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Although many people think that hair loss is predominantly a male complaint, this is just not the case. In fact, today one in four women are also likely to suffer from some form of hair loss at some point in their lives. Below we will look at what causes hair loss in women.

1. Female Pattern Baldness - Of all the kinds of hair loss problems women can suffer from this is the most common and is exactly the same type that men suffer from. As with men, woman will suffer from this particular hair loss problem when their body reacts to the male hormone testosterone that is naturally found in their body.

Women, just like men, have the hormone testosterone in their bodies (but not at the same levels normally). However sometimes this hormone will convert into DHT, which then affects the way hair grows normally. In most cases, female pattern baldness is not as extreme as it is in men and will often occur much later in life, but it is still the same as the condition in men (male pattern baldness).

2. Telogen Effluvium - This is the second most common type of hair loss problem for women today. But it is different from the above mentioned as rather than hair being lost completely from the scalp; this will cause hair thinning.

In a large number of cases where women suffer from this particular hair loss condition, it is because they have suffered some kind of traumatic event in their lives. This will usually have placed considerable stress on their body, which has prevented hair from growing normally. Women who become pregnant may often be shocked to notice that their hair begins to thin after child birth. Once things start to settle down, it can normally be expected that hair growth will resume as normal.

3. Alopecia Areata - This is now the third most common kind of hair loss problem women can suffer from. You will find that where the above two kinds will be localized to a particular area of a woman’s scalp; this type will cause hair loss to various different parts of the scalp. So hair loss is often somewhat patchy and can look very unsightly.

This particular type of hair loss in women is thought to be caused because a woman’s immune system is not functioning correctly. In many cases, the hair will regrow after the immune system has had time to replenish itself, but for some women the problem can be a lot more severe and be with them for a long time to come.

Hopefully by understanding what causes hair loss in women you should be better able to judge whether you are suffering from such a problem or not. With this in mind you should take steps to prevent hair loss and to re grow your hair.

There are a number of different reasons for why a woman may find that she starts to lose her hair. Yet although some women do suffer from hair loss, it is not to the same extent that men do. In this article, we look at one reason that is the cause of female hair loss and is the most common.

However, although we are learning more about female hair loss, many people still believe that it is something that is only a problem men have to face. You will find in the United States alone, there are around 30 million women who will suffer from some form of hair loss at some stage in their lives.

For quite a few women the reason that they start losing hair is because of their genetics. All women have hormones in their bodies called androgens, but for a few, these can actually interfere with the way that their hair grows normally. The main hormone in this group, which causes such a problem, is testosterone.

For some unknown reason because of a woman’s genetic makeup, there are times when the testosterone hormone in her body comes into contact with an enzyme that makes it convert easily into DHT. When it does this the DHT is able to bind to the receptors deep inside the hair follicles which prevents messages from being able to gain entry and so prevent them from growing as normal.

Slowly as the build up of DHT happens on the hair follicles, they gradually begin to shrink and this is what stops her hair from growing correctly. Over this time, the woman will then start to notice that more hair is falling out when they wash or brush their hair and they begin to notice areas of their scalp showing through. Often called female pattern baldness or Androgenic Alopecia is a thinning of the hair.

Even though the cause of this form of baldness in women is much the same way as it is in men, the pattern of the baldness is different. With women their baldness will be somewhat diffused and generally occurs as a thinning of the hair on top of the scalp. On the other hand men will normally start to lose hair completely from specific areas of the head, namely at the crown or around the temple or at the back.

In addition, the other difference with this particular kind of hair loss in women compared to men is that in men not only is it related to their genetic makeup but also to their age. With women, however this particular form of hair loss can be suffered at any stage of their lives and may well be caused by some other underlying medical condition.

Along with the reason above, as to what can be the cause of female hair loss in women, there are other factors that may be the cause of this problem. Some women may, as previously mentioned, may have an underlying medical condition. Whilst for others the reason that they have begun to lose their hair is that they have suffered some kind of traumatic event in their lives.