Womens Hair Loss - Hair Loss Solutions - Hair Loss and Its Causes - Female Hair Loss

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What is the normal cycle of hair growth and loss?

Normal growth of hair lasts for two to six years. Each hair on your head grows a little less than half an inch each month during this time. About 85% of your hair is growing at any one time and the other part is “resting”. In about two to three months, the “resting” hairs fall out and a new hair starts to grow in its place.

The average women has around 100,000 strands of hair on her head and will normally loose between eighty and one hundred hairs a day, however some women may experience abnormal or excessive hair loss. Hair loss of this type can also affect men and children.

If you are losing hair at a more accelerated rate than this, you might want to re-think your hair care regimen, your diet or your lifestyle. We are whole beings, and something that stresses your system or brings imbalance in one area, will often show up later in your hair. This is why hair samples are requested when testing for heavy metals or other toxins in our bodies. What grows out in this otherwise dead protein called hair, is a good indicator of what we put around our bodies (including stress, hair care products, etc.) and in our bodies (such as water, medications, diet, vitamins and nutrients.)

Growing Your Hair

Can a woman "hurry-up" the growth process of hair in order to meet the deadline of a wedding, prom, or other public function? The plain truth is that there is no magic solution for quicker natural hair growth.  If you want to go from a short hair style to long locks overnight, you could consider options such as hair extensions, add-on ponytails or wigs.

While you are waiting for nature to do her thing, there are lots of methods and natural hair care products that can maximize the potential of natural healthy hair growth, but employ them knowing that you are not going to bed one night with short hair and wake up the next with hair like Rapunzel. While there are always exceptions to every rule, most hair grows a maximum of six inches per year.

Trivia Fact: By the time the end of a new hair reaches your shoulders, it is approximately two years old. Two years is a long time for hair to be subjected to wind and weather, the toxins of the typical American diet, the normal (or abnormal) hormonal fluctuations that women endure, and a harsh chemical environment of perms, color "treatments", and imbalanced toxic hair care products.

What causes abnormal hair loss?

A number of things can cause excessive hair loss such as: illness, infections (especially fungal infections and scalp infections) major surgery, stress, hormonal problems such as having a thyroid gland that is overactive or under active, having a baby, certain medications such as blood thinners, medicines used for gout or to treat cancer, birth control pills and anti-depressants.

It is a well-known fact that an under-active thyroid can result in frizzy or brittle hair while an overactive thyroid turns hair greasy and limp.

Hormonal changes in women are a common cause of female hair loss. After a pregnancy many women experience thinning hair on a temporary basis. While experiencing the hormonal changes of pregnancy, more hair follicles than normal can enter the growth phase. A few months after childbirth, the normal hair cycle returns and many hairs enter the resting phase, which causes what may seem to be excessive shedding of those extra hairs. If the condition is not temporary, the pregnancy might have developed a nutritional deficiency which can be addressed with a good balanced diet of fresh fruits and vegetables and organic sources of protein along with nutritional supplements, like a multivitamin.

Stress can induce hair loss! Severe stress due to illness, injury or surgery causes a condition called telogen effluvium— which is where a good percentage of your hair stop its growing phase and shifts into the resting phase. Two to three months later, those resting hairs suddenly start falling out. Thankfully this is temporary and hair eventually grows back within 6 to 9 months.

Intense stress can also create hair loss called alopecia areata. Here white blood cells attack the hair follicle, which stops hair growth. Within weeks all affected hair falls out. This condition can be detected as it usually starts as a small round patch but can spread to the whole scalp — and sometimes even to your body hair also. Your hair may grow back. But treatment may be necessary.

NOTE: If you have questions or concerns about hair loss, consult a dermatologist.

Can improper care of my hair cause hair loss?

Tight pigtails, braids (cornrows), or hair-rollers, or hair pulling can cause a type of hair loss called traction alopecia. Such pulling and tightness can cause scarring of the scalp which can cause permanent hair loss.

Also chemicals such as hot oil treatments, hair bleach, high-lights and permanents may cause inflammation of the hair follicle, which can result in scarring and hair loss. Chemicals in many hair care products can also cause scalp irritation and inflammation which can cause hair loss. Using natural, organic ph balanced hair care products is always the best policy, as well as avoiding common mistakes in hair care that cause further damage to the scalp and hair follicles.

Does Diet Affect My Hair?

They say, "You are what you eat." This is certainly born out in hair quality. Your hair is a bi-product of how your treat your body. Just like your body needs nutrients to stay healthy, so does your hair. Making a daily decision to eat lots of fresh organic fruits and vegetables that are loaded with nutrients such as vitamin c and antioxidants is the best way to healthy hair. Since hair is made up of protein, finding ways to incorporate amino acids, the building blocks of protein, is also essential.

Of course drinking plenty of purified water will give your body maximum hydration. Eating organic, will help deter the body from becoming toxic, especially from copper, and steering clear of processed foods will prevent a high sodium intake.

Copper Can Cause Hair Loss

Drinking plenty of filtered spring water will give your body good hydration, which is essential to all body functions, including producing cells. Eating organic foods will help keep your body from becoming toxic, especially from copper and the high sodium contents of most processed foods.

Unhealthy concentrations of copper can cause hair loss. Copper toxicity can vary from person to person, and can depend on the individuals metabolism and diet. You can have your hair tested to see if your body is full of heavy metals such as aluminum, antimony, arsenic, bismuth, cadmium, lead, mercury, nickel, tin, along with chromium, cobalt, copper, strontium and zinc. See this site for a heavy metals detox recipe.

How do women get excess copper in their bodies? Drinking water that comes from old copper pipes is one easy way. Copper is also added by farmers to anti-fungal and algae sprays plus animal feed which is then passed on to us through our diet. Birth control products such as "the pill" and "IUD" both contain copper, which makes women more susceptible to copper imbalances. Woman that swim allot in public pool water are also at risk due to a popular algaecide used to control algae growth in swimming pools.

Conclusion

The same answers that are good for your body are good for your hair and good for your life. Consume and drink natural organic nutritional sources. Use Giovanni Cosmetics organic shampoo, conditioner and skin care at discount prices for healthy skin and healthy hair! Support yourself well, if under undue stress, and where possible, reduce stress to livable levels. By all means, if you have a medical condition of any kind (described in this site, or otherwise), seek qualified medical attention. This site is not meant to be recomendations on medical treatment or a diagnosis, but a guide to healthy hair care only. For a guide to healty skin, click here.