Posts Tagged ‘dejection’
Whatever the cause and symptom, hair loss is a source of dejection
Hair loss is a difficult matter to face for both men and women. It is the thinning of hair on the scalp. The medical term for hair loss is alopecia. Alopecia can be either temporary or permanent. Heredity and hormonal imbalance can cause gradual hair loss that is referred to as ‘androgenetic alopecia’.
Define Hair Loss
Hair is made up of a keratin, a protein that is produced in the hair follicles. When new cells are produced the old cells are pushed out through the surface of the skin. This cycle of new hair growth and losing old hair is termed as ‘natural hair loss’. When hormonal changes and heredity are the cause for hair loss then it is termed as ‘androgenetic alopecia’. Patches of baldness that normally grow back are termed as ‘alopecia areata’. Rapid shedding of hair after childbirth, fever, or sudden weight loss is termed as ‘telogen effluvium’ and thinning of hair from tight braids or ponytails is normally referred to as ‘traction alopecia’. Hair loss is generally age-related and occurs gradually in both males and females, but is more pronounced in males.
The average adult head has about 100,000 hairs at any given time and loses up to 100 of them a day. So a few stray hair here and there cannot necessarily be termed as a problem.
Each hair usually grows in repeated cycles — that is growth, rest, falling out and re-growth. Usually this cycle repeats itself yearly and as a result 90% of the scalp hair is growing at any given time; this phase lasts between two and six years. 10% of scalp hair is in the resting phase, lasting between two and three months. At the tail end of the resting phase, the hair goes through the shedding phase. When a hair is shed, it is replaced by a new hair.
