How Much Hair Loss Is Normal What You Need To Know
Brian Melville
Weve all been concerned about hair loss at one point or another in our lives. The simple fact is: everybody sheds some hair every day. Most people have around 100,000 strands of hair on their head, and its completely normal to lose around 50 to 100 strands of those a day.
This loss is usually the most obvious when you brush your hair or when you shower. But how do you know the line between regular, healthy hair loss and an unusual amount of shedding?
Hair loss affects most people at some point in life. Some hair loss can appear rather rapidly, such as a bald spot that shows up after only a day or two or your hair coming out in clumps while you comb it. While we are generally concerned with hair loss on the head, it can also happen in your eyebrows, eyelashes, body hair, or beard.
Here are some ways in which you might notice hair loss:
- You develop bald spots or patches that get larger.
- The line where you part your hair grows wider.
- Your hairline increasingly recedes along with gradual thinning.
- The thickness of your hair visibly reduces.
- You notice excessive shedding .
- You are losing clumps of hair.
- When you run your fingers through your hair, several hair strands come out.
Treat Your Hair With Vitamin E
There are vitamin E capsules available in the market. Extract the vitamin E from the capsule and apply it externally on the scalp. This will help to repair the damage caused to hair follicles and promote hair growth.
Furthermore, vitamin E will help to nourish your scalp and your hair moisturized and healthy.
Hair Loss After Childbirth And Pregnancy
People lose up to a hundred hairs a day, thats completely normal. Only when this number is exceeded is one speaks of Alopecia. The lifespan of a hair is around two to six years. However, if more than a hundred hairs fall out every day for several weeks, the hair loss is considered to be pathological. Hair loss after childbirth and pregnancy is usually considered harmless and usually stops on its own. Some women want theirs too haircolor despite hair loss after pregnancy. Here, too, the effect can be different. In some women, hair loss worsens, while others do not even notice it.
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What Can I Do About Postpartum Hair Loss
For many people, it can be disappointing to lose the thicker hair that they enjoyed during pregnancy. But while you cant prevent postpartum hair loss, there are things you can do to look after your hair while you wait for it to go back to normal, including:
- using a volumising shampoo to help make your hair look thicker and fuller
- using a conditioner designed for fine hair and applying it to the ends of your hair only
- avoiding conditioning shampoos and intensive conditioners these will be too heavy for your recovering hair
You might have to try a few products before you find a new routine that works for you. You may also want to try a different hairstyle to help disguise any postpartum hair loss or thinning. A shorter style can help your hair look thicker, and may also be more practical when caring for a new baby.
And remember, once your hair returns to its normal volume, your haircare routine can probably go back to what it was before pregnancy.
Does Hair Loss After Pregnancy Happen To Everyone
Postpartum hair loss is a natural and a common process which occurs due to hormone imbalances. However, the experts point out that not everyone faces hair loss after the delivery. If a pregnant mother owns a fully grown luxurious hair during the pregnancy period, then she will face hair loss after the delivery
The experts further point out that while some women do not face postpartum hair loss at all, some women will experience hair loss after a year following the delivery. However, the experts opinion is that, most pregnant women will experience hair loss after the delivery
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Recommendations During Pregnancy And After Delivery:
There are a number of things that you can do to have healthier hair and/or reduce hair loss during pregnancy and after delivery:
- Consult with your health care provider to ensure a proper balance of hormones
- Avoid pigtails, cornrows, hair weaves, braids and tight hair rollers which can pull and stress your hair
- Eat a diet high in fruits and vegetables, which contain flavonoids and antioxidants that may provide protection for the hair follicles and encourage hair growth
- Use shampoos and conditioners that contain biotin and silica
- Hair is fragile when it is wet, so be gentle avoid fine tooth combs
- If you need to use blow dryers and other heated hair instruments, use the cool setting
- Supplement your diet with the following nutrients:
- Vitamin B complex
- Biotin
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin E
- Zinc
Want to Know More?
Why Is This Happening
Not every woman experiences postpartum hair loss but, if it does happen, remember its a very normal and natural process, says trichologist Philip Kingsley.
Most of us experience hair loss around the third month after birth, or a little later if youre breastfeeding.
