How to cope with hair loss

Discovering the cause of the problem could be the first step to solving it…

We often spend a lot of time and money on our hair: cutting it, styling it, dyeing it and more. A ‘good’ hair day can boost your confidence. Conversely, while various degrees of hair loss are relatively common, extreme shedding can cause embarrassment and distress.

We have different types of hair on our bodies: the fine vellus hair found on your tummy, the hair on your head and pubic hair. Each hair goes through the same life cycle. This includes a growing phase (which lasts between two and five years); shrinking phase (where the hair stops growing and the hair follicle pulls back from the scalp, which lasts for two to three weeks); and a resting phase (where the hair neither grows nor falls out, which lasts about three months). The hair is then shed before the whole cycle starts again. Women tend to lose about 50 to 100 strands of hair per day.

There are lots of causes of hair loss, such as stress, which can suddenly stop the growing phase.

Changing hormones during perimenopause and menopause also lead to hair thinning due to lower levels of oestrogen. Hypothyroidism – a condition where the thyroid gland is underactive and doesn’t produce enough of the hormone thyroxine – can also lead to shedding.

There can also be dietary causes of hair loss, such as low iron levels, which may be related to having heavy periods, or insufficient dietary intake of iron. Not eating enough protein and even very low-calorie diets can lead to hair loss – your body needs fuel!

Certain medications can also cause problems, the most famous are some forms of chemotherapy (although not all types) and medications such as beta blockers.