Just In
- 1 min ago Navratri 2024 Date In April: When Will Chaitra Navratri Festival Start? Significance Of 9 Days, Deets Inside!
- 42 min ago Ramadan 2024: 6 Bollywood-Inspired Outfit Ideas To Shine During The Holy Month
- 2 hrs ago Personality Traits Of April Born Babies: From Being Witty, To Charismatic And More, They Are Full Of Sheer Joy
- 3 hrs ago Festivals In April 2024: Check Out The Full List Of Tyohar And Vrats That Will Fall This Month
Don't Miss
- Movies Yeh Meri Family 3 Ott Release Date, Platform: Trailer Out; Here's When & Where To Watch
- Sports RCB vs KKR My11Circle Prediction IPL 2024 Match 10: BLRvs KOL Fantasy Tips & Expert Picks
- Automobiles Nissan And Renault To Launch Four New SUVs In Strategic Collaboration
- News Arvind Kejriwal Arrest: Sunita Kejriwal Seeks Public Support, Launches ‘Ashirvad’ Campaign For AAP
- Finance SIP Success Stories: These Equity Mutual Funds Turned 10,000 To As Much As 1,64,000 In FY24; Buy?
- Technology BSNL Introduces New Rs 599 and Rs 699 High-Speed Fiber Broadband Plans: Check Details
- Education UGC NET June 2024: Application process to begin next week, Know more
- Travel Explore Tamil Nadu's Diverse Wedding Venues
Hair Loss Or Alopecia: Causes, Symptoms, Treatment And Prevention
Hair loss, named as alopecia in medical science, is a condition that affects not only the scalp but the entire body. The condition is marked by excessive hair fall from the scalp in round patches and other body parts [1] . This health condition is in the news again after the Will Smith incident at the Oscar Awards 2022 on March 27, where the actor hit host Chris Rock in the face for making a joke on his wife Jada Pinkett-Smith's alopecia condition.
Let us understand what is alopecia.
Normally, an adult loses 80-100 strands of hair per day out of 10 lakh or 15 lakh strands on their head. This is a normal condition and hair fall is a natural phenomenon[2] . In situations when the hair fall exceeds the normal, medical attention is needed.
Around 5% of people experience alopecia while in others the hair grows back after falling out. Several underlying conditions contribute to hair loss including diseases, genetic and medication side effects.
Home Remedies For Hair Loss Caused By Seborrheic Dermatitis
Causes Of Hair Loss
Hair loss happens every day. Around 100 strands of hair fall on each day of an adult but that goes unnoticed as many of them grow back. Until the growing and shedding of hair are balanced, it is normal but when this phenomenon gets disrupted due to certain conditions, hair loss occurs. The factors causing hair loss are as follows:
- Hereditary: Hair loss or baldness occurs due to genetics [3]
- Hormonal changes: Hair loss occurs during pregnancy, menopause, childbirth or due to thyroid problems [4]
- Medication: Hair loss occurs as a side effect of certain medications like drugs for depression, gout, arthritis, and high blood pressure
- Stress: Hair loss due to continuous stress or emotional shock [5]
- Chemotherapy drugs: Hair loss during the treatment of cancer [6]
- Hair colouring and hairstyle: Hair loss due to some tight hairstyles that lead to inflammation of hair follicles. Also, chemicals present in hair colours damage hair follicles.
- Scalp infection: Hair loss caused due to fungal infection or ringworms
- Poor diet: Hairloss due to the deficiency of protein and vitamin B[7]
Types Of Hair Loss
Several reasons disrupt the growth of hair. Therefore, hair loss is of different types.
1.
Alopecia
totalis:
Hair
loss
due
to
an
autoimmune
disorder.
2.
Involutional
alopecia:
Hair
loss
due
to
ageing.
3.
Alopecia
areata:
Hair
loss
that
occurs
in
patches
at
any
part
of
the
body.
4.
Traction
alopecia:
Hair
loss
in
women
due
to
stress
or
tight
ponytail.
5.
Telogen
effluvium:
Hair
loss
due
to
stress
brought
by
illness
or
emotional
issues.
6.
Anagen
effluvium:
Hair
loss
throughout
the
body
due
to
chemotherapy.
7.
Alopecia
barbae:
Facial
or
beard
hair
loss
in
men.
8.
Trichotillomania:
Hair
loss
in
children
due
to
pulling
out
of
hair
by
them.
Symptoms Of Hair Loss
Hair loss is both temporary and permanent. It appears in different ways depending upon the cause of the condition. However, symptoms of hair loss are as follows:
- Thinning of hair [3]
- Circular baldness on the scalp
- Loss of hair in patches from beards and eyebrows [8] .
- Itchiness before the hair falls
- Sudden fall out of a handful of hair while combing or washing hair.
- Broken hair, swelling on the scalp
Diagnosis Of Hair Loss
Firstly, a medical expert will check the family history of a patient to rule out the genetic cause of hair loss. Then, they diagnose it by certain tests which are as follows:
- Blood test: In this, the blood of a patient is collected to determine the medical conditions responsible for their hair loss.
- Scalp biopsy: In this method, the doctor takes out a few strands of hair from a patient's scalp to check the hair root and find signs of any infection [9] .
- Pull test: In this test, a doctor pulls out hair from the patient's head to watch out how many strands of hair come out in a go. The test is used to analyze the shedding of hair.
- Light microcopy: Here, special hair instruments are used to determine certain hair disorders like hair shaft anomalies and infestations.
