People lose their hair all the time. It’s not just the proverbial of pulling your hair out when you are frazzled but dealing with the situation when too much has come out through natural wear and tear. Generally we replenish what hair has fallen out over time so it is a perfectly normal process. Apparently we can shed between 50 and 100 hairs on a daily basis. Hair loss is not as a big a deal as we might make out.
If we lose entire patches of hair or just larger amounts than normal then we feel distress at gong bald and it sometimes a sign that not all is well.
For many men and indeed women, pattern baldness is one of the commonest causes of hair loss as we get older. The British Association of Dermatologists has estimated that over half the men aged 50 and over lose a good deal of hair just through aging. Women also lose their hair with age but not as extensively.
The more concerning losses of hair are due to stress, cancer treatment from radiotherapy and chemotherapy, weight loss and anorexia in particular, and from iron deficiency. Generally the hair loss in these circumstances is temporary and will grow back once treatment has ended.
The specific medical conditions when hair falls out without regrowing include alopecia which is a disorder of the immune system, an overactive thyroid; a skin condition known as lichen planus and from a type of cancer called Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
If your hair falls out in lumps see a doctor or physician as quickly as possible
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