International Men’s Health Week – Types of hair loss, identify yours for better treatment

Suffering from hair loss? There are many types of hair fall, understand them here.

Dr Anitha Anchan | Updated: June 19, 2017 4:50 pm

Is combing your hair a nightmare for you? Does the sight of hair in your comb frighten you? Our experts give you foods for strong and healthy hair.

Firstly, you need to get your basics about hair growth right. The average scalp contains about 100,000 to 150,000 hair. The normal hair life cycle lasts for 2 to 3 years. At any given point of time, about 90% of the hair on your scalp is growing and about 10% of the hair is in a resting phase. After 2-3 months, the resting hair is shed and new hair starts to grow in its place. It is normal to shed some hair every day. You lose roughly 100 hair strands every day. But, some people may experience more than normal hair loss. Such partial or complete loss of hair is called alopecia.

Involutional alopecia

The rate of hair growth slows as you age, causing the thickness as well as volume to reduce. In this type of hair loss called involutional alopecia, the hair follicles gradually go into the telogen (resting) phase. The remaining hair becomes shorter and fewer in number, sometimes even brittle; causes, treatment and home remedies for brittle hair.

Telogen effluvium

You may experience temporary hair loss weeks to months after a stressed episode like childbirth, fever, severe illness, stress or sudden weight loss, which decreases gradually in a few months. Such type of hair loss is called telogen effluvium. This happens due to changes in the growth cycle of hair, when a large number of hair go into the resting phase (telogen) at the same time.

Male and female pattern baldness

If you are a male with a receding hairline and gradual disappearance of hair from the crown, you may be suffering from androgenic alopecia (also called male pattern baldness). In this condition, you may experience hair loss as early as in your teens or early 20s. Men with androgenic alopecia may notice hair loss at the top of the scalp and a receding hairline particularly along the temples. The typical pattern begins at the hairline which then gradually moves backward and forms an ‘M’ shape. Finally the hair becomes finer, shorter and thinner creating a U-shaped pattern of hair around the sides of the head. Miniaturization of hair (progressive decrease of the hair shaft’s diameter and length in response to hormones) is characteristic of androgenic alopecia. Hair follicles that are producing healthy hair begin to produce thinner, shorter, more brittle hair with weaker shafts. It is a genetically predisposed condition that can affect both men and women. Here are six causes of excessive hair loss that you need to know.

If you are a female with general thinning of the hair over the entire scalp, extensive hair loss at the crown with your hairline at the front intact, you may be suffering from female pattern baldness. Your hair part may become wider with time. As hair thinning occurs, the scalp becomes progressively more visible. The hair loss rarely progresses to total or near total baldness. You may notice hair thinning in your 20s but you are not very likely to experience noticeable thinning until your 40s or later because the pace of hair loss tends to be gradual.

Patchy hair loss

If you have a child or are a young adult with one to two totally smooth, round patches of hair loss mostly on the scalp, you may be suffering from alopecia areata or patchy hair loss. The hair loss may also be seen in the eyebrows, arms, legs or facial hair. It is often sudden in onset and the hair usually grows back in six months to a year. However, when the hair grows back in one area, it may fall out in another. In some people, the hair may become thinner without any patches of baldness. In others, it may grow and break off, leaving short stubs which resemble ‘exclamation points.’ Alopecia areata is generally considered an autoimmune condition, in which the body attacks its own hair follicles. In alopecia totalis, an extensive form, the entire scalp goes bald. Here is how you can control hair fall with a DIY oil pack.

Tinea capitis

Tinea capitis (ringworm of the scalp) is a fungal infection of the scalp which usually affects school-age children and goes away at puberty. It’s rare in healthy adults. It involves only parts or whole of the scalp. Hair breaks off at areas that are infected causing bald scalp with small black dots. The skin has inflamed (red swollen), round, scaly areas with pus-filled sores called kerions. The child may have a low-grade fever or swollen lymph nodes in the neck. It is contagious and can spread from sharing combs and hats. Once the infection is cured, the hair grows back.

Traction alopecia

Hair loss can also occur due to pressure on hair because of particular hairstyles causing small, localised areas of hair loss. This type of hair loss is called traction alopecia.

Trichotillomania

Some people have the habit of voluntarily twisting or pulling their own hair from the scalp and eyelashes. This is referred to as trichotillomania or hair pulling disorder. It is a psychological disorder seen most frequently in children. Hair patches in this condition show broken-off hair. Read about 20 treatments to beat hair loss.

Once you have identified the type of hair fall you are suffering from, it will be much easier for you to treat yourself from an expert.

Read this in Marathi

Published: April 2, 2015 12:05 pm | Updated:June 19, 2017 4:50 pm

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