Dealing With Teenage Hair Loss

Hair loss among teenage girls is becoming more prevalent, and it is happening at an alarming rate. Girls as young as thirteen are complaining of excessive hair loss as they find multiple strands or clumps of hair on their pillow, in the shower, in their brush and lying all over the floor.

Teenage hair loss could be an important sign that there is a medical problem and it is essential to seek medical help for the cause of hair loss in teenagers. Usually losing one's hair is something that only adults need to worry about, but it does happen to teenagers. If a teenager starts to lose his/her hair, the result can often be very traumatic, which in itself is a leading cause of balding at any age.

One type of hair loss that can occur in teens is Alopecia areata, the same type of balding that is prominent in adults. Teenagers may notice one or two inch, circular bald spots suddenly. Again, it is rare that teenagers experience this type of balding; however, teenagers with this gene may notice hair loss as early as fifteen years old. If the teen loses less than half of their hair, there is a promising chance that the hair will return to normal growth. However, there are plenty of cases that need to be treated with medications for hair loss.

Hormonal changes are a common cause of hair loss in teens and adults. From the onset of puberty throughout the teenage years, girls experience hormonal fluctuations. During this time the body needs extra support. Good nutrition, vitamin supplementation, exercise, adequate sleep and ample relaxation will help ease a girl through these hormonal changes. Many teens nowadays have bad eating and sleeping habits. They often prefer to spend their time socializing on the computer, leaving little if any time for fresh air and exercise. These bad habits wreak havoc on the hormonal system during this time and often cause undesirable effects such as hair loss.

Birth control pills are often started during teenage years. This creates another hormonal change that may lead to hair loss. Ironically birth control pills are also sometimes prescribed to help young girls with hair loss problems. A person will not know the effects until the medication has been in the system for several months.

Traction Alopecia is a type of hair loss that occurs in a small number of teenagers. It is caused by extreme hair care treatment, such as excessive hair drying, curling or other heat treatments, bleach treatments, teasing, tight hairstyles, and pulling of hair, such as pony tails. Discontinuing the use of these treatments in an excessive manner will repeal this hair loss.

Many teens are self-conscious about their body and will go to extreme measures to fit into size zero jeans. Extreme dieting including anorexia and bulimia are common causes of teenage hair loss among girls.

Many teens use Accutane, a popular prescription based oral acne medication. Teen girls using Accutane are required to be on birth control before, during and after the course of treatment. Accutane effects hair growth in several ways. It reduces the size of the sebaceous gland and decreases sebum. Without adequate sebum, hair becomes dry, fragile, weak and more likely to fall out. Accutane also causes a biotin deficiency and causes a condition called Hypervitaminosis A (too much vitamin A.) Both of these conditions cause hair loss.

For young female teenagers, the way they wear their hair could be the cause of the hair loss. Having the hair tied back very tightly, as in the case of French braids, pulls on the roots and causes them to fall out prematurely. Excessive use of hair spray has also been linked to balding among young girls because of the build-up of oils and chemicals on the scalp that can block the follicles and keep them from growing as they should. A solution for this is to try not to use too much spray and to wear the hair loose on alternate days so as to avoid scarring of the scalp, which is a cause of permanent hair loss in teenagers.

Visit for more useful information on Hair Loss,Hair Loss Women and Hair Loss Products.