While hair loss is more commonly associated with men, statistics show that approximately 30% to 50% of women suffer from some form of hair loss or thinning in their lifetime. Fortunately, everyday hair loss is normal to some extent. The average woman loses approximately 70 to 100 strands of hair per day. This varies from person to person according to their ethnicity, hair quality and hair length. In general, Caucasians see more daily hair loss than Asians and Africans. But how do you know when your hair loss is more than it should be? According to New York-based leading hair restoration specialist, Dr. James C. Marotta, a simple trick to gauge if your hair loss is excessive is to take about 60 strands of hair between your fingers and pull, running your fingers through your hair. Usually between 5 and 8 hairs will come out—this is normal. An excess of 15 hairs, however, is not as common and means you are losing more hair than you should be.

Why might you be experiencing excessive hair loss?

Some common reasons that women experience excessive hair loss include:

• Hereditary hair loss: This may be the case when your family has a history of hair loss or thinning hair.
• Emotional stress: Breakups, relationship problems and work stress.
• Physical stress: Due to injury, illness or surgery.
• Hair damage: From pulling your hair back too tightly, wearing tight braids or ponytails, using curling irons or dyes or using harsh shampoos.
• Age: Often, hair growth slows, while new hair strands grow thinner and break more easily as you age. Hormonal changes: During pregnancy or menopause.
• Unhealthy diets: This can influence your hair growth when your diets are lacking in iron, proteins, fatty acids, vitamins and minerals.
• Thyroid diseases: Hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism.

How can hair loss be prevented or treated?

• Here are some tips to prevent hair loss:
• Consume a healthy amount of iron and proteins. These are 2 key components that help with hair growth. Fish, cheese, nuts and spinach are some of the foods that contain high levels of iron or protein.
• Avoid using chemicals on your hair. Hair colouring, bleaching or perming your hair increases the chances of serious hair damage.
• Avoid using hair products containing chemicals. Example: hair mousse, hair sprays and harsh shampoos.
• Allow your hair to rest. Try not to pull your hair into tight buns or ponytails for prolonged periods of time as this can damage the roots of your hair and may cause more strand breakage.

If you are experiencing excessive hair loss, the good news is that most female hair loss is reversible. There are a number of treatments available for anyone looking to reverse hair loss, with the most common treatments being the use of topical or oral medication.

If you need to seek specialist advice and treatment for your hair loss, call our friendly medical concierge at +65 6679 7867 or email us at customercare@tmcg.com.sg and we will be on hand to assist you.