Whilst the notion of hair loss is typically associated with old age, many of you will be aware that this is in fact not entirely true. Depending on various factors, hair loss can strike at any time.
Autoimmune disorder Alopecia Areata can affect anyone from children and babies to fully grown adults. Whilst Androgenetic Alopecia – more commonly known as Male Pattern Baldness (for men), can present at any time following puberty.
Men with hereditary hair loss tend to lose their hair earlier than their female counterparts but several studies have suggested that millennials may be more likely to experience premature hair loss than their parents’ or grandparents’ generations.
Here we explore some of the common causes of hair loss today, according to researchers and how true this might be.
How big a factor is stress?
Stress being a contributor to hair loss is something that has long been researched and boy!!, is ‘Generation Y’ stressed.
With noted increases in lifestyle-related stresses, the effect can be arduous for the body. A more hectic lifestyle can cause people to seek out coping mechanisms such as cigarettes, alcohol or even drugs. Their impact on hair can be such that the individual is left with dry, weak, and brittle hair that is likely to fall out.
The lifecycle of hair goes a little something like this; the hair grows, it stops growing, and finally the hair falls out. These steps are called the anagen, telogen and exogen phases. Stress can affect the growth lifecycle of your hair.
The anagen (growth phase) of a human scalp hair lasts from two to six years. After the growth phase. This is then followed by the telogen phase when the hair remains stable. Finally, hair enters the exogen phase where it falls out. This is a continuous process, and it is normal for a person to shed between 50 and 100 hairs every day. Stress causes an increase in cortisol, which interrupts the anagen phase by moving hairs out of the growth phase prematurely. This can cause more hair than normal to fall out.
Dietary Issues
In addition to nutritional imbalances, the increasing amount of sugar we consume has risen. Whether this is intentional or through ‘hidden sugars’ in processed foods, a link has been found to cause thinning of hair.
Whilst as a generation, we appear to be extremely health conscious with keto diets here and going vegan there, drastic nutritional changes with little thought about micro-nutrients can result in hair loss. For example, low iron or high levels of vitamin A can contribute to hair loss. These drastic lifestyle changes can potentially be detrimental to hair health.
Problematic hairstyles
The increased popularity in “tight” such as braids, dreadlocks and man-buns, has caused a spike in cases of Traction Alopecia. This is a preventable hair loss condition which is caused by undue strain being placed on the hair follicles, most often due to hairstyles. It can affect anyone of any age and any hair type. Traction Alopecia is treatable for those willing to ditch the offending styles. If you leave it too late to seek help, it can condition can cause permanent baldness.
Over processing hair using damaging dyes, relaxers and texturisers can also lead to hair loss.
Though there might not be direct evidence to suggest that men are losing their hair younger, it is important to note that they are most certainly more conscious of hair loss at a younger age. Millennials are actively exploring hair replacement options earlier than ever before, however there is no concrete indication to prove men are physically losing their hair younger.
With NewFade hair units available to you, you are more than equipped if and when the time does come.