Dry Eyes: Symptoms, Causes, Risk Factors, Treatment And Prevention
Treatment Of Hair Loss
Depending on the gender and types of hair loss, doctors suggest for the specific treatment of hair loss. Normally it goes by over-the-counter medications and topical creams. Other treatments are as follows:
- Steroid injection: A type of hair loss treatment in which an anti-inflammatory drug called corticosteroid is injected into the skin's bare patches to mimic a hormone made by the adrenal gland [10] .
- Immunotherapy: A type of extensive hair loss treatment in which chemicals like dinitrochlorobenzene and diphencyprone are applied on the scalp for the regrowth of hair.
- Laser therapy: A hair loss treatment in which photons are irradiated into the hair scalp with a laser device. The hair scalp then absorbs those photons and initiate hair growth.
- Hair transplantation: In this treatment, a cosmetic surgeon removes tiny skin patches along with hair follicle from the healthy growing hair area of a patient and transplant it to the bald section [11] .
- UV light treatment: In this treatment, UV rays are targeted in the bald section to improve the blood circulation, henceforth, initiating the growth of hair.
How To Prevent Hair Loss
Hair loss can be prevented easily by certain precautionary measures. The steps are as follows:
- Don't make tight braids, buns, or ponytails.
- Don't pull your hair.
- Include iron and protein in your diet.
- Avoid using blow dryers and hair straighteners.
- Avoid colouring of hair with chemical products.
- [1] 1. Phillips, T. G., Slomiany, W., & Allison, R. (2017). Hair Loss: Common Causes and Treatment. American family physician, 96(6).
- [2] 2. Martínez-Velasco, M. A., Vázquez-Herrera, N. E., Maddy, A. J., Asz-Sigall, D., & Tosti, A. (2017). The Hair Shedding Visual Scale: A Quick Tool to Assess Hair Loss in Women. Dermatology and therapy, 7(1), 155–165. doi:10.1007/s13555-017-0171-8
- [3] 3. Hagenaars, S. P., Hill, W. D., Harris, S. E., Ritchie, S. J., Davies, G., Liewald, D. C., … Marioni, R. E. (2017). Genetic prediction of male pattern baldness. PLoS genetics, 13(2), e1006594. doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.1006594
- [4] 4. Goluch-Koniuszy Z. S. (2016). Nutrition of women with hair loss problem during the period of menopause. Przeglad menopauzalny = Menopause review, 15(1), 56–61. doi:10.5114/pm.2016.58776
- [5] 5. Hadshiew, I. M., Foitzik, K., Arck, P. C., & Paus, R. (2004). Burden of hair loss: stress and the underestimated psychosocial impact of telogen effluvium and androgenetic alopecia. Journal of investigative dermatology, 123(3), 455-457.
- [6] 6. Trueb, R. M. (2010). Chemotherapy-induced hair loss. Skin Therapy Lett, 15(7), 5-7.
- [7] 7. Guo, E. L., & Katta, R. (2017). Diet and hair loss: effects of nutrient deficiency and supplement use. Dermatology practical & conceptual, 7(1), 1–10. doi:10.5826/dpc.0701a01
- [8] 8. Cervantes, J., Fertig, R. M., Maddy, A., & Tosti, A. (2017). Alopecia areata of the beard: a review of the literature. American journal of clinical dermatology, 18(6), 789-796.
- [9] 9. Palo, S., & Biligi, D. S. (2018). Utility of horizontal and vertical sections of scalp biopsies in various forms of primary alopecias. Journal of laboratory physicians, 10(1), 95–100. doi:10.4103/JLP.JLP_4_17
- [10] 10. Amirnia, M., Mahmoudi, S. S., Karkon-Shayan, F., Alikhah, H., Piri, R., Naghavi-Behzad, M., & Ranjkesh, M. R. (2015). Comparative study of intralesional steroid injection and cryotherapy in alopecia areata. Nigerian medical journal : journal of the Nigeria Medical Association, 56(4), 249–252. doi:10.4103/0300-1652.165034
- [11] 11. Khanna M. (2008). Hair transplantation surgery. Indian journal of plastic surgery : official publication of the Association of Plastic Surgeons of India, 41(Suppl), S56–S63.
- beautyFrom Straight To Curly: How To Choose The Right Hairbrush For You?
- beautyTaming The Frizz: 5 Home Remedies For Silky, Smooth Hairtip
- beauty30-Day Hair Care Routine for Dandruff-Free, Healthy Scalp: Check Out The DIY Hair Loss Recipe Here!
- healthCancer: Scalp-Cooling Technology May Help Some Chemo Patients Keep Their Hair
- beautyBeat Sweat-Induced Hair Fall with These Natural Remedies
- beautyIs Your Hair Loss A Side Effect Of This One Daily Habit? How To Prevent It?
- beautyMyths vs Facts: Brushing Your Hair 100 Times A Day!
- beautyToo Much Hair Fall? Don't Miss These 7 Subtle Signs Of Hair Loss
- beautyNature's Solution to Hair Challenges: Achieve Strong and Healthy Hair with These Home Remedies
- beautyNatural Remedies For Hair Loss: Revive Your Hair With This 100-Year-Old Indian Recipe
- healthEat Your Way To Gorgeous Hair: Top 5 Fruits To Prevent Hair Loss And Dry Scalp
- beautyNatural Remedies For Hair Loss: Amla, Coconut Oil And Hibiscus; Try It Today!