Causes Of Hair Loss In Women

Too many hair strands in the brush is very upsetting especially if you are a woman who takes pride in her mane. Many a magnum opuses have celebrated the beauty of a healthy crowning glory. Given the pressures that a woman is under, even a few strands more in the brush is a cause of great worry.
The best thing under these circumstances is to pay a dermatologist a visit, instead of going by the trial and error method which could worsen the situation. For information's sake, you can scan through the causes of hair loss in women, which might occur at any age.

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Causes Of Hair Loss Among Women:
Hair loss in women can be temporary or permanent; it all depends upon the root cause of the hair loss. It could be triggered due to shock, stress or certain hormonal changes. It could be inherited or due to certain environmental factors. Only an expert can determine the true cause.

1. Hair Loss Due To Shock/Stress - Sometimes people notice that they are losing their hair in clumps or a lot within a very short span. This is telogen effluvium in medical terms. This type of hair loss is caused due to some incidents such as an emotional shock, stress, loss of a loved one, pregnancy, major surgery and sudden weight loss. This happens because the hair goes from the growth stage (anagen) to rest phase (telogen) due to the aforementioned triggers.
2. Biological Causes - A woman undergoes many biological changes in her lifetime. These changes affect her overall well being and even an out of synch change would cause health problems one of which could be hair loss. The biological factors (includes diseases), that contribute to a woman's hair fall pattern are hormonal changes, genetic/hereditary factors, hypothyroidism/hyperthyroidism, lupus, polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), anemia or alopecia areata. Complete balding in women is rarely seen; however they might suffer from thinning of hair on the sides or at the parting over a period of time. Balding happens in few women wherein they notice bald patches. This is termed as alopecia areata. Hair loss can be a symptom of various diseases such as an overactive (hyperthyroidism) or an underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism), auto immune diseases like lupus, deficiency of iron - anemia or overproduction of male hormones (testosterone as well as DHEAS) due to PCOS.
3. Skin Conditions - Skin infections and disorders also lead to hair fall. In fact they are the most common causes of hair loss apart from hormonal imbalances, in women. Skin problems like dandruff, ring worms and psoriasis lead to hair fall in varying degrees. They symptoms disappear or become less evident when treated appropriately.
4. Medication - Women under medication might experience hair fall as a side effect. During chemotherapy a temporary hair loss is observed among patients undergoing treatment for cancer.
5. Other Causes - Unhealthy lifestyles can lead to temporary hair loss among women. Use of chemical based hair dyes, hair gels or creams affect the hair follicles growth leading to hair loss. Some hairstyles put strain on the hair roots resulting in excessive pulling and ultimately hair loss in patches (though this is not alopecia areata). Hair decorative and clamping pins or clips, bands are also responsible to an extent for hair fall. Blow drying or ironing might also contribute towards hair damage as well as loss.

Hair loss is treatable in some cases, while in some it is not possible to restore the healthy mane. Before deciding on a treatment it is imperative to determine the exact cause of hair loss with the help of a competent medical practitioner especially a dermatologist. And yes hair loss treatments require oodles of patience. So be patient and consult a dermatologist for a cure.

Guest Post By Priti Pandya.
Priti holds a masters degree in communication and loves to read and write for blogs. Currently she contributes articles on many health related topics and has written some interesting blog posts about skin care, hair care, human growth hormone, alopecia and yoga, to name a few for various blogs.