Many things can cause hair loss, the most common cause being androgenic alopecia, or male/female pattern baldness. Androgenic alopecia is genetically inherited and stems from a reaction to DHT, or dihydrotestosterone, which causes the hair on the top of the scalp to fall out. Medications such as finasteride (Propecia) or minoxidil (Rogaine) will help combat this hair loss. The only real way to ever restore the hair that has already been lost is through a hair transplant procedure.
Telogen effluvium is another kind of hair loss that is only short term, usually triggered by some kind of stressful event or change in your body. Physical stress such as a car accident, severe illness, surgery, or even a nasty flu can trigger this type of hair loss. Pregnancy can also cause this type of hair loss. You will typically start to see this hair loss though only after you have delivered the baby. The drastic changes in hormones as well as the fact that giving birth is pretty traumatic are the main causes here. Emotional stress can cause hair loss as well, but is not quite as likely to as physical stress. The death of a loved one, a divorce, and financial worries can all cause some hair loss as well. The good news for all of these types of hair loss is that with time and as your body corrects itself, the hair will grow back on its own.
Lack of or even too many vitamins and medications can also lead to hair loss. Too much vitamin A in your system can lead to hair loss, but as your vitamin A level starts to level out so will your hair loss. A vitamin B deficiency can, in some rare cases, be a cause of minimal hair loss and can also be fixed by adjusting the levels. Antidepressants, blood thinners, and blood pressure drugs known as beta-blockers have been shown to lead to some form of hair loss as well. Other medication or drugs that cause hair loss are chemotherapy and anabolic steroids. Your hair loss from both of these drugs can also be reversed after they have been stopped and the body begins to regulate itself again.
Your overall health plays a big part in your hair loss as well. A proper diet is crucial to having good hair. If you have a lack of protein, a dramatic weight loss, or some form of eating disorder, these can all lead to some level of hair loss. Making sure to eat a well-balanced meal and not change anything drastically in your diet will help reduce the risk and also reverse any hair loss caused by this.
Auto-immune hair loss, also called alopecia areata, is caused by an overactive immune system. Your body basically targets the hair follicle as a foreign object and attacks it by mistake. Some causes of this are diseases like lupus, which can actually cause some scarring as well as hair loss and therefore can make it harder to restore the hair that has been lost from this cause. Most types of alopecia areata can be reversed though using a series of steroid treatments in the area as well as some PRP treatments to help stimulate hair growth again.
No matter what type of hair loss you have, the key thing to remember is that with some forms of hair loss, the hair will actually grow back with nothing more than patience. Other cases can be restored and treated in some way with various options as well as some patience.
