Related topics: •  Hair Loss (Male-Pattern Baldness)

It's probably your parents' fault. Women inherit the tendency to lose their hair (a condition called androgenetic alopecia) just as frequently as men do. But instead of receding at the forehead or the crown, a woman's hair usually thins out evenly all over her head. This may be less noticeable at first, since there are no bald patches. But the problem is more pervasive than you might think: One in three women suffers from so-called "female-pattern hair loss."

Normally, each of your hairs grows for two to seven years, takes a three-month "rest," and then falls out to make room for new hair. But if you have a genetic predisposition to thinning locks, your hair follicles may become more sensitive to the male hormone testosterone sometime in your twenties or thirties, or even in your teens. (It's not that you produce more testosterone than other women; the hormone just affects you differently.) Over time, your follicles shrink and can produce only finer, shorter, lighter-colored hairs or none at all. In some women the process accelerates at menopause, when natural estrogen levels decline, but hormone-replacement therapy doesn't seem to help.

Many women try to hide their thinly covered scalps by styling their hair differently or wearing hats, but there are medical solutions, too. Rogaine, a lotion that contains a tiny amount of the drug minoxidil, stops follicles from shrinking in about 60 percent of the women who try rubbing it into their scalps twice a day. About two-thirds of those women will also see some regrowth within eight months, although the new hair is usually much finer than the old. Rogaine is available without a prescription, and costs about $50 for a three-month supply. But you must use it continually for the rest of your life to maintain any new hair growth. Once you stop using Rogaine, you will lose within a few months all the hair you would ordinarily have lost if you had never used it. A small percentage of women find that the solution causes itching or headaches.

Don't get taken in by preparations that call themselves "hair-farming products," "vasodilators," or "thinning-hair supplements." Some of these supplements contain polysorbate, a common ingredient in shampoos. They may temporarily make your hair look a little thicker, but they won't "unlock trapped hairs" or stimulate new growth. Minoxidil is the only drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration as a treatment for female-pattern hair loss. Propecia, a hair-growth pill that functions by moderating testosterone levels, seems to work only in men. It is not safe for women and can cause birth defects in the children of women who even touch a broken Propecia pill while pregnant.

Hair-restoration surgery is another option for women, although it works best if you happen to be thinning out primarily on top, as men do. A surgeon removes hair from a denser area on your head and transplants the follicles individually to wherever you need them most. No stitches are required -- the pinpoint scabs heal in a few days -- but it's often necessary to do repeated procedures in order to keep pace with further thinning. You can expect to pay between $4,000 and $30,000 over time.

Ask your doctor or hair stylist to give you a referral to a reputable surgeon. Or call the American Academy of Dermatology (866-503-7546) or the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (888/272-7711). Always ask to meet a few former patients. The doctor should take your medical history, find out what medications you're taking, and give you a blood test to check your hormone levels and rule out other possible causes of your hair loss.

Although genes are responsible for the problem in 95 percent of all cases, hair loss may also be a sign of overprocessing (too many perms or color treatments can also make hair break off or fall out) or even of serious illness. Severe stresses to the body, such as thyroid disease, malnutrition, chemotherapy, or prolonged fever can cause all your hair to fall out at once, but it will grow back as you recover. Your hair may also thin temporarily when your estrogen decreases after you give birth or go off birth-control pills. (Don't use Rogaine if you're pregnant or nursing.) If you've started noticing small bald patches, you may be one of the more than five million Americans who suffer from alopecia areata, an immune disorder in which antibodies attack the hair follicles. The condition can be treated with steroid creams or injections.

-- Rita Kennan is a freelance health writer who has contributed to BabyCenter, Consumer Health Interactive, and other online health publications.

References

Last updated March 26, 2009
Copyright © 2003 Consumer Health Interactive

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