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Hair Loss Causes

Hair Loss: Causes


Top Causes

1. Strict diet to manage body weight

A perfect body is a dream of every woman. Most of the women who want to maintain their body shape follow a strict diet and restrict the intake of necessary nutrients. The lack of nutrients is the lack of vitamins, minerals, and other essential nutrients that are responsible for hair growth and health. When the hair does not get the required amounts of nutrients, it results in weak hair and hair loss. Some women even undergo excessive dieting to gain immediate weight loss. But, they do not realize that this can affect their hair in some way. Lack of proper nutrients for the hair results in weak hair shaft, broken hair, and eventually hair loss.

2. Cigarettes

Cigarette smoking is injurious to health. At the same time, smoking prevents the supply of oxygen to the hair. This leads to nutritional deficiencies in hair. Apart from the damage caused to the hair, smoking is also known to accelerate aging process. One of the major signs of aging is hair loss in both men and women. Middle-aged women lose a lot of hair and men become bald during this stage. The severity of hair loss due to smoking is more in men than compared to women.

3. Unhealthy scalp

The condition of the scalp is also responsible for hair loss. Unhealthy scalp can result in inflammation. This makes it very difficult for the hair to grow well. The scalp is considered to be unhealthy if it has dandruff. Dandruff is caused by a fungus known as Malassezia globosa. The fungus can infect anyone as it is found freely floating all over the atmosphere. Use of excessive hair care products also leads to dandruff. Dandruff causes itching and irritation on the scalp. People tend to scratch the scalp to get relief from dandruff. This weakens the hair roots and leads to hair fall.

4. Illness

Certain types of illnesses are also responsible for hair loss. Severe infection, high fever, flu or other serious diseases can make the hair follicles go into a resting phase. This is a condition called telogen effluvium and results in increased hair loss. This kind of loss may be temporary and can be resolved when the illness is cured. People undergoing some kind of treatments like chemotherapy may experience hair loss to some extent. They may lose at least 90 percent of the hair due to chemotherapy. Certain drugs can cause hair fall. Medications used for treating depression, arthritis, and heart problems can lead to hair loss. Health conditions like iron deficiency and thyroid disease can also lead to hair loss.

5. Hair treatments

This is one of the most common causes of hair fall in women. The hair is subjected to various chemicals and treatments that make the hair weak. Procedures like straightening, drying, tinting, perming and bleaching of hair deals with a lot of chemicals on the hair. Chemicals used for bleaching are very sensitive and weakens the hair. Hair becomes thin and light, and fall out eventually. Improper hair care, use of chemicals for a long time and wrong methods for hair styling lead to excess hair fall. Some chemicals when used for a long time make the hair brittle and break. Ensure that you perform hair styling with a licensed professional.

6. Stress

Stress can cause hair fall to a great extent. When we are under stress, the body produces some hormones like noradrenaline and cortisol. Both of these hormones make the hair follicles fall into a resting phase and stop producing new hair. So, when you are under stress, new hair may not be produced. This causes thinning of hair. However, the good news is that this condition exists only when you are under stress. When the stress is released, the hair follicles start producing new hair.

7. Genetics

Hair fall due to genetical factors is called androgenetic alopecia. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, androgenetic alopecia is one of the common causes of hair loss. The gene responsible for this condition may be inherited from any side of your parents. This condition mostly leads to thinning of hair, especially in women. This is a slow process and may occur early at the age of about 20.

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