Does getting older mean you’ll lose your hair? For some people, the answer is maybe. Heredity plays a role in hair loss for many people, due to male pattern baldness. Women are also impacted by hair loss as they get older. What is behind this thinning? Is there anything you can do to help protect your hair as you get older? There are a few key things you should know about female aging and hair growth overall. Take a closer look at what is really behind this for your situation.
Why Do Women Lose Hair as They Age?
There are numerous reasons why women may lose hair as they get older. In some situations, there is no understanding of why this happens. However, these are some of the most common causes.
Female Pattern Baldness
Like with men, it is possible to lose hair as you age due to hereditary factors. In short, if your mother or grandmother had thinning hair or even balding areas, you are likely to develop the same outcome. There is a genetic condition here, called female pattern baldness that impacts many women. It does not often have the same obvious hair loss as the male form of this condition, but it can still be significantly different.
Changes in Hormones
A very big reason for any type of hair loss is related to hormones. If there is a significant change in your hormone levels, this can stress the body and push it into a type of survival mode that turns of the growth of hair. In some cases, this can occur due to the presence of disease or a change in overall health.
However, for many women, it comes with the change in hormones related to menopause. During this time, the level of progesterone and estrogen in the body changes, often dropping significantly. As a result of this sudden and significant drop, it is very common for the rate of hair growth to also slow down significantly. In some cases, this can make it seem as though you are losing hair. You may notice it is not as thick as it used to be, for example.
This specific hair loss related cause can worsen during menopause for some women. In these cases, it is possible to reach out to your doctor to talk about options to regulate your hormones a bit more. Some women will see a significant drop in hair growth as they enter into menopause, and that improves significantly as they get older. Others continue to see diminished hair loss and thickness throughout the rest of their life.
What You Can Do About It
It is not always possible to control your hair loss. If it is related to genetics, it is not likely you can stop it from occurring. However, your doctor may offer some support to you through this process. For example, in some women, it is possible to improve hormone levels significantly. As a result, this can help to even out that hormone imbalance and gives you the ability to have thicker, more natural hair that you are used to.
It is also important to speak to your doctor about any hair loss that seems to occur suddenly. This is not often related to the normal aging process, and it can be related to other health conditions, perhaps some you may not know about. Your doctor can run a series of blood tests to determine if there is any reason to be concerned about the process.
More so, your doctor can also determine, from these blood tests, what is behind your hair loss even if it does seem like a natural, slow process. If your hairstylist tells you that your hair is thinning or you notice a lot of hair in the drain after a shower, talk to your doctor about what could be causing it.
Sometimes, improving your diet and getting more exercise can help regulate hormones. Other times, it is a matter of reducing the stress in your life. Even if you are unsure what is happening, it is worth talking to your doctor about what’s occurring to find the best possible treatment option.
Contact the hair specialists at Unique Hair Concepts to learn more.
