Hair Loss Facts

• Over 40 million men suffer from hair loss.
• Approximately 21 million woman suffer from hair loss.
• People lose over 50 hairs from their head each day.
• Individual follicles grow for 2-3 years before being shed.
• Hair grows about 1/2" per month.
• Androgenetic alopecia is the cause of over 95% of all pattern hair loss, including baldness in men and thinning hair in women.

Normal Hair Growth Stages

Anagen Phase - Hair grows at about 1/2" per month for 2 to 3 years. 80 to 90% of all hair on the scalp is in the stage.

Catagen Phase - The next phase where the bulb of the hair follicle detaches from the blood supply and growing is slowed.

Telogen Phase - Finally, the stage of zero growth, the hair is at rest, the hair is shed after a few months and new hair will grow.

If any of these stages become abnormal hair will not grow properly.

Causes of Hair Loss

Although androgenetic alopecia is the usual culprit, other conditions and factors can also cause a temporary or sometimes permanent loss of hair. These include:

• Normal processes of aging (involutional alopecia)
• Traumatic injuries, such as severe burns
• Skin infections
• Chemotherapy
• Radiation therapy (usually only on areas where the radiation is targeted)
• Medication side effects (almost always temporary) from prescription drugs, such as blood thinners, antidepressants, birth control pills, and high blood pressure medications
• Tight hairdos and elastic bands that exert a constant pull (traction alopecia)-usually temporary; sometimes permanent
• Certain diseases and conditions, such as diabetes, lupus, immune system disorders, and polycystic ovary syndrome
• Overactive or underactive thyroids
• Incorrectly applied hair color and chemical relaxers
• Stress or illness.

Androgenetic alopecia is the scientific name for the genetic predisposition in both men and women for pattern baldness or pattern hair loss. Androgenetic alopecia is the cause of over 95% of all pattern hair loss, including baldness in men and thinning hair in women. Pattern hair loss occurs in somewhat predictable stages, and is relentlessly progressive. This means that those with pattern hair loss will, if they live long enough, eventually progress from the early stages of loss to the advanced stages. We all suffer hair loss; some people just arrive at the advance stages of hair loss sooner than others. Studies have shown that pattern loss is increasingly evident and advanced as people age.