Hair loss occurs when hair follicles stop producing hair growth - it is called alopecia.
Hair loss is a normal part of aging. Generally about 100 hairs are lost from your head every day. You may not notice this loss because the average scalp contains about 100,000 hairs. Some people may however experience excessive hair loss.
The normal cycle of hair goes through a phase of growth and rest. Each individual hair survives for an average of three and a half years. The growth phase of hair generally lasts two to three years, during which time it grows about half an inch a month. This growing phase is called anagen. This is followed by a resting phase called telogen, which lasts for about three to four months. Usually in its fourth year the hair falls out and is replaced within 6 months by a new one.
Types of Hair Loss
Pattern Baldness - is inherited or genetic baldness. It is also known as androgenetic alopecia and is caused by the body's failure to produce new hairs, and not due to excessive hair loss. Androgenetic alopecia is generally permanent.
Inherited or ""pattern baldness"" affects many more men than women. About 25% of men begin to bald by the time they are 30 years old, and about two thirds are either bald or have a balding pattern by age 60.
Male pattern baldness involves a receding hairline and thinning around the crown with eventual bald spots. Ultimately, you may have only a horseshoe ring of hair around the sides. In addition to genes, male pattern baldness seems to require the presence of the male hormone testosterone. Men who do not produce testosterone (because of genetic abnormalities or castration) do not develop this pattern baldness.
Some women also develop a particular pattern of hair loss due to genetics, age or male hormones that tend to increase in women after menopause. The patten is different from that of men. Female pattern baldness involves a thinning throughout the scalp while the frontal hairline remains intact.
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