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You can lose hair increasingly due to high levels of cortisol, also known as the stress hormone
Stress has a harrowing effect on your physical as well as mental health. Apart from giving you sleepless nights and anxiety, stress causes alopecia - commonly known as hair loss, and can affect both men and women at some point in their lives.
According to experts, you can lose hair increasingly due to high levels of cortisol – also known as the stress hormone. Cortisol turns off stem cells that grow hair, resulting in more shedding, breakage, and less hair regrowth. It also exacerbates underlying conditions and worsens existing hair loss.
How does stress lead to hair fall and hair loss?
Doctors say a few ways stress contributes to hair loss include:
Telogen effluvium
Telogen effluvium is a type of temporary hair loss that is caused by a stressor or change in your body. Your hair has three stages of growth and loss which include anagen (growth), catagen (resting), and telogen (shedding).
Experts say telogen effluvium affects your hair when it is in the telogen stage. After a stressor or change to your body, up to 70 per cent of your hair in the anagen stage prematurely enters the telogen phase, which causes hair loss.
Trichotillomania
It is an impulsive control disorder wherein a person pulls out their hair. Mental health experts say this unusual behaviour is often a coping mechanism for stress or anxiety.
How does stress-related hair loss affect your body?
Hair loss leads to your hair entering the resting stage from the growing stage for some time. Most healthy people can lose up to 100 strands of hair daily – but if you have stress-related hair loss, you may lose up to 300-400 strands of hair per day.
The condition affects the hair all over your scalp, but it most commonly appears on the top of your head rather than the back or sides and would usually not affect your hairline or cause total baldness. However, doctors say severe cases of hair loss in this condition affect other areas of your body, including your eyebrows and body hair.
Stress-related hair loss does not affect your physical health, but it can affect you psychosocially making you more depressed.
Ways to lower stress
Doctors say there are many aspects of stress that may not be in your control but a few ways can definitely lower it, including:
- Practicing mindfulness
- Developing a meditation ritual
- Participating in cognitive behavioural therapy
- Doing breathing exercises regularly
- Calming hobbies
- Journaling
- Regular exercises and workouts
- Relaxation techniques
- Talking with a friend
Home remedies to prevent hair loss
A few tried-and-tested home remedies for hair loss include:
- Over-the-counter shampoo for hair loss are available at drugstores
- Certain vitamin and mineral supplements help improve hair growth when hair loss is caused by nutrient deficiency.
- You can try microneedling – a technique that involves using a roller with many tiny needles over the area to stimulate growth.
- You can use wigs, hats, scarves, or other styling options that can make hair loss less noticeable.
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