‘Hair Thinning and My Ponytail is Half as Thick as it Used to Be'

Ramandeep

Question: Hi I am 21 years older and I have always felt my hair falling out for years. The doctors did blood tests and there wasn’t anything significant but my hair has thinned immensely over the years e.g my pony tail is half as thick as it used to be. I have been noticing hair loss from the front of my head over about 1-2 years and now it actively falls out whilst doing anything and has thinned a lot. Since a year ago my eyebrows and eyelashes also randomly fall out throughout the day. I want to know if there is anything I can do to protect my remaining hair. Very rarely use heat products (once every 2-3 months) and have been using a shampoo recommended by my doctor plantur 39, but my hair is still thinning?

Answer: Hi, Ramandeep. The symptoms you describe here sound like classic signs of Female Pattern Hair Loss. This is a permanent, genetic hair loss condition which displays outwardly as thinning hair in those affected.

Although it only affects the top of the scalp, it tends to be most noticeable at the parting - which may start to look increasingly wider, with more scalp visible - and at the hairline. Thinning temples are particularly common, as is a general drop in hair density, or thickness. Many women tend to find that their ponytail gets thinner as a result, and is a common sign of this type of hair loss.

The reason for this is that people with pattern hair loss have a predisposed sensitivity to a hormone byproduct in the body called dihydrotestosterone (DHT). This gathers around the top of their scalp and binds to hair follicles, gradually weakening and destroying them. The outwardly visible signs of this bio activity are increased hair thinning and, for men affected by the male equivalent, baldness may occur eventually although this is far less common in women.

Technically genetic hair loss can start to appear any time following puberty, though it has traditionally started to occur later in life, particularly for women. However, in recent years this hair loss condition has been seen to affect increasingly younger women from their 20's upwards. This is believed to be a result of modern living as, although the cause is genetic, factors such as stress and diet are believed to accelerate the process.

There are effective hair loss treatment options for this condition that can help to prevent further shedding and regrow hair. Whilst it is important to wash the hair regularly in order to maintain good scalp hygiene, shampoo will not treat thinning hair so it is unsurprising that you mention this has had no effect. Shampoo is not absorbed into the skin for long enough and also does not contain the only clinically-proven women's hair loss treatment - minoxidil.

At Belgravia we tailor treatment programmes to each individual client, with women's courses being focused around appropriate high strength minoxidil formulations. Where suitable, various hair growth boosters can also be added in to provide a fully rounded approach to helping maximise the hair's potential.

Whilst this can explain the issues you are having with hair thinning, we would advise you to speak with your doctor if your eyebrows and lashes are falling out. Whilst this is associated with the autoimmune conditions Alopecia Totalis and Alopecia Universalis, these also cause total baldness of the scalp so are unlikely to be the cause.