The Disturbing Trend of Hair Loss in Young Women

 

Hair loss in young women is REAL. Let’s decode what’s causing it and find the right hair loss treatment for women.

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The Disturbing Trend of Hair Loss in Young Women

Our hair is our “crowning glory,” an expression of our personal style. But what if your hair starts to break off and fall out?  Hair loss in young women is REAL, it doesn’t just happen after giving birth and today’s Project Motherhood post addresses this disturbing trend and ways to cope.

One of the loveliest women I know recently shared a personal issue with me, whispering,  “My hair is falling out in droves and I am freaking out! I really don’t think I can handle this!”  We’ve all noticed how disturbed men are when their hair starts to thin, so imagine what sudden hair loss can feel like to a woman!  And a younger woman at that!  Horrified is putting it mildly.

My friend “Jen” is a vibrant woman only in her mid-thirties who lives a healthy lifestyle and takes good care of her skin, her face, her body…and her hair.  How could this be happening to her?

The next day I asked my hairdresser about hair loss in young women.

Shari is the owner and founder of the amazing Isle of You Salon in the uber cool neighborhood of Lawrenceville in my hometown of Pittsburgh. Shari immediately confirmed to me what my friend Jen gleaned in her online search about this terrible little secret:  that countless women today in their twenties, thirties and early forties are indeed experiencing hair loss profound enough to seek professional help!

The blogosphere contains much information about how to care for your hair to keep it healthy. But what if hair loss and breakage continues in a nightmarish fashion, no matter what you do to try to stop it?

Background Facts of Hair Loss in Young Women

Jen sought medical help immediately, but thus far the extensive testing has revealed nothing to explain the copious amounts of hair that continue to break off and fall out of her pretty head.  The most common theory is that her hair loss might be caused by stress. (What DON’T we blame on stress??)

But there are other possibilities being bandied about, such as hormones, or diet, or environmental toxins. Other potential causes include genetic predisposition, auto-immune diseases, iron deficiency anemia, thyroid disease, allergies, pregnancy (usually afterwards), peri-menopause, and certain prescription drugs or OTC medication.  And even too much Vitamin A can cause hair loss (though Vitamin B12 is thought to improve hair growth). And, having fine hair is both a predisposition and a consequence of thinning hair. (This is one time you ladies with coarse hair might want to kiss your locks instead of hating on them!

Normal hair does of course fall out. It is supposed to fall out, at the rate of 40 to 100 hairs each day. And then it replenishes itself. That is, IF the hair and scalp are healthy.

But if the number of strands lost each day starts to rise dramatically, whether through breakage or through falling out from the root, or if your hair is not replenishing at the rate of losing, there is a problem.

Hair loss treatment for women 

Hair loss in young women occurs differently than with men, Shari explained.  Men have either a receding hairline moving back from the forehead, or what they call “male pattern baldness” with the thinning patch at the crown of the head.  But for women, hair loss most often occurs as an all-over thinning.

Hair enhancements can be an asnwer

Therefore, hair enhancements or hair extensions must be different in both style and method of attachment  for women than for men.  Some highly recommended adaptations are very subtle hair additions made of real human hair and blended seamlessly into one’s own hair from Hairdreams, and synthetic yet natural-looking hair extensions carefully hand-knotted onto your strands from Cyberhair , neither of which harm the existing hair and blend  in very well.  But, the upkeep and expense of adding hair into your own in a natural and long lasting fashion is not a solution that every woman would choose.

Truth is, I realized early on that there are many products and treatments out there that promise help to the 30 to 50 million men and women experiencing hair loss.

But the one method of first aid for thinning hair  that kept coming up again and again in my explorations of the topic was the Nioxin product line.

Nioxin: Hair loss treatment

Nioxin is a well known and very popular TOPICAL APPLICATION method, the prototype product for improving the health of the existing hair and helping hair look and feel lusher, thicker and more healthy.  Nioxin’s website describes it like this:

The NIOXIN approach began in 1987, when founder Eva Graham experienced thinning hair after the birth of her first child and began to investigate the idea of treating the scalp with skincare methods. Until then, people experiencing thin-looking hair had very few options for help. NIOXIN’s advanced technologies provide real solutions for making the most of the hair you have, transforming the hair care industry and bringing hope and confidence to men and women everywhere.

According to my research and the positive results of Shari’s clients, NIOXIN’s advanced technologies certainly deliver hair that looks thicker, fuller, and denser. Their commitment to innovation over 25 years of research has lent assistance to more than 3 out of 4 men and women in the U.S. with thinning hair. Their innovative product lines, designed for different types of hair and hair loss, have gained industry recognition year after year, which include their Treatment Systems (6 customized systems, with 3 specialized complexes) to Styling Range products.

One of Nioxin’s top Styling Range products, PRO THICK , is “a complex of thickening polymers that deposit forming bonds between the strands creating space that gives a thickening appearance. This technology makes the desired style easier to achieve and results in a visual thickening effect on the hair.”

I love that Nioxin’s products are described as “lightweight on hair but strong on style” and therefore can be used by women with healthy hair along with those experiencing problems.

Fashionably yours,

Deborah