When you start experiencing hair loss, your first thoughts are usually on how you can reverse the process and get back your great hair. You may research the possible remedies and how effective they are, which isn’t out of place. However, it is worth considering the cause(s) of your hair loss. Hair loss doesn’t occur in a vacuum. Apart from the primary cause of hair loss which is genetics, underlying diseases or nutrient deficiencies can also cause hair loss. Knowing if your hair loss is a fall out of a condition you have or some nutrient deficiency is necessary. This is because such knowledge can give your treatment plan a definite trajectory.
Common Diseases and Deficiencies and How They Affect Hair Loss
Here, we will look at some prevalent and not-so-popular diseases and nutrient deficiencies, which could be the cause of your hair loss.
- Alopecia Areata
Alopecia is an auto-immune disease. An auto-immune disease makes your immune system attack parts of your body instead of actual dangers to your body system, such as viruses and germs. Alopecia areata causes your immune system to attack your hair follicles, preventing hair growth and resulting in hair loss. Total hair loss called Alopecia Universalis could follow. It could also be that the medications you’re taking for alopecia are causing your hair loss, and not the disease itself. There is no known cure for alopecia, but there are hair treatments that can slow down the hair loss it causes while boosting hair regrowth.
- Cancer
Cancer treatment through chemotherapy is known to cause significant hair loss. Beyond medical studies in proof of this, you must have also seen a cancer patient start losing hair when they start chemotherapy. Chemotherapy uses a cocktail of strong medications to attack cancerous cells. However, in doing this, the treatment also attacks the roots of our hair. This could lead to small patches of hair loss and eventually progresses to full-blown hair loss. Furthermore, it isn’t only chemotherapy that causes hair loss. Some types of cancer, such as Hodgkin’s lymphoma, also cause considerable hair loss.
- Ringworm
Ringworm, also called dermatophytosis, can cause hair loss. It is a fungal infection of the skin that can occur on any part of the skin, including your scalp. It usually starts as red patches on the infected parts of your scalp and can spread onto other parts. Ringworm can spread through personal contact with an infected person or by sharing hair care items such as combs or other items that come in contact with your hair, such as pillows. On the scalp, it causes temporary bald patches. However, when ringworm is treated, these patches heal and hair regrows.
- Vitamin D Deficiency
Vitamin D is a vital nutrient for your hair. Your body gets vitamin D primarily from the sun. You can also get it from supplements and foods such as salmon, mackerel, animal fats, or milk. Studies have shown that hair loss can be due to insufficient amounts of vitamin D in your body. This deficiency can be caused by spending a lot of time indoors, wearing sunscreen, or eating foods low in vitamin D. Vitamin D stimulates your hair follicles to produce new hair or restore hair growth. However, if you have low Vitamin D levels, this stimulation will be hindered, resulting in hair loss.
- Iron Deficiency
Iron deficiency is a prevalent deficiency known to cause hair loss. Iron aids the oxygen-supplying red blood cells in your blood. So, a reduction in iron levels leads to low oxygenated blood flow, causing hair loss. People with medical conditions such as heavy menstrual bleeding or post-surgery patients are at risk of this. If you fall into any of these classes and have also experienced hair loss, it would be best to inform your doctor. You can also get on a plan to increase your iron levels and reverse the hair loss process.
Easy and Painless Remedies for Hair Loss
Here are some straightforward and painless (non-invasive) remedies, including:
- Proper Dieting
Since insufficient amounts of Vitamin D, iron, and other nutrients can lead to hair loss, if you ensure that these nutrients never lack in your diet, you can efficiently beat hair loss.
- Good Shampoos
You should also invest in good DHT-blocking shampoos. It keeps your hair clean and contains essential proteins, amino acids, and vitamins necessary for healthy hair.
- Laser Therapy
Laser therapy through laser caps is also a good hair loss remedy. It is a non-invasive treatment method that uses low-level light therapy (LLLT) to stimulate your hair follicles for improved hair growth. Our FDA-cleared caps can give you results within seven months, risk-free.
Conclusion
It may not exactly be good news to discover that a disease or nutrient deficiency causes your hair loss. However, sometimes, the remedy is to increase the deficient nutrients or treat/manage the underlying condition. Surely, this article has enlightened you on the possible diseases that could be causing you hair loss and pointed you towards effective treatments.
