Most of us know the feeling. You carefully style your hair in the morning only to get a sinking sensation in your stomach when you see how many hairs are left on the brush or comb. Or you stand in the shower as the water runs away, looking aghast at the mouse-like ball of hair gathered in the drain, and there it is again, that sinking sensation in your stomach. Most people are aware that some daily hair shedding is normal, but what does \u2018some\u2019 look like? When should the hair loss alarm bells start ringing?<\/p>\n
This article will take a close look at the difference between hair loss and hair shedding. Keep scrolling to find out more!<\/p>\n
Ok, let\u2019s start by pinning down exactly what the \u2018some\u2019 normal hair shedding looks like. The American Academy of Dermatologists<\/a> holds that we lose an estimated 50-100 hairs daily as part of the hair\u2019s natural growth cycle. The figure will vary depending on an individual\u2019s age and gender. Women tend to shed up to 40% more hair<\/a> every day because of the strain that styling and colouring place on their strands. Women are also more likely to shed hair because of hormonal changes. Pregnancy and menopause, for example, are life events that trigger hormonal imbalances in the female body.<\/p>\n If the hair fall you notice seems to lie within the normal range, you have no cause to worry. There is something like 80,000 to 150,000 hairs on an individual\u2019s head, each of which is at a different stage of the growth cycle; what you are seeing is simply the outworking of the hair\u2019s natural cycle.<\/p>\n The hair growth cycle is divided into three stages. The anagen <\/strong>stage is when the hair grows at a rate of about 1cm per month. Approximately 90% of your hair<\/a> is in that stage when everything is working normally. The next stage is the catagen<\/strong> phase. This phase lasts two or three weeks, accounts for about 1% or 2% of your hair and is the stage when your hair ceases growing. The third and final stage is called the telogen<\/strong> phase. This is the resting stage that occurs before the hair separates from your head. Just under 10% of your hair is in this phase at any given time.<\/p>\n Hair that falls as part of this natural cycle is hair shedding. The amount can fluctuate from time to time. We\u2019ve mentioned that some haircare routines and hormonal imbalances can cause more than average hair fall. Age and stress are other factors that can make us shed more than the average number of strands. If the hair you shed is over and above these levels, and if it\u2019s resulting in noticeable thinning or bald patches, then you could be into hair loss territory.<\/p>\n Hair loss is not part of the natural hair cycle. It\u2019s what happens when the cycle is disrupted in some way. If this occurs during the growth stage, the hair loss that results is known as anagen effluvium<\/a>. The main causes of this type of hair loss include infections, medications or drug treatments (chemotherapy being a prime example), toxins and autoimmune diseases such as alopecia areata.<\/p>\nThe Growth Cycle<\/h4>\n
Hair Loss<\/h4>\n