For the longest time, hair has been a part of grooming and presenting yourself. People put a lot of pride in their hair and go to lengths to keep it healthy and looking good.
That’s why it’s always a little alarming when you notice a change in your hair. Hair fall, especially, can be very frustrating as it can affect your self-confidence if your hair starts thinning. If you feel like you’re having more hair fall than usual, don’t stress just yet! We’ve got some answers for you and some tips on how you can combat it.
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The Hair Growth Cycle
Hair fall is completely normal. Yes, you read that right! Hair doesn’t just stay on your head, it goes through a cycle of growth, rest, and falling out until it cycles back onto itself. Find out more about the hair growth phases.
Anagen
This is the hair growth phase. The follicle actively produces hair and makes it grow longer. This phase can last for 6 years normally and longer for some lucky people. For some, it may last a shorter amount of time.
Catagen
After anagen, comes the catagen or transition phase. The follicles will shrink, detach, and stop growing. The hair will not fall out just yet but it will not be actively growing anymore. This is the shortest phase lasting only 10 days.
Telogen
Catagen is the transition phase that readies the hair for the telogen phase. This is the resting stage. The hair is detached during catagen, fully detaches during telogen, and dies out. Telogen is often divided by scientists into two phases: telogen (resting phase) and exogen (hair fall phase). During telogen, it’s normal to have about 50 to 100 hairs falling out in a day. 10%-15% of the hair is in the telogen stage.
Are you suffering from hair fall?
So, is your hair fall normal? Counting them isn’t plausible but your instincts and reasoning will probably tell you what you need to know. If you feel you are losing way more than a hundred strands a day, your hair fall isn’t normal and an excessive amount.
Causes of Hair Fall
Hair fall is always caused by something that needs to be addressed. It should never be put aside or ignored because it could also benefit you, in the long run, to find out what really could be causing it.
Damage
Hair has become part of fashion and accessorizing. This means lots of styling and experimenting. Heat styling and chemically processing the hair can cause a lot of damage, especially when done often. This can cause the hair to become brittle and break or fall out of the scalp.
Medical issues
Hair loss can be a sign of an underlying medical issue. Always listen to your body because your hair and skin might show signs that might be helpful when it comes to detecting if something is wrong. It’s always a good idea to get regular checkups to make sure everything is okay. If you haven’t yet, go get a physical now especially if you’re suffering from hair loss. It may be a sign of another issue.
Nutritional deficiencies
While hair care products are important, hair also gets the majority of its nourishment from your diet. Sometimes, it just doesn’t cut it. Your hair will show signs of undernourishment by becoming dry, brittle, and falling out. If you’re suffering from hair loss, it may be because your diet isn’t giving enough nutrition to your hair.
Genetics
Sadly, a hard cause to tackle is genetics. Sometimes, it just comes with the territory if your family is prone to hair loss. If you share the hair loss gene, you will see it in relatives and family members. You may have to take extra measures to prevent and combat this type of hair fall.
Stress
Stress is one of the top causes of major hair fall. A stressful lifestyle, event, or situation can all be causes of stress-induced hair fall. In more severe situations, this is referred to as telogen effluvium.
DOs
Do protect and repair hair
Damage is a sign that your hair needs some love. Bring it back to life by using hair masks, hair repair treatments, and deep conditioning treatments. Give your hair a break and start protecting it by using heat protectant and protein treatments.
Do get checked
If you’ve exhausted all the possible causes of your hair loss, it’s time to get checked by your doctor. This might be a sign that something is going on with you medically and it’s always good to get regularly checked anyway.
Do include superfoods in your diet
Hair loves foods like berries, fatty fish, lean meats, eggs, avocadoes, leafy greens, and fruits. This is because they are high in antioxidants, amino acids, protein, vitamins, and minerals. You can also opt for supplements in case you have restrictions or a condition that doesn’t allow you to get these nutrients properly.
Do use hair growth products and procedures
A good hair growth shampoo, conditioner, and serum can go a long way. Even for causes like genetics or stress-related hair loss, these products can help a ton.
The best shampoo for hair growth should be thoroughly cleansing and rid the scalp and roots of buildup. It should also contain ingredients for hair growth such as castor oil, amino acids, artemisa argyi extract, and more.
Do manage your stress
Take a deep breath and relax. Take a well-deserved break, spend some time doing something you enjoy, bond with friends and loved ones, and rest well. Make sure you are taking care of yourself and your mental health.
DON’Ts
Don’t ignore damage
Damaged hair means that it’s time to fix things. Don’t just ignore it and keep doing things to your hair. Give it a break and try out heatless styles, pause the coloring, and start repairing and protecting instead.
Don’t be scared to address your health
It can be scary to find out about these things but I guarantee you that it’s much better to find out early than to let things get away from you. Address your health promptly to make things easier. You’ll feel a lot better, too!
Don’t eat junk
I know junk food can taste amazing but it’s called junk for a reason. These are empty calories that don’t give you many nutrients. So, if you love pizza, greasy burgers, chips, and similar, it may be time to cut back. Fear not! You don’t have to stay away completely. Just make these foods a special treat type of thing and keep nutritious foods for every day.
Don’t lose hope
Genetics can be a tough hill to climb but all hope is not lost! Many hair growth products can help you on your journey as well as medical procedures if you’re looking for that quick and drastic change.
Don’t stress more
It’s a vicious cycle. Stress causes hair loss and hair loss causes stress. However, if you’re suffering from telogen effluvium just know that there is a time limit to it. The hair fall will eventually stop after 3 or 6 months. So, don’t stress! It will eventually pass.
The Hair Fall Checklist
Now that you know the hair fall DOs and DON’Ts, it’s time to start ticking each item off the list! The journey to bringing back luscious hair starts here. Make sure that you tick all the boxes to make sure your hair grows strong and healthy.