How Much Hair Loss Is Normal ? And What You Probably Don't Know About Hair Loss

If your feel that your hair is dropping in handfuls and you feel that you are starting to look more like your balding uncle than curly-haired beauty or hunk, then read on and do something about it! First of all, calm down! If you are a woman, then bear in mind that 90 per cent of women’s hair loss is only temporary; it is probably not as serious as you think. Every hair has a life cycle of its own which ends with it falling out to make room for new one to grow. At any moment of time, only about 80 percent of your hairs are growing. The growing phase lasts from two to six years, varying from one individual to another. The other 20 percent of the hair has ceased to grow and gone into inactive period of about 3 months before finally falling out.

How Much Hair Loss Is Normal?

According to research, it is normal to lose 50-100 hairs every day. This may sound like a lot, but do bear in mind that we have a total of between 90,000 to 150,000 hairs on our heads. Normally, we don’t even notice losing about 100 if we shampoo and brush our hair daily. However, if you have long hair and the longer it is, the more you will notice the loss because the length makes it look more in the brush or on the floor. Also, if you have simple and easy hair style, and do not style your hair often, you may be surprised at just how many hairs are left behind in the brush when you suddenly decide to use the brush to style your hair one day. If you really have a serious hair loss problem, you will notice a loss of over 10 to 50 per cent of the hairs on any one area of your head.

How Did You Lose Your Hair?

Look closely at the roots of the hairs that has fallen off where it is thinnest:

1) If the ends are blunt, then your hair is breaking off, rather than falling out. You will need to look at the general condition of your hair. Did you perm your hair lately? Over perm hair is more susceptible to breakage

2) If the ends are tapered, your hair has been falling out from the roots.

Causes of Hair Loss

There are a few common causes of hair loss, such as :

1) Lack of Vitamin B and C, the mineral zinc, iron and sulphur.

2) Crash diet can result in more hair loss than gradual weight loss

3) Traumatic experience and stress

4) Menstruation and pregnancy (causes temporary hair loss due to hormone imbalances)

5) Long or short term illness

6) Some drugs and medical treatments

What can you do about hair loss?

1) Increase your mineral and vitamin intakes

2) Keep away from perm, colouring and avoid drying out your hair

3) Keep your hair in short and layered style until it grows thicker. The weight of long hair will pull it flatter on top, making it look even thinner.

4) Check your comb and brushes to ensure that they don’t do any further damage. Avoid comb that are too fine and remember to comb your hair gently.

5) Massage helps to stimulate blood supply to the scalp and gets the hair growing again. Keep your fingers in a claw-like position and press your fingers against the scalp and massage in small circular motion.

Why does the hair stop growing after certain length?

On the average, the hair grows about 12mm or ½ in each month. When it reaches a length of about 25cm or 10in, the growth rate will slow down to about 6mm or 1/4in per month. Some people will find their hair grows faster than this, others may experience slower rate. For some people, hair grows for a minimum of two years before it falls out. Others may take up to seven years of growing phase.

Can men cure the baldness?

The pattern of baldness in men is usually inherited and there is no cure for it. So many men make the mistake of trying to grow that little hair they have and then trying to use this to disguise the bald patches, which usually ends up unsuccessful. A toupee or hair piece is a bad idea too since they look unnatural. Hairs transplants are often a bad idea too since many men who have been through it are dissatisfied with the results. There are many products in the market that claim to slow down hair loss or stimulate hair growth. Some of these work on the principle that they stimulate the blood supply to the scalp providing essential nourishment to the growing hair follicles. However, one can do this for free by simply massaging the scalp with fingers for a few minutes a day.

Did You Know ?

1. The hair grows more in warmer weather.

2. The hair grows less as you get older.

3. Most of us actually lose more hair than usual in the autumn. This is known as seasonal hair loss and is nothing to worry about.

4. The average lifespan of a hair is anything from two to six years.

5. On the average, the lifespan of a woman’s hair is a quarter longer than a man’s.

6. Contrary to some belief, hair does not continue to grow after a person has died.

7. “Virgin hair” is the term used by hair dresser to describe hair which has not been previously chemically-processed in any way, or has not been straightened.

8. If your boy friend is worried that his hair is starting to drop out, tell him that he is not alone! One in five men starts to thin or experience hair loss before they are 20 and many are very bald by the time they are 30.

9. If you place a hair under the microscope, the magnified cross section of an average straight hair looks round, a curly hair tends to be oval, whereas an Afro hair is kidney-shaped and flat on one side.

10. Grey hair doesn’t really exist. The overall impression of greyness is given by a mixture of pure white hairs containing no pigment and the remaining strands of pigmented hair. A hair shaft is either pigmented or colourless, but never a combination of the two.

11. If you suffer from eating disorder such as anorexia or bulimia, your hair may begin to fall out.

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