This is why your hair is falling out (AND how to stop it)
Hair shedding is a part of every day life, yes it clogs up your shower drain, and yes, it means you have to vacuum every other day or your carpet turns into a hairy rug... But the fact is, hair loss is totally normal.
On average we lose around 80 strands a day, if you begin to shed significantly more than that or you notice they aren't growing back, well, that's when things start to get a bit hairy (soz, couldn't help it).
The thing is, when it comes to hair loss there are so many potential triggers, which means it can be tricky to pinpoint the exact reason why your strands are falling out, and henceforth, how to remedy the situation.
To help break down the possible reasons why you're losing hair we spoke to hair loss expert, Anabel Kingsley, a leading Trichologist at the Philip Kingsley Clinic in London and founder of Get Ahead of Hair Loss, Dr Sharon Wong.
Here’s how the hair growth cycle works:
Ok, it’s science-y but very cool, basically “each hair follicle on our scalp undergoes three stages of a life cycle,” explains Dr Wong.
Anagen – “This is the active growing phase, which can last between 2-7 years during which the hair becomes longer and thicker.”
Catagen – “After anagen, the hair follicle moves into the short transitional phase called catagen when the hair fibre stops growing, followed by the resting phase telogen which lasts around 3 months.”
Telogen – “During telogen the old hair is gradually pushed up towards the skin surface before it is then shed naturally and replaced with a new emerging anagen hair.
On a typical head of hair each follicle is at a different stage at different times so you probably won’t notice it happening. Very cool. “This cycle continues repeatedly throughout our lifetime and each hair follicle is cycling independently of neighbouring follicles meaning that human hair growth is asynchronised,” says Dr Wong.
It’s important to note that hair loss is a very common problem for women – much more so that people realise. "Research shows that at least 1 in 3 women will suffer from hair loss or reduced hair volume at some point in their lifetime," says Anabel Kingsley. So, if you are losing strands, it's important not to freak out, your mane will recover. In the meantime, here's everything you need to know...
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