Like almost everything else right now, you can thank your hormones. Oestrogen levels increase during pregnancy, which can prolong the growth phase of the hair.
This means less hair falls out, making what you have gorgeously thick, healthy and shiny. The kicker is that, after youve given birth, your hormones revert to normal and the hair that was supposed to fall out but didnt, comes out all at once.
Theres not much you can do to stop this but, with good haircare and dietary habits, you can encourage regrowth, says Philip.
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How Much Postpartum Hair Loss Is Normal
As we mentioned before, it can be difficult to establish what is normal as the rate varies from person to person with some not experiencing anything noticeable at all. But on average a person loses anywhere between 50-150 hairs a day, however, post pregnancy you can experience hair fall of up to 400 hairs a day, which is why its quite noticeable.
R+co Dallas Biotin Thickening Conditioner
At this point in the article, you know that the lighter the hair care product, the better for postpartum hair loss. So intensive conditioners are a hard pass, as they tend to be heavier on your hair, explains Dr. Francis. Instead, opt for an easy-going conditioner, such as this one that boasts a star-studded ingredient list featuring biotin for strengthening strands, saw palmetto extra for boosting body or volume, and coconut oil for its thickening powers. Plus, anything thats available via Amazon Prime and can be on our doorstep in two days to help in a pinch is a win in arguably everyones books.
Read Also: How Can I Stop Hair Loss And Regrow Hair Naturally
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Why Does Hair Loss Happen After Pregnancy
After you have given birth, the excess hair that was not shed during pregnancy will be lost. It may seem as though you are losing abnormal amounts of hair, but in actual fact your hair is simply returning to normal.
Its also believed that childbirth can be a trigger for telogen effluvium, a type of hair loss which causes widespread thinning on the head. Telogen effluvium is associated with intense physical or emotional stress.
More severe hair loss, including hair loss that causes patchy bald spots, may be a sign of another problem such as a vitamin deficiency.
Your Questions About Sudden Hair Loss
To help with your day-to-day problems, we put our scientific expertise at your disposal.
PREVENTION
No, it will not help, and we strongly advise against taking any preventive treatment because this type of hair loss is completely normal. It is a natural consequence of childbirth.
DAILY TIPS
Many women find it very hard to cope with losing their hair because it symbolizes a loss of their femininity. While waiting for it to grow back, opt for a shorter haircut, as this always makes the sparser areas seem less obvious. In addition, an above-the-shoulder cut gives an impression of volume, which helps hide the hair loss even more. If you have any questions, speak to a hairdresser who will be able to help.
CONCERNS/PRECONCEIVED NOTIONS
Postpartum hair loss usually begins around 3 months after giving birth, but this varies among women. However, if it happens much later, you could be suffering from gradual hair loss. Ask your doctor to find out the exact causes of your hair loss.
No, fine hair is not more prone to hair loss. It is true that fine hair is generally more fragile and therefore breaks more easily, but this is not hair loss.
Yes, that is absolutely correct. Massaging the scalp activates the local microcirculation and helps supply the nutrients needed for strong hair growth. Try COMPLEXE 5 Regenerating plant extract and give yourself a massage. It promotes well-being and relaxation and is a wonderful tonic and stimulant for the scalp.
EFFECTS OF LIFESTYLE
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Q: I Gave Birth A Few Months Ago Why Is My Hair Falling Out
A: Postpartum hair loss is one of those little-but-big parts of new motherhood that can come as an alarming surprise. From two to six months after giving birth, many women start to notice more-than-typical shedding while hair brushing or shampooing in the shower. The three-month mark is pretty typical. For some, its just a few strands, but for others, the loss can be significant for the time being and create noticeable thinning or bald spots, particularly around the hairline.
At a time when you may already be feeling self-conscious about your appearance, this new development can feel pretty scary, frustrating, and upsetting. But youre going to be okay. Its common and usually not a sign that something is seriously wrong . Your hair will grow back.
The technical name of this unwelcome phenomenon is telogen effluvium, more commonly called postpartum alopecia. It happens when higher hormone levels during pregnancy slow down the normal shedding and give hair a healthy, shiny growth boost. Those hormones level out after birth and cause hair growth to enter a resting phase where you may see little to no growth. After a few months of that, not only does your normal shedding come back, your body basically kicks out the old, stagnant hair to make room for new hair to grow in its place. You know, those fuzzy baby bangs that pop up along your hairline. This loss/growth pattern should return to your pre-pregnancy normal after about six months.
