As the leaves fall off, so does the hair. Is hair loss more serious in autumn and winter?
In autumn and winter, leaves fall one after another, and some people find that their hair also falls out more after entering autumn. Is hair loss related to seasonal changes? How to reduce hair loss when you are dry and irritable in autumn and winter?
Hair loss has no clear seasonal pattern
A normal hair follicle cycle includes several stages: growth phase, regression phase, resting phase and exfoliation phase.
The growth phase lasts approximately 2 to 8 years, and the length of the growth phase determines the length of the hair. After the growth phase, there will be a catagen phase of several weeks. After the catagen phase, the hair enters the resting phase, which takes about 2 to 3 months or 2 to 4 months. During the resting phase, the hair stops growing. After the telogen period, the hair loss phase begins. The hair loss phase is the process of hair loss.
Ye Zhenzhen, an attending physician at the Department of Dermatology at Peking University Third Hospital, said that judging from the number of patients with hair loss who visit daily dermatology outpatient clinics, there is no particularly clear seasonality for hair loss.
However, there was a study on scalp hair follicles of healthy people, and the results showed that in healthy people, the proportion of telogen hair reached a small peak throughout the year in July. This part of the hair will fall off after the resting period is over. According to the time, it happens to be autumn.
Why do some people lose more hair in autumn?
Some experts have put forward some conjectures. The reason why some people suffer more serious hair loss in autumn is that the sunshine time is reduced, the temperature drops, and the skin becomes drier, which leads to the reduction of sebaceous gland secretion, the shrinkage of hair follicles, and the tendency of hair to dry and fall off.
Some people analyze from an internal perspective and believe that the growth of scalp hair follicles itself will be affected by different hormones, and hormones in the body also have a certain rhythm and will fluctuate with changes in seasons and sunshine hours. The balance of the human endocrine system will be broken, leading to hair loss. .
Therefore, hair loss in autumn may involve many factors. Slightly more hair loss is normal. However, if there is more hair loss and you are worried about the health of your hair follicles, it is recommended to go to a regular hospital to evaluate whether there is pathological hair loss.
Under normal circumstances, 90-95% of hair should be in the growth phase, less than 1% in the catagen phase, and 5-0% in the resting phase. Even with healthy hair, approximately 100 strands of hair fall out every day.
Common types of hair loss in daily life
In addition to being affected by seasons, common factors that affect hair loss in daily life include male hormones, neurological status, endocrine, and body nutrition.
Androgenetic alopecia, also known as hereditary alopecia or seborrheic alopecia, is an autosomal dominant genetic disorder in which genetic characteristics are expressed only under the action of androgens. The typical clinical feature is that the hair falls out from the forehead upwards and also from the sideburns.
If you suffer from neurogenic alopecia under great mental pressure for a long time or are suffering from disease, your hair loss will worsen rapidly. This is because under the influence of mental stress, the arrector pili muscles of the human body are often in a state of contraction, the hair stands erect, the autonomic nerve or central nervous system function is disordered, the hair papilla in the hair follicle is changed and malnutrition occurs, which will inhibit the hair growth function and cause the hair to enter. Hair loss occurs during the telogen phase.
Endocrine hair loss: Hair growth is affected by a variety of endocrine hormones, so when endocrine abnormalities occur, hair loss will occur within a certain period of time. Menopause, hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism, hypopituitarism, hypoparathyroidism, adrenal tumors, advanced acromegaly, etc., can all cause hair loss.
Nutritional hair loss is an external manifestation of physical condition. Malnutrition and abnormal metabolism of the body can cause changes in hair quality and color. For example, severe malnutrition, excess sugar or salt, lack of protein, B vitamins, iron, zinc, or excessive selenium intake, as well as certain metabolic diseases, are all causes of hair loss, and may even lead to Diffuse hair loss. Women who diet blindly may also develop alopecia areata due to lack of adequate nutritional supply.
Physical hair loss This is a common type of hair loss. For example, exposure to ultraviolet radiation, frequent blow-drying, habitual tying of hair or random pulling of hair will cause hair to fall out. In particular, long-term ponytailing will cause the hair on the forehead to become thinner.
Chemical hair loss involves perming and dyeing your hair too frequently, and using shampoo and hair care products that are too alkaline or of poor quality.
Develop healthy living habits and adjust your diet
Regarding the serious problem of hair loss in autumn, Su Hong, director of the dermatology department of Chengdu Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, suggested that in autumn, adjustments should be made to work and rest to ensure adequate sleep. Soaking your feet in hot water before going to bed is not only energizing, but also beneficial to hair care. You should also moderately regulate your emotions, relieve mental stress, and maintain a happy mood to avoid mental stress.
In terms of diet, eat more meat, fish, eggs, milk, beans and other foods rich in high-quality protein. At the same time, pay attention to the combination of meat and vegetables, nutritional balance, and control of fat intake to facilitate hair growth.
Wash your hair less often. When washing your hair, use less oil-removing and anti-dandruff shampoo and more conditioner. You can also massage your scalp more often and comb your hair with a health care comb. This can not only promote blood circulation in the scalp, but also brush away the dirt attached to the hair, which is beneficial to hair growth, hair fixation and increase the luster of the hair. Pay attention to changing the direction of parting your hair regularly to prevent the separated areas from becoming dry due to long-term exposure to the sun.
It needs to be reminded that you should not blindly take medication for hair loss, but should choose to go to a regular medical institution for relevant examinations. After the cause of the disease is clarified, medication should be taken as appropriate according to the doctor’s instructions.
Correctly choose shampoos with different functions
Some people hope to solve the problem of hair loss through shampoo. There are also many shampoos on the market that use the slogan of hair growth and prevention of hair loss to cater to consumers. However, after all, shampoo is only a daily chemical product, not a medicine, so we cannot expect it to have any significant effects.
When choosing a shampoo, look at the specific ingredients and benefits. If your hair is very healthy and there is basically no big problem, but you just want to wash it clean, you can focus on the cleaning ingredient “surfactant” in the shampoo. Generally, choose a cleansing shampoo containing amino acid surfactants.
If your hair is very dry, dry, tangled, and difficult to comb, you can choose products that contain certain oils and other conditioning agents, such as silicone oil and vegetable oil. The principle is that their residues can protect the hair, prevent the hair scales from lifting, reduce the evaporation of water in the hair, and make the hair smoother.
A scalp prone to oiliness is acidic and has a low pH, so you can use a shampoo with a higher pH value to neutralize it, while a dry scalp is alkaline and needs a shampoo with a lower pH value.
If your scalp is sensitive, you should avoid anionic surfactants that are too strong in cleaning power, as well as some irritating ingredients, such as salicylic acid and paraben-based preservatives. You can choose shampoos containing soothing and anti-allergic ingredients such as bisabolol and dipotassium glycyrrhizinate.
If your scalp is oily and accompanied by itching, you can use some shampoos containing anti-dandruff ingredients such as zinc pyrithione, salicylic acid, and clomibazole, and avoid shampoos containing oily ingredients.
