Beating the Hair Loss Epidemic: The Reasons Why Women Are Losing Their Hair, and How to Get It Back – Hair loss among women has been increasing. Have you noticed how it is becoming an increasingly common topic? Jada Pinkett Smith is far from the only well-known woman experiencing severe hair loss. She’s simply speaking openly and choosing not to hide her challenges from the public.
According to multiple studies, as much as 95% of male hair loss stems from Common Male Pattern Baldness, one of the only genuinely genetic conditions expressing external symptoms (more soon on the myth of genetic health problems). As many as 50% of men experience hair loss by age 50.
According to another study focused solely on women, women experience hair loss at about half that rate – 25% of women by age 50. But the causes are entirely different, so why are magazines like Vogue, Allure, InStyle, and more exploring why more and more women are experiencing thinning, losing whole clumps at a time, and losing the vitality of their hair?
What the “Experts” Say
There are many theories about the underlying causes of female hair loss. Unfortunately, most of them are only that—theories—without irrefutable evidence to back them up.
Genetics is becoming more common as a scapegoat for the medical establishment when health conditions are not fully understood. It’s the perfect factor to blame when no other answers are available, especially with almost no medical professionals willing to say, “We don’t know yet simply.”
Hair loss is one of the few realms of health where this makes a bit of sense because male pattern baldness is almost certainly genetic. But in a world where the blame for everything from cancer to diabetes to neurodegenerative diseases is genes, we should be careful to point at genetics as the cause of female hair loss, especially when we barely consider factors like stress, nutrition and diet, lifestyle, and chronic viral illness, if at all. Are we blaming genetics for the rise in chronic illnesses in the last 60 years? Our genes only went ‘bad’ in the last 60 years? This does not add up.
Hormone disruption and menopause are two more mainstream culprits. It’s the classic gaslighting technique perpetrated on women from birth: “It’s your hormones.” In other words, you’re sick because you’re a woman. Men have hormones, too, yet how often do you hear male health problems tied to hormones? Sure, female hormones shift through various phases of fertility. Still, it’s not a viable explanation for all the health challenges linked to this natural process in today’s world, including hair loss. One thing that this theory gets right, however, is that the health of our hormone-producing glands is involved in hair loss. More on that below.
Autoimmune disease is another popular explanation for alopecia (hair loss) in women. This theory states that the body is attacking its hair follicles. If someone shows me clear evidence that this happens in the body, I might accept that it’s possible. I have yet to see that evidence (or any clear evidence that autoimmunity exists related to any illness or disease, for that matter – this is a theory, not a medical fact).
Wearing hats or shampooing too often is another theory formed by practical-minded practitioners. But pulling your ponytail too tight will not cause you to lose your hair.
Medications and chemicals are the one item on this list backed up by plenty of evidence. It’s well-known and well-documented that chemotherapy treatments cause anagen effluvium (hair loss due to hair follicle damage), as do harsh chemicals used for various hair treatments.
What’s Really Going On
When it comes to hair loss, the most significant factor we should be talking about is the health of our adrenal glands. As written about by globally-known and respected health author Anthony William (the Medical Medium), these glands produce dozens of different hormone blends that regulate our bodies, including the stress hormones associated with the “fight or flight” response and hormones that impact hair growth.
When the adrenal glands are weak (a chronic condition in our stress and caffeine-filled world), they cannot produce the proper amount of hair-growth hormones, and our scalp shows the signs. This is what’s really behind pregnancy and birth-related hair loss. It requires a massive amount of adrenaline for a woman to give birth, which can take a toll if factors like stress, poor diet, and a weak immune system have already weakened a woman’s body. Birth-related surges of adrenaline can manifest as thinning or disappearing hair months after birth has taken place.
A weakened liver struggling with a lifetime of toxins is another major factor in hair loss, as the liver performs thousands of chemical functions in the body. When it loses its vitality, its ability to carry out all those functions diminishes, leading to rapid aging and decreased skin, hair, and nail health. Viral pathogens like the Epstein-Barr virus can also reside in the thyroid and liver, disrupting the body’s ability to produce and regulate hormones, causing the adrenal glands to compensate and weaken more quickly over time.
Finally, certain common medications can sometimes cause hair loss (chemotherapy isn’t the only pharmaceutical culprit). Discuss this with any prescribing doctor if you are concerned about hair loss.
Long Luscious Locks
Middle Eastern and South Asian women are known for associating beauty and vitality with their hair. It’s rare to see short hair in this part of the world, where long, healthy hair is the ultimate display of beauty. I grew up with this mentality, and I’m fortunate enough to take pride in a full head of healthy hair (which I work for every day as I strive to help my body thrive).
The truth is almost all women have a similar perspective. According to a 2020 poll in InStyle Magazine, 81% of women reported feeling most confident when their hair looks great. And all women deserve to feel good about their hair.
The path to a full head of healthy hair involves reducing all of the factors that weaken our adrenals, which include caffeine in all forms, consuming alcohol, taking recreational hallucinogens, chronic stress, extreme temperatures, fear-based movies, TV, and video games, and argumentative relationships.
To restore the health of our hair and body, we can focus on strengthening our immune system to fight back against the things that weaken our health and bring in foods that replenish us and our hair. Some of my favorites include papayas, grapes, pomegranates, fresh plain celery juice, sweet potatoes, raspberry leaf tea, licorice root, nettle leaf, chaga, and Atlantic seaweeds like dulse and nori. Avoiding problematic foods like canola oil and other processed oils, dairy, and processed foods will give our bodies and follicles an extra boost to bounce back.
It’s time to shift the hair loss paradigm. As women, it’s not inevitable that we lose our hair due to pregnancy, birth, our genes, menopause, or even aging. With a robust and resilient body, we can prove the mainstream theories wrong and enjoy a full, healthy head of hair even into advanced age.
- Access Muneeza’s Root Cause of Symptoms.
- Get Muneeza’s Purify and Revitalize: 5 Ways to Protect Your Home From Toxic Nasties.
- More articles from our VIP Executive Contributor Muneeza Ahmed.