Causes Of Excessive Hair Loss

There are a number of causes of excessive and / or rapid hair loss. Many people experience dramatic levels of hair loss some weeks after major surgery or after illness. Whilst the level of hair loss may appear excessive it is really no more than a reaction to a specific event and hair will return to normal after a period of time.

The most common type of hair loss in women occurs in a diffuse pattern. Diffuse hair loss is most often hereditary, but it can also be caused by underlying medical conditions, medications, and other factors.

Hormonal problems may cause hair loss. If your thyroid gland is overactive or underactive, your hair may fall out. This hair loss usually can be helped by treatment thyroid disease. Hair loss may occur if male or female hormones, known as androgens and estrogens, are out of balance. Correcting the hormone imbalance may stop your hair loss.

In male- and female-pattern baldness, the time of growth shortens, and the hairs are not as thick or sturdy. With each growth cycle, the hairs become rooted more superficially and more easily fall out. Heredity likely plays a key role. A history of androgenetic alopecia on either side of your family increases your risk of balding. Heredity also affects the age at which you begin to lose hair and the developmental speed, pattern and extent of your baldness.

Women have half the amount of 5-a reductase compared to men, but have higher levels of the enzyme aromatase, especially at their frontal hairline. Aromatase is responsible for the formation of the female hormones estrone and estradiol. It also decreases the formation of DHT. Its presence in women may help to explain why the presentation of female hair loss is so different than in males, particularly with respect to the preservation of the frontal hairline. It may also explain why women have a poor response to the drug finasteride (Propecia), a medication widely used to treat hair loss in men that works by blocking the formation of DHT.

Other physical reasons for hair loss includes hormonal imbalances, over or under-active thyroid and certain fungal infections can all result in hair loss.

Hair loss may also signal some underlying problem like diabetes or lupus. As it is not always possible to assess the cause for rapid or excessive hair loss it is always worth seeking medical advice to diagnose the cause for your hair loss.

It is frequently stated that hair loss comes from the mothers side of the family. The truth is that the condition can be inherited from either parent. However, recent research suggests that the situation may be a bit more complex than was originally thought. Factors on the x-chromosome have been shown to influence hair loss, making the inheritance from the maternal side of the family slightly more important than the paternal one (Markus Nothen, 2005).

Localized female hair loss that occurs around the hairline after face-lift surgery may be permanent. Traction Alopecia, the hair loss that occurs with constant tugging on the follicles, can also be permanent if the habit persists for a long period of time. Both of these conditions can be treated with hair transplantation.