Women's Lifestyles Lead to Hair Loss at a Younger Age

Hair loss is becoming more common in younger women

It seems as though the workforce wasn’t the only thing women were getting themselves in for when the battle of the sexes began. Today, through no want of their own, women are up there with men when it comes to hair loss and it seems they’re being affected at a younger age.

Hair loss experts in New Zealand say the contraceptive pill and stress are partly to blame for the rise in women’s hair loss cases which have seen female patients outnumber men at three major centres within the country.

Now based in Australia, David Salinger, vice-president and registered member of the Institute of Trichologists (UK), says the number of women experiencing hair loss has definitely increased over the 25 years he has been practicing and now, for every one post-menopausal woman with hair loss he sees ten younger women.

"There are a lot more younger women getting genetic thinning at the top and front of the scalp, whereas years ago you would see that only in women after menopause," David says.

Belgravia’s experts agree. According to senior hair loss specialist, Leonora Doclis, while men still outnumber female patients at the centre, there is an increasing number of women in their 20s and 30s seeking treatment for hair loss.

“A lot of it’s down to awareness,” Leonora says. “Hair loss in women has always been a problem but more women now know that they are also susceptible to genetic thinning.”

However, Leonora says greater numbers of younger women are seeking treatment for diffuse hair loss and telogen effluvium.

“There is so much going on in a young woman’s life and a lot of modern day lifestyles are contributing to increasing numbers experiencing hair loss.”

Likewise, Rory Plumridge, managing trichologist from Clive Clinics in New Zealand and Australia believes stress is the main reason female pattern hair loss, or genetic thinning, is becoming prevalent in younger women.

Stress leads to early hair loss“Women are leading much more busy and stressful lifestyles than 40 years ago,” Plumridge says. “Stress on the hair follicle essentially makes the cell think it is older than it is."

Factors such stress, medications and some types of contraceptive pills, diet, autoimmune disorders and polycystic ovarian syndrome can lead to telogen effluvium and diffuse hair loss. The effects can be reversed once the cause is appropriately dealt with, but in some cases they can kick-start hereditary hair loss which might not have appeared until much later in life.

But there are options for women whose hair is falling out or starting to thin out. In fact there are probably too many options. It can be difficult to know which hair loss products work and which do not, thanks largely to advertising and marketing. Despite a number of available products claiming to prevent or reverse hair loss, minoxidil is the only one that has been clinically proven and licensed for the treatment of women’s hair loss.

Minoxidil is a topical treatment that, through extensive clinical studies, has proven to stabilise hair loss in 65% of people and generate moderate to dense re-growth in 2 out of 3. And while there are no scientific studies to conclude that additional treatments can complement the medication, the Belgravia Centre has found that many clients see improved results when minoxidil is administered in personalised doses and accompanied with various hair growth boosters.

For more information, call the Belgravia Centre on 020 7730 6666 or send an email. And if you can’t make it to the centre, you can still take advantage of Belgravia’s expert advice and mail-order hair loss treatment program by completing the online diagnostic form.  

When undergoing any course of hair loss treatment, it is important to seek expert advice not only in order to achieve the best results but also to ensure your safety.

More Information:
Thyroid Conditions and Hair Loss
Women's Hair Loss and Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
Anaemia and Hair Loss

Interesting Articles:
Hair Loss in Women - Common Causes and What to Do
Celebrity Secrets: The Women Who Wear Wigs
Stress-Related and Hair Loss

Copy of New Street Ground Floor Reception 1 no pink nail polish

The Belgravia Centre

The Belgravia Centre is a world-renowned group of a hair loss clinic in Central London, UK. If you are worried about hair loss you can arrange a free consultation with a hair loss expert or complete our Online Consultation from anywhere in the world for home-use treatment.

View our Hair Loss Success Stories, which includes the world's largest gallery of hair growth photos and demonstrates the level of success that so many of Belgravia's patients achieve.