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Women and Hair Loss
I. Introduction
I want to apologize to all the women that are suffering from hair loss. Among the medical community, not much has been done in relation to hair loss in women. There are a ton of articles and treatments for men. But I had a hard time finding good research on hair loss among women. Perhaps the medical community focuses on men because the market is bigger. However, I firmly believe that hair loss in women is much more devastating for a female than it is for a male. The worst-case scenario for a man with hair loss would be to shave his head. I think most women would agree that shaving your hair to hide your hair loss is the last thing any woman wants to do. In addition, I have just as many women customers and I do men, so the number of women suffering with hair loss is vast.
No matter how much hair you have lost I want to help you because there are options for everyone, no matter how advanced your hair loss is. But don’t wait to do something about it, I always tell people it is easier to keep what you got vs getting back what you lost.
On this page you will read about what hair loss is and isn’t, the causes of hair loss, and the best products for hair loss. I have researched and or tried hundreds of products over the years and the ones I carry on this website I consider to be the best of the best. On this website you can buy both over-the-counter and prescription hair loss products. You can read about my 10 Question Criteria I ask about a product to decide if I want to try a new product and eventually carry the product on my website. Let my experience and trial of products work for you. Ladies, my heart goes out to you and I hope this page, dedicated to you, will help because my heart is in it.
II. All About Hair loss in Women
Women comprise of 40% of those losing their hair in America, which equates to about 21 million women. This statistic is much higher than I expected. Like men, there are many illnesses and diseases that can cause hair loss in women. Because of that, it is recommended to see your doctor so they can rule out different illnesses that could be causing your hair loss. There are numerous illnesses that can have hair loss as a symptom, but the most common in females are:
Anemia – a condition caused by an iron deficiency in your diet. This results in a deficiency in the red blood cells, which carry oxygen to the body for metabolic function. The most common symptom is fatigue, but hair loss has been linked to this condition also. A simple blood test is used to detect the iron levels in your body.
Hypothyroidism – when your thyroid is not producing enough thyroid hormone, which is linked to metabolism, heart rate, and general mood. Numerous symptoms, in addition to hair loss, may be present. Symptoms such as fatigue and a depression are common. A simple blood test is performed for diagnosis.
Lupus – a chronic auto immune disease where your own immune system attacks itself. Hair loss has been linked as a symptom, along with other common symptoms such as fatigue and swollen joints. Lupus is detected by blood test and examination by a doctor.
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome – a condition in which the ovaries produce too much of male hormones (androgens). In addition to hair loss on the scalp, this condition can cause facial hair, acne, and irregular periods. A blood test is used to detect this condition.
Telogen Effuvium – large amounts of hair shedding as a result of extreme mental or physical stress or trauma. This condition can also be caused as a side effect to certain medications. There is no test for this; rather a doctor would ask questions about recent events in your life that may be the source of the problem.
The above conditions are the most common that are linked to hair loss in females. There are other conditions related to topical skin irritations from skincare products or diet. Alopecia Areata, which is where the immune system attacks the hair follicles, could be a cause of your hair loss. In addition, over styling, excessive coloring or too much washing of the hair can also cause hair loss. However, if you have one of these conditions as the cause of your hair loss you would most likely have other symptoms that are associated with these conditions.
With that said, if you are losing your hair and the doctor wasn’t able to find anything else wrong with you, then the most likely diagnosis is Female Pattern Hair Loss or Androgenetic Alopecia. This condition is the gradual miniaturization of your hair follicles and the shortening of the hair growth phase. This condition continues to progress until the hair follicle becomes dormant.
Hair grows in phases. Each phase varies in elapsed time. Hair has a growth phase called anagen, which is when the hair is constantly growing. Then you have the transitional phase called catagen, which is when the hair stops growing and transitions to the last phase. The last phase is the resting phase called telogen, which is when the hair stops growing and falls out. Under normal conditions, after the hair is pushed out the cycle starts over. However, when someone is suffering with Female Pattern Hair Loss the growth phase becomes less and less and the resting phase becomes longer until there is no longer a growth phase, and the hair follicle becomes dormant.
The progression of female pattern baldness takes on a different pattern over time than it does in men. Women’s hair loss is measured using the Ludwig Scale, shown here. The Ludwig Scale is nothing more than a general guideline showing the typical progression of hair loss in a female, but it is not an absolute. Your pattern of hair loss can be different than what is shown, but experts say that this scheme is typically how it occurs.
