For many men, hair loss is an expected, if distressing, side effect of growing older. But women of childbearing age who experience unusual hair loss should see a doctor, particularly if you also have fatigue, pallor or other symptoms of illness. Blood lost during menstruation can make women vulnerable to iron deficiency, which can cause hair follicles to shrivel up and temporarily cease production of normal scalp hair.
Growth Phases
According to Harvard Medical School, a normal scalp hair goes through a three-phase cycle. The longest-lasting phase is called the anagen stage, a period of two to seven years when the hair is actively growing out of the hair follicle. This is followed by the catagen, or transition, stage, typically lasting about two weeks, when growth slows down and the hair prepares to enter the telogen, or resting, stage. At the end of this phase, usually about three months, the hair falls out and the follicle resumes anagen activity to generate another hair.
Follicular Miniaturization
Androgenetic hair loss used to refer mostly to male pattern balding, but it now also refers to a comparable process affecting women. Reasons for it vary, but follicles shrink in size in a process called miniaturization and can only push out shorter, thinner hairs like the vellus hair that covers most of the body. When miniaturization is combined with dysfunctions in the normal growth cycle, such as protracted dormancy of follicles after hairs are shed, visible reduction in the density of scalp hair results. This thinning usually occurs gradually in men, but the process can be more rapid -- and traumatic -- for women.
Iron Deficiency
The exact connection between hair loss and iron deficiency is unclear. One theory mentioned in a study published in the May 2006 "Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology" suggests that since follicle cells divide much more rapidly than most other cells, they might be especially sensitive to drops in iron levels. If a blood test to measure ferritin, an iron-storing protein, indicates a deficiency, your doctor can look for the underlying reason. Follicular miniaturization as a result of iron deficiency sometimes reverses with iron supplementation. However,don't take iron supplements unless your doctor advises it. If deficiency isn't causing your hair problem, they won't help, and overloading your system with iron can be harmful.
Present and Future Treatment Options
A study published in the April 15, 2010, edition of "Nature" reported the discovery of a new gene, APCDD1, implicated in progressive hair loss as a result of follicular miniaturization. Since a mutation on this gene blocks an essential signaling pathway, the study's lead author, Angela Christiano, a professor of dermatology and genetics at Columbia University Medical School, hopes that manipulating this pathway will allow shrunken follicles to regenerate and resume production of terminal hair. Drugs with this capability aren't yet available, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a 2 percent solution of minoxidil, also known as Rogaine, for treating androgenetic hair loss in women. Studies report varying success rates.
References
- Alopecia; "Understanding the Vicissitudes of Female Pattern Hair Loss"; Brian Alexis; Sept. 17, 2009
- "Clinical and Experimental Dermatology"; Female Pattern Hair Loss; M.P. Birch et al; 2002
- "Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology"; The Diagnosis and Treatment of Iron Deficiency...; L.B. Trost et al; May 2006
- Columbia University Medical Center; "New Gene in Hair Loss Identified by Research Team..."; April 14, 2010
- Harvard Health Publications: Treating Female Pattern Hair Loss
- Medline Plus: Ferritin
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