Affecting about 50% of women, hair loss is not talked about as often as it should be. Seeing anything from single strands to debris left in your shower can depress you and boost your self-esteem – we don’t need to!
But in general, hair loss is completely natural and healthy, so here are some answers to questions about hair loss and the amount of normal hair loss.
Check out my hair loss video below.
How common is hair loss?
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Click here if you can’t see the video above.
How much hair is normal to lose?
It is normal to lose between 80-100 hairs per day. In fact, for some people up to 150 strands come out every day, and this is still considered normal.
If you have long hair, remember that 100 hairs will look a lot more when they are braided and all curled together than when they are flat or straight.
And remember that some split ends can stick to your style, so when it comes to washing your hair, there will be a lot more hair in the bathroom than you might expect.
If you have straight hair, you will lose hair all day long. They will fall out easily as well, so you may not actually notice hair loss when you wash your hair. For curly girls, because we have a lot of hair movement the loose hair splits but can stay in a curl.
So it’s only once we wash our hair that we see what looks like a lot of hair loss. And if you only wash your hair every three or four days, you should expect to see 300-400 hairs coming out of the shower.
I won’t post a picture of how much hair I lost in the shower but you can see it in the video.
When should you worry about hair loss?
If you’ve noticed a significant increase in hair loss, that’s when you should start paying attention. However, there are many things that can cause hair loss and most of them are correctable, so you don’t have to worry too much.
One of the biggest causes is stress, so worrying about it is really frustrating because it compounds the problem.
Certain deficiencies such as low iron can also cause hair loss and excessive weight gain or weight loss may affect your growth.
I have thyroid disease and whenever my thyroid is underactive, I can tell right away because I can see it in my hair.
If you notice a significant difference in hair loss, definitely go see your doctor, and ask for a blood test to see if you can pinpoint the problem.
Of course, there are conditions that cannot be treated or are incurable, such as alopecia, which can cause significant hair loss. However, I linked here to a video created by Sustainable Salons that really explains some of the tough questions to ask about alopecia and how we can all get involved to help.
If you notice hair loss, the first thing you should do is not to panic and know that you are not alone. More than half of women are affected by hair loss, so just start by monitoring the situation and if you notice it is getting worse, please see your doctor.
I hope this has helped ease any fears or concerns you may have had about this issue or at least I would have shown you the correct way.
This is part of a series of Q&A articles I have published on hair and hair issues. You can check out my YouTube series and subscribe to my channel here or find more news on the blog here.
And as always, if you have any questions about hair loss, please ask me in the comments.