So what exactly causes Female Pattern Hair Loss? Like in men, it is widely believed that Female Pattern Hair Loss or Androgenetic Alopecia is caused by the hair follicle’s sensitivity to a hormone called DHT, or dihydrotestosterone. DHT is synthesized as a byproduct of testosterone through an enzyme called 5a-reductase in the adrenal glands, hair follicles, and male sex organs.
Women have smaller amounts of testosterone in the body compared to men, which would lead one to believe that it would not cause an issue in females. But even a low level of testosterone can cause DHT levels high enough to trigger hair loss in women. Scientists believe that it’s not the amount of testosterone circulating in the body, but rather the level of DHT in the hair follicles. DHT shrinks the hair follicles causing them to become dormant.
So, like in men, one would believe that if you could slow down the production of DHT, you could stop the hair loss. That concept has proven itself true. There are two ways to treat hair loss, you can block the production of DHT and you can stimulate the hair follicle to grow hair. Most of the treatments on this website does both, which is what you want.
III. Clinically Proven Treatments for Hair Loss in Women
There are hundreds of treatments for hair loss. This website has researched numerous treatments and the ones listed here I consider to be the best of the best. You can read about my experience with each product at the bottom of each product page. All of the listed treatments have undergone clinical trials to help prove that they do what the maker says they should do and they pass my 10 Question Criteria. There are two products that are backed by FDA clinical trials, they are Minoxidil and HairMax Laser Comb. However, all of the products I test and recommend are well-researched products.
All of the treatments discussed on this website don’t work for everyone. There is no one treatment that works for everyone. There are products on this website that didn’t work for me, but I have seen the results in others. In addition, treatments may become less effective over time, which I have also seen in myself. But by medicine standards, these treatments are highly successful, well over a 70% success rate for all of them. But since they don’t work for everyone, it means there still may be other causes of hair loss that we haven’t identified yet. That is another reason why it is important to go to your doctor for a checkup to make sure you don’t have something else going on that could be causing the hair loss.
In addition, does the amount of hair loss determine if a treatment will work? This is a hard question to answer because most of the study participants in clinical trials have mild to moderate hair loss. Based on my research I would say yes, the more hair loss and the longer the duration of your hair loss, the less likely to get it all back. However, it doesn’t mean that those with severe hair loss can’t successfully use these treatments, I have seen these products work on extreme cases, but based on what we have seen many experts would agree that these treatments are only so effective because once a hair follicle dies there is no bringing it back.
As you learned in my hair loss story, you can use multiple treatments at the same time. I recommend a topical solution, either prescription or over-the-counter, a shampoo and conditioner like Nutri-Ox, and a medical device (HairMax Laser Comb or Darsonval Violet Ray) to be used together. Whatever you try is your decision, but it is not recommended to use more than one topical solution or more than one medical device at the same time.
If you have a treatment that is not listed here it doesn’t mean it doesn’t work. It just means it is not listed because it did not meet our listing criteria or we were not aware it was on the market. If you have successfully used a treatment that is not listed here please email us and we will research the treatment.
The goal of treatment for mild to moderate hair loss are to stop any further hair loss to save what hair you have and try to regrow hair in lost areas. These treatments are highly successful and worth your time.
The goal of treatment for severe hair loss is to give those that already lost their hair a second chance at having hair once again. Again, let me reiterate that anyone can try any of the treatments I carry on this website no matter how much hair loss you have. However, if you have had hair loss for a long time and the hair follicles on your scalp have died then the chances of success on these products is low because once a hair follicle dies there is no bringing it back. If you have peach fuzz, there still may be a chance. But if you have no luck with the prescription or over-the-counter products I carry then you may be a great candidate for Hair Club or hair transplants to fill in those thin or bald areas.
The treatments listed below that have a star next to them are available for sale on 4hairloss.org. You will see that I don’t sell individual bottles of any hair loss treatment, I sell in 90-day supplies. I do that because if you are only going to give a product a 1 month 1 bottle to see results you are wasting your time and money. You should give any hair loss treatment at least 3 months to see results. If you haven’t noticed any results in 3 months then it is time to try another product, but never give up, no one product works for everyone. In addition, the price of the prescription products includes an online consult with a doctor, which is required for the prescription products.
Clinically Proven Treatments
Prescription Treatments
For mild to moderate hair loss
Over-the-Counter Treatments
For mild to moderate hair loss
Medical Devices
For mild to moderate hair loss
Hair Replacement
For severe hair loss
Treatments are researching
These are topical, medical devices, and other treatments that 4hairloss.org believes are excellent treatments. These are treatments we are currently using ourselves and researching with our customers.