How Hormones Affect Your Hair Growth
In pregnant, postpartum and menopausal women, estrogen is the leading hormone that affects your hair growth.
During pregnancy, your body increases the amount of estrogen it produces which signals more follicles to enter the growing phase than the resting phase of the hair growth cycle. During this time, you may experience fuller, thicker hair. You may also notice that your hair grows significantly faster during pregnancy than it did before you were carrying your little one.
Following childbirth, estrogen levels drop , prompting the hair follicles to enter the resting phase and fewer hairs to grow. After about 100 days in the resting phase, the hair begins to shed.
In addition to the estrogen and progesterone changes in the postpartum period, stress and nutrition impact hormone levels, which and can also influence hair growth.
Thyroiditis, caused by inflammation of the thyroid gland, results in an imbalance of thyroid hormones which can also affect your hair growth.
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Postpartum Hair Loss Is A Dispiriting Reality Heres How I Found Help And Hope
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It started in the shower. I have thick, curly hair and am accustomed to shedding when washing or combing100 strands a day is, apparently, normal. What I was not accustomed to was when, around two months after I gave birth to my son last May, seemingly thousands of hairs began leaving my head every time I shampooed. Soon it was no longer just in the shower: It was when I gently raked my hair back into a ponytail and my hand emerged with a competing ponytail of escaping strands or when my pillowcase appeared to be covered with floating clouds of dark coils or, God forbid, when I actually brushed it and an American Girl dollsworth of hair clogged the bristles. Worse still is that I began noticing patchy spots around my hairline. My scalp was newly visible and I was not pleased to see it. Was the muffin-top of residual baby weight hanging over my C-section scar, and my ballooning, milk-leaking breasts not enough aesthetic trauma to suffer? Apparently not.
Why Does Your Hair Get Thicker During Pregnancy
Its thought that excess hair growth in pregnancy is related to oestrogen. During pregnancy the body releases oestrogen, which causes the hair growth and loss cycle to slow down. So rather than shedding hair as normal, the scalp retains it. As a result you may notice that your eyelashes, the hair on your head and eyebrows grow thicker during pregnancy.
Not all women will find that their hair grows thicker and shinier during pregnancy in fact some may even experience hair loss during this time. Hair loss during pregnancy is relatively uncommon, but you can expect your hair to go through several changes over the course of your pregnancy.
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If I Lose Weight After Giving Birth Will That Affect My Hair Loss
Answered by: Healthilys medical team
Losing a lot of weight in a short period of time can be a trigger for hair loss, but this isnt linked to giving birth. You may want to lose any extra weight you gained during pregnancy, but its important to do this safely and avoid very low-calorie or crash diets. These arent healthy or sustainable, and can mean your body isnt getting the calories and nutrients it needs especially if youve chosen to breastfeed, as this can use up to an extra 500 calories a day.
How Does Our Product Work To Combat Hair Loss
Revolve is a natural-based shampoo and conditioner that cleanses existing DHT, while also guarding against future DHT buildup.
Zenagen Shampoo Treatment cleanses DHT from the hair follicle by using natural ingredients.
Zenagen Revolves innovative technology combats DHT by reaching the deepest part of the follicle through the use of clean ingredients. All of Revolves product ingredients play their part in our hair loss treatment:
- Saw palmetto is one of the most powerful and important ingredients. Saw palmetto blocks the enzyme responsible for DTH production.
- Brahmi is another key ingredient that works with saw palmetto to block current and future DTH production.
- Red clover extracts play an important part in targeting inflammation to promote scalp health and hair growth. Zenagen uses a custom red clover extract process that is unique to our formulas.
- Aloe leaf juice is another crucial anti-inflammatory ingredient. Aloe contains essential amino acids that nourishes the hair while also soothing and protecting the scalp against inflammation.
- Green Tea is used to naturally widen the hair follicle channel in only 5 minutes so that our natural ingredients can reach the deepest level of the follicle.
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