Causes of Hair loss and treatment

Hair loss is a normal and daily occurrence for both men and women resulting in male and female pattern baldness. Even the healthiest of individuals suffer from hair loss. However, excessive or rapid hair loss can be a reason for concern, which might need immediate professional guidance or medical diagnosis and treatment.

Some of the most common reasons for hair loss, acting singly or in combination, can be the following:

1. Hormones - Imbalances in the male and female hormones, androgen and estrogen leads to thinning hair.
   
   Treatment: Modern inventions in the medical science come to the rescue. Correcting the imbalance through medicines or treatment may stop hair loss.
   
2. Diet - Poor nutrition, an overdose of vitamin A and deficiency of the mineral copper and vitamin H (biotin) can be detrimental for hair. Also, excessive dieting is unhealthy for the hair follicles.
   
   Treatment: Proper nutrition is very important for hair growth. A diet rich in natural fiber like whole grains (wheat, oat) and whole food (potato, cucumber, peppers with their skins intact) strengthen the hair follicles due to the mineral silica. Supplements of vitamin B5 and folic acid thicken the hair and maintain the color.
   
3. Heredity - Hereditary baldness is a very complex matter concerning the genes the affected individual possesses. Extensive research work involving a lot of families with affected individuals with a very complex genetic code is being carried on these days and researchers will soon find out some cure.
   
4. Stress - Our daily life is so full of activities concerning the job, the home, the family and friends and the relatives. It is very easy to get stressed these days leading to various health conditions. Falling hair is a symptom that a person might be stressed. During stressful periods, the body undergoes a disturbance in the routine procedures and the various resources are utilized to fight the stress. The hair suffers in the process.
   
   Treatment: Try calming the mind using various techniques for stress relief. Massaging with essential oils (aromatherapy), meditation and yoga have been found to be extremely helpful to free the mind of stressful thoughts.
   
5. Head lice/nit - Lice infest the hair shaft close to scalp and can spread very rapidly throughout the head. In extreme cases they can start nesting in the eyebrows and sideburns. They feed on the blood from the scalp weakening the roots or the hair follicles, grow big in size, walk around the head and cause itching. They lay miniature white eggs (nits) near the roots of the hair, which sometimes look like dandruff.
   
   Treatment: The best way to check lice growth is to shave the head. Since that is not acceptable for many, the next best solution is medial intervention. A lot of lice and nit killing shampoos are found in the market these days.
   
6. Infections - Infection caused by the fungus, scalp ringworm, leads to the patchy appearance of the head due to hair loss. They infect the hair follicles, multiply and spread out in a circular fashion, attack the hair fiber making it brittle and vulnerable, thus weakening them, and ultimately shedding them. Inflammation with a dandruff like outlook is it’s alarming symptom. It is quite common in children.
   
   Treatment: Detection of the fungus is important to determine the treatment process. Use of anti-fungal drugs like Griseofulvin can be very effective in barring the fungus from affecting the keratin, a component of hair. It does not allow the fungus to replicate and within a few weeks the head becomes free of the scalp ringworm.
   
7. Menopause - It is the end of reproduction and the beginning of a new life of liberation. The various troubles associated with menopause like mood swings, sleeplessness, anxiety, lethargy and depression along with hormonal shifts producing less estrogen and progesterone act simultaneously leading to hair loss.
   
   Treatment: Consulting a dermatologist is the best option. He will find out the root cause of hair shedding and suggest medications.