Although women may suffer from hair loss at any age and from a multitude of reasons, hormonal changes can, in particular, influence their hair cycle. Therefore, women often have hair loss issues after three main life changes: puberty, pregnancy, and menopause.
• Puberty. At puberty, hormonal ‘surges’ can lead to acne, oily skin and dandruff. If an irregularity to these hormonal changes occurs, then hair loss may also result. In addition, at this age many teenage girls often become more aware of how they look and, in particular, their weight, and so poor diet habits may cause further hair problems.
• Post-partum (after giving birth). Women often see hair loss three to six months after having a baby. One explanatory theory is that they become iron deficient during pregnancy. Another theory is that the hormones estrogen and progesterone increase during their pregnancy keeping the hair growing for longer—hence their hair often looking better during the pregnancy—and then the hormone levels drop, causing the hair that should have fallen out during the previous nine months to do so all at once.
• Menopause. Women who are menopausal or peri-menopausal (shortly before menopause) often experience hair loss from hormonal changes such as reduced estrogen and progesterone levels. This can trigger both a genetic hair-loss condition or telogen effluvium (general hair shedding).
• Treatment. Whenever you see excessive hair loss, it’s important to first see a specialist to find out the exact cause(s) of your hair loss.
For puberty: taking the oral contraceptive pill could be helpful.
For post-pregnancy: often this condition will improve in time (6 months or so). However, if you are iron deficient then take an iron supplement.
For menopause: speak to your physician about the possibility of using some type of hormone replacement therapy or phytoestrogens.
For all three hair loss conditions:
Dr. David Kingsley & Associates specialize in helping women with hair loss. For information on setting up an appointment, please click here.
To order Dr. Kingsley’s products, please click here.
Copyright © 2016 British Science Corporation – All rights reserved