History
One of the biggest causes of hair loss is having hair fall in your family history. It can affect both men and women and goes through a predictable pattern. The hairline of men recedes as they grow older, and random bald spots may appear. With women, it means that their hair thins gradually as they grow older (3).
3. Eating Disorders
If you are suffering from an eating disorder like anorexia or bulimia, then the growing phase of your hair cycle gets prematurely halted with reduced food intake. The hair tends to lose its shine and fall out over time as your condition gets worse. Even if you have recently recovered from an illness that made you lose weight, you can end up suffering from hair fall. You must reverse this if you want your hair to improve; you must increase your nutrition intake. Increase the amount of protein you eat for breakfast and avoid skipping meals (4).
4. Anemia
You might end up suffering from hair fall due to an iron deficiency caused by anemia. Your scalp receives less oxygen, and this can starve your hair follicles. A Vitamin C deficiency and the consumption of alcohol and caffeine too can hinder the absorption of iron into your body. Consider taking iron supplements to consume more oxygen (5).
5. Hormonal Changes
During certain times in your life, you will end up dealing with hormonal changes. Hormonal imbalances can cause temporary hair loss. These could be changes in your menstrual cycle, menopause, thyroid-related problems, and even childbirth (6).
6. Medications
Sometimes certain medications and drugs that are used to treat conditions like depression, cancer, heart problems, gout, and arthritis can cause hair fall. Hair fall is often a side effect of blood thinners, antidepressants: anabolic steroids, and fitness supplements. Radiation and chemotherapy can cause hair loss (7).
7. Stress
Those dealing with stress can often experience a thinning of their hair several months after they’ve dealt with an emotional or physical shock. Thankfully this is a temporary type of hair loss, and once you have coped with and overcome the stress, your hair will return to normal (8).
8. Excess Use Of Styling Products
Excessive use of hair products and wearing hairstyles that pull your hair back, like cornrows, pigtails, and high ponytails, can cause traction alopecia. Excess exposure to heat treatments while curling or straightening your hair can cause damage to your hair and eventually lead to breakage and hair loss. Perms and extremely hot oil treatments can cause major inflammation to hair follicles, leading to hair loss. If you notice scarring, the hair loss might even be permanent (9).
9. Childbirth
Hair fall can often increase in intensity after you give birth. Yeah, we know you’re probably thinking, “I have to pop out a baby and then ALSO endure hair loss?”, but hey, you’re not alone. Countless women end up suffering from hair loss after they’ve given birth, but thankfully this is only temporary. Thanks to the high estrogen levels in the body, your hair gets bouncy and thick while you are pregnant. Unfortunately, once you’ve given birth, the estrogen in your body starts to drop, and your hair follicles go into rest mode, and hence you end up suffering from hair fall. This is usually temporary, but if it doesn’t go away after a while, it’s a good idea to seek help from a medical practitioner (10).
We guarantee that you may have experienced at least one of these causes during your lifetime. And that’s perfectly fine! Hopefully, now that you know about these causes, you can go to a specialist or change your lifestyle and habits. Do let us know all of your thoughts on this article in the comment section below.
