How to Prevent Teenage Hair Loss: Process Explained

Hair fall is normal, but hair loss is not, especially for teenagers.

Basically, hair fall is a phase where your hair falls out and is replaced by new hair. However, when the hair falls and it isn't regrown at the same rate it can lead to hair loss. This can be troubling at such a young age.

In this article, we are going to talk about hair loss in teenagers and how to prevent it.

How to Prevent Teenage Hair Loss

bald man

In order to prevent hair loss, it's important to determine the root cause. By understanding what's causing it, the problem becomes easier to tackle.

There are a lot of factors for why hair loss happens:

1. Nutritional Deficiency

Nutrition is a very important part of growing. There’s no denying that teenagers these days lack the nutrition they need. With plenty of unhealthy options it's easy to see why making the right food choices is hard.

Teenagers have a way of being impressionable and will eat what their peers are eating. They may also just be unaware of the types of food they should be eating. However, an unhealthy diet that lacks nutritional value can cause hair loss during puberty.

Everyone needs vitamins, minerals, as well as foods rich in protein, healthy fats, and complex carbohydrates.

As a parent, be cognizant of your child's eating habits. If you start to notice hair loss during puberty, it might be indicative of an eating disorder or poor diet.

Foods rich in iron and zinc

  • Meat, fish, eggs
  • Nuts, seeds, whole grains, dark leafy greens, legumes

Foods rich in Vitamin B-3 & Vitamin B-7

  • Egg yolk, organ meat, fish, meat
  • Sweet potatoes, spinach, cheese, almonds, mushrooms

2. Stress

During puberty, stress is especially harmful. As a growing teenager your body is going through a lot of changes and it can be hard enough without the added stress of hair loss. Truth be told though, stress can cause hair to stop growing which results in hair loss.

The good news is that as soon as stress is eliminated your hair will return to growing normally. Keep track of stressors in your life and look for ways to minimize them.

3. Overuse of Hair Styling Products and Treatments

The second problem that affects hair loss is using too much of a hair styling product/treatment; This includes coloring, bleaching, perms, and more. Keep in mind that some hair products contain chemicals that are bad for your hair. They can even permanently cause damage.

Styling Methods That Can Cause Damage:

  • Excessive heat from hairdryers and straighteners
  • Brushing hair when wet
  • Styles that pull the hair back. For instance a ponytail.

4. Hormonal Changes

bald man pointing

Hormonal change not only affects your eating habits, mood, and sleeping pattern but also hair health as well.

Dihydrotestosterone (DHT), is a hormone that’s responsible for early hair loss in teenagers. DHT shrinks the size of the hair follicles until it completely closes which can lead to baldness. This hormone usually manifests in men but it can also be present in females tool.

The best way to regulate your hormones is by eating healthy food and eliminating junk food.

This includes eating veggies such as carrots, spinach, etc. As well as eating fruits like watermelon, banana, mangoes, etc.

Aside from that, you can also use shampoos that are specialized in blocking DHT hormones as well. Consult your child's physician before using a DHT blocking shampoo.

Medical Conditions

In some cases, teenagers may experience hair loss because of an un-diagnosed medical condition. Medical conditions like thyroid disease, various infections (ringworm), alopecia areata, traction alpoecia, as well as Trichotillomania. Some medicine and drugs can also cause side effects like hair loss.

However these conditions should be diagnosed by a medical professional. After doing so they will be able to provide a treatment strategy and ways to combat hair loss.

Conclusion

Hair loss as a teenager, whether male or female, is no fun. The above factors are important to consider. As always, a healthy nutritious diet, a stress free life, and minimizing hair treatments and styling are good places to start.

However, if hair loss persists, seek medical advice and determine if there is a pre-existing condition that's causing the problem.

Robert Woods
At POP, we strive to provide practical preventative advice. We strive to figure out ways to prevent problems that people might have trouble grasping. We've found that other sources have trouble articulating concepts in a way that regular people can understand.
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