Do Women Lose More Hair During the Autumn Months?

A study published in the journal Dermatology shows that women lose more hair during autumn than they do in other seasons. Swedish researchers gathered a sample of 823 women and tracked their hair growth and shedding cycles.

Each person goes through the hair growth and shedding cycle. In the anagen phase also known as the growth phase of the hair follicle, new hair cells are produced. The catagen phase is where the hair is no longer growing but the follicle is shrinking. The final stage, the telogen phase, occurs when the hair is in a resting state, no longer growing, but on the verge of shedding. The hair stays in this resting state for about three months when it begins to shed, and the anagen phase begins gradually. Therefore, the average patient loses about 100 hairs per day. At the end of the telogen phase, the hair cycle of growth begins again, and if you could watch the follicular opening you would see a new hair emerge in a couple of weeks.

Though each individual’s hair growth and shedding cycle schedules will vary slightly, the researchers found that the women studied had the highest percentage of hair in the telogen stage at the end of summer. This means that after a period of time, these women will have some hair loss since the resting phase is always followed by a shedding. During this time, the patient may feel that his or her hair is thinning with the natural loss of hair that is occurring. The same sort of hair-loss phasing happens, though with a lower percentage of hair, in the spring as well. Researchers speculate that this extra amount of lost hair may be brought about by evolution, since the body seems to hold on to hair during the warmer months to protect the scalp from the summer sun.

For those people who experience hair loss with no growth to follow it, The Griffin Center of Hair Restoration and Research offers both non-surgical and surgical treatment and prevention options for women’s hair loss. Most commonly this hair loss is the result of female patterned hair loss, and the minuturization of hairs which eventually do not return.  This process can be slowed and even in some cases reversed with treatment.

Contact us for more information on hair loss or to schedule an appointment with Dr. Edmond Griffin, hair restoration specialist. You can also connect with us on Twitter and Facebook for daily news and updates.

Tags: alopecia, anagen, Atlanta, atlanta hair restoration, catagen, causes of hair loss, cycle of hair loss, dermatology, dermatology associates of atlanta, dermatology atlanta, dr edmond griffin, Dr Edmond I Griffin, dr griffin, Dr. Edmond Griffin Atlanta, edmond griffin md, georgia, griffin center, Griffin Center for Hair Restoration and Research, hair care, hair growth cycle, hair loss, hair loss in men, hair loss studies, hair loss treatments, hair restoration, hair restoration Atlanta, hair restoration specialist, hair transplant, hair treatment, male pattern baldness, men's hair loss, nonsurgical hair restoration, phases of hair growth, rogaine, seasonal hair loss, telogen, The Griffin Center, the griffin center for hair restoration and research, the griffin center of hair restoration and research, womens hair loss