Friday 17 February 2012

Alopecia: Common Causes and Basic Treatments

Hair loss is one of the problems affecting both men and women from different walks of life. However, there is no reason to freak out if you are one of those suffering from this. There are now many hair loss treatments that will surely work depending on the causes of the condition.

Before you take action to treat hair loss, you need to understand the condition itself. It is also important to know the causes of hair loss in order for you to deal with it appropriately. Most people suffering from hair loss start taking medications without even understanding the problem.

Normally, human hair grows on a phase lasting from two to six years. Scalp hair also undergoes a resting phase that usually lasts two to three months. After the resting phase, it normally goes through a shedding phase. Shedding about 50 to 100 hair strands a day is normal but beyond that is already a cause for alarm.

The problem is brought about by many different causes. Hence, treatment for such a condition also depends on the cause and degree of the problem. It is therefore important to seek professional help on this problem. You need to be cautious if you intend to undergo self-medication which could only worsen the problem. It is therefore not advisable to buy finasteride or any other hair loss medication without understanding the problem.

Among the common causes of hair loss are stress, iron insufficiency, infection and even improper medication. These should be predetermined so the problem can be treated appropriately and effectively at half the cost.

If the abnormal shedding of scalp hair is caused by stress or iron deficiency, it will eventually stop when stressful activities are minimized and iron supplements or iron food sources are taken. Hence, you need to take proper stance in addressing the main cause rather than treating the problem itself.

If it is caused by an infection, oral antibiotics or anti-fungal medicine will definitely treat it. Any other types of these causes for abnormal shedding of scalp hair should be treated as early as possible to ensure real efficient results.

There are also certain types of hair loss that cannot be treated like the ones caused by androgenic alopecia. But there are products to lessen this type of hair shedding. These prescription products usually work best for hair shedding at the top and back of the scalp, where there are still remaining strands.

Other than medication, hairstyles can also help to address this problem. Artificial hair is also recommended to effectively hide bald spots or patches. But, with the advent of modern technology, hair transplant is now gaining popularity to address severe hair loss.