Three Reasons Hair Falls Out (Besides Age and Genetics)

Losing your hair can be a difficult thing to deal with. While humans lose hair every day from natural shedding, this hair usually grows back on its own accord, to the point, we don’t even notice the loss.

However, it is common as we get older for the hair follicles to cease their growth process after falling out, resulting in the signs of thinning hair and patterned baldness. Many seek out treatments such as an FUE hair transplant or hair vitamins.

Hair loss can occur naturally with age and genetics. In fact, it is estimated that 85% of men will experience it by the age of 50.

But there are also other contributing factors when it comes to hair loss, some of which are preventable or temporary. Here are a few examples of these factors.

1. Over Processed Hair Routines

Overprocessed hair can become susceptible to damage over time. Overprocessed hair can be easy to detect, as it often feels very dry, like straw, and can hang flat on the head. Hairstyling issues such as flyaways and cowlicks might become more prevalent to this type of damaged hair as well. This can lead it to become more brittle and break off easily.

Some examples of hair care that can lead to damaged hair include:

• Colour treatments like dyes and bleach
• Overheated from extensive blow-drying
• Perm treatments
• Hair relaxers
• Hair sprays with intense holding bonds
• Hairstyling products with too much hold (such as gels)
• Harsh chemicals in shampoos

In severe cases, intense colouring treatments like bleaching can lead to chemical burns on the scalp, which causes the hair to fall from the scalp and leave behind temporary baldness.

2. Stress

One of the leading causes of hair loss is stress. When hair is growing, it is known as being in the Anagen part of its cycle. When hair stops growing and naturally falls out, it’s in the Telogen cycle. Extreme or extended levels of stress can force your hair to shift into the telogen phase, causing the hair to fall out prematurely.

Often this has been associated with prolonged times of stress such as grieving lost loved ones, emotional breakups, and of course, the stresses over the course of the pandemic.

It is estimated it can take up to three months before the stress catches up to the follicles, and when it does, it is possible to lose 200 hairs a day from the head. Considering standard daily hair loss is anywhere from 50-100, these results can be devastating.

However, the good news is this hair loss associated with stress is usually temporary in nature. This means, once the source of stress has been identified and dealt with, hair loss should begin to cease and resume its former regular growth within a few months.

3. Childbirth

Childbirth has been known to cause the illusion of women losing their hair. This is because that hormone levels drastically change during pregnancies, and these hormones affect the body. Women may notice changes like larger breasts, as well as fuller, thicker hair.

A few months after the child is born, the hormones begin to return to their previous normal state of non-pregnancy, which reverts many of the bodily changes. When this happens, the extra thick hair growth begins to shed to its previous condition, resulting in a temporary transition of hair loss.