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What is hair loss in women?
Hair loss is a common problem that both women and men can experience. But for women, it is especially emotionally harder to lose hair. Although we all lose some hair regularly, new hairs grow constantly which is faster for women. The term “hair loss in women” refers to an imbalance between hair loss and growing new hair that women can experience.
A healthy woman loses more than 50 hairs every day. This number can go up to a hundred. And the body grows them back with no problem. However, for various reasons, this balance can break, either by an increase in losses or slow down in growth. And the body can end up losing more than it can grow. This what we call alopecia, or simply hair loss in women.
Stages of hair loss in women
There are three stages of hair loss in general. These stages are a growing phase, the transition phase, and the resting phase.
the growing phase is also called the anagen phase. This during this stage, every single hair grows. This stage can last up to 8 years. Normally, almost 90 percent of the hair on your head is in this stage.
The transition phase, aka the catagen phase, is the period that hairs stop growing. During this phase, the root of each hair follicle gets smaller. And this can take a few weeks.
The resting phase, or the telogen phase, can last a few months. During this time the follicle gets slowly disconnected and comes off the skin in the end.
Causes of hair loss in women
There are various reasons for hair loss in women. First of all, it can be genetical. Some people get genes that cause more hair loss from their parents. Heredity caused hair loss in women is considered as female pattern hair loss type. This type of hair loss starts on the top of the head and it can get worse after menopause.
Another widely common factor that causes hair loss in women is the damage that certain hairstyles can cause. Some hairstyles can put constant stress on the hair. This can damage the root of hair follicles and with extended times, these hairstyles can cause more hair loss in women.
It is also known that high stress and anxiety can also cause more hair loss. Stress affects many functions in the body. And the hair roots are among them. When you experience high stress, the hair follicles that are in the resting phase falls off quicker. So, the speed to new hair growth may fail to match this loss.
Although the factors we mentioned above are the most common causes, there are also other causes of hair loss in women. We should mention that many types of toxicity that harm the body at a severe level can cause hair loss too. Some poisonous compounds, strong chemical treatments, or radiation can cause the roots of hair follicles to die.
There are also some viruses and bacteria that cause skin diseases that spread on the scalp. Some of these diseases cause local hair loss in women with bald spots. These can be treated and the hair can grow back on these spots.
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