SIGNS OF HAIR LOSS IN WOMEN
The earlier you start treating your hereditary hair loss the better your chances of seeing results are.
Signs of hair loss
Hair loss is common in women with 40% of women having visible hair loss by the time they are age 40. Hair loss may present in different ways depending on the cause. You may notice overall thinning, bald spots or sudden loss of handfuls of hair.
Below are some early signs that you may be experiencing if you have genetic or hereditary hair loss. If you notice any of these, Regaine for Women can help:
More Prominent Parting
A prominent parting is one of the early signs of hair loss. If your parting has begun to widen, and there doesn’t seem to be a way to cover it the way you used to, you may be experiencing hereditary hair loss.
More Hair On Your Pillow
We lose on average 30 to 150 hairs per day. If you see more than your usual amount of hair, this could be a sign of hereditary hair loss
More hair in your comb or brush
Having a few hairs in your comb or brush is normal. If you start to see more than usual this could be a sign of hereditary hair loss.
More hair in the shower drain
Having a large amount of hair in the drain after washing your hair is a sign that your losing more hair than normal.
How can I tell if my hair is shedding more than normal?
It’s likely that if your hair is shedding more than normal, you’ve already noticed. Losing more hair in the shower? Are you finding more strands of hair on your hair brush?
While these signs of increased shedding could indicate a form of hair loss, the best way to know if you have female pattern hair loss is by looking at your pattern of hair loss and your family history. Does the hair on the top and crown of your head appear particularly sparse? Does your family have a history of hair loss? If so, it’s entirely possible you’re experiencing female pattern hair loss.
Note your family history
Female pattern hair loss is genetic, so your first step should be to look to other family members to see if their hair has thinned. On the flipside, if you’re experiencing rapid hair loss and have no family history of hair loss, it would be best to check with your doctor to help understand what could be causing it.
The Progression of Hereditary/Female Pattern Hair Loss
Woman with female pattern hair loss are less likely to go completely bald than men, but you may have a lot of thinning throughout your hair. Female pattern hair loss normally starts with a gradual thinning of the parting and can sometimes be accompanied by the loss of hair at the front of the scalp similar to male pattern hair loss
How Female Pattern Hair Loss Happens
The most common reason for hair loss in women is androgenetic alopecia (AGA), also known as female pattern hair loss or hereditary hair loss. Genetics, hormones, and age cause changes to your hair follicles, which lead to this condition. Genetic hair loss normally occurs in women that are in their 50s or 60s and often gets worse during the menopause when estrogen reduces drastically. However, it may start earlier with women in their 30’s or 40’s.
The Hair Growth Cycle and How Hair Loss Happens
The hair growth cycle has three phases. Once you understand the natural process occurring in your follicles during these three phases you can start taking steps to help your hair regrow.
Phase 1: Growth (or anagen) phase
For every hair on your head, the cycle begins with the growth phase, which lasts from 2 to 6 years. The hair grows at 1cm a month and usually about 85% of your hair is in anagen phase.
Phase 2: Transitional (or catagen) phase
Eventually, the cells at the base of the hair stop multiplying. As a result, the hair stops growing before the resting phase begins. This Catagen phase lasts about 2 to 3 weeks.
Phase 3: Resting (or Telogen) phase
After the transitional phase, the hair follicles enter a 3-month resting phase. At the end of the resting phase the hair is shed, and a new hair replaces it and the growing cycle starts again.
If you are experiencing female pattern hair loss, you may still notice your hair growing. However, your follicles will continue to shrink, producing finer, shorter, and harder-to-see hair with each cycle until they are no longer able to make new hair.
Speaking To A Healthcare Professional About Women's Hair Loss
When consulting a healthcare professional about your hair loss, you may feel unsure on what to say. Below are some steps to take before and during your consultation to help you:
STEP 1: Create a simple diary to track your hair health
Jot down a list of out-of-the-ordinary experiences you have been having with your hair, such as more frequent and/or larger clumps of hair in the drain after showering, or an increased number of strands on your pillow. Take these daily observations over a 1- to 2-month time period. These are all things you want to mention to your healthcare professional.
STEP 2: Feel free to bring the evidence
Jot down a list of all the self-diagnostic tools and tests you’ve used and the results from these tests. Bring them with you to your appointment. You may also bring photos of your scalp. Some women bring in clumps of hair in a plastic bag for their healthcare professional to examine. Don’t be shy. He or she is there to help you.
STEP 3: Tell your healthcare professional about lifestyle habits or changes that may be related to hair loss
Although hair loss can be due to genetic factors, remember that there are still other causes of hair loss in women, such as long-term everyday stress and, in more rare cases, a medical condition (perhaps related to your thyroid).
STEP 4: Inquire if any further testing is necessary
Expect your healthcare professional to ask further questions and to do a detailed review of your medical history covering topics such as recent childbirth, surgeries or cancer treatments (chemotherapy or radiotherapy), menopause, and familial history of hereditary androgenetic alopecia (e.g. genetic hair loss).
Facts about thinning hair
The average scalp is covered with 100,000 hair follicles.
No new hair follicles are formed after birth, and as you age follicles can stop producing new hair.
Female pattern hair loss mainly starts in women int their 50’s & 60’s, around the time of menopause.
Left untreated, genetic hair loss will continue; early treatment is key to prevent more hair loss.
Treat thinning hair at the earliest signs with Regaine® for women to help regrow hair