What is Alopecia?

Alopecia is partial or complete hair loss and usually begins gradually in the first place. Although we think that it only occurs in men, alopecia affects both men and women all over the world, in short, it is genderless. We can name alopecia as “balding”. It is a condition that can affect emotional, social, and even financial status, and for many people, it affects their entire life. Do you know that billions of dollars are spent every year in hopes of stopping or reversing hair loss, and the number of people seeking answers and the money spent is increasing day by day?

What Causes Alopecia?

Alopecia, which we can also express as baldness, hair loss and thinning hair, can be caused by the following factors:

Genetics: Men and women can have an inherited tendency to baldness. This means that hormonal changes that occur with age can cause hair loss or thinning over time. In such cases, not everyone goes completely bald. Some have inherited genes that do not cause any loss or thinning, in short, their hair may not fall out.

Immune System: Sometimes the body’s immune system mistakenly considers the structures in the hair follicle as a foreign substance and sends white blood cells to this area to destroy them. This type of alopecia is known as alopecia areata. Also known as a hair breaker.

Physical or emotional stress: This is not a genetic cause, but rather an environmental factor that results in hair loss or thinning hair. When an external stressor causes a large amount of shedding or thinning at once, it is called telogen effluvium, that is, hair loss due to stress. In this type of hair thinning and hair loss, when the external factor disappears, hair grows back.

When Should I Seek a Doctor?

You can contact a doctor if you experience any of the following:

• When your hair loss happens in an unusual way
• Baldness in the beard area
• Shedding in eyebrows
• If you are younger and show signs of alopecia
• If there is any pain or itching with hair loss
• Redness, flaking, acne, etc. if you have a scalp abnormality
• If you are a woman and have male pattern baldness
• You are a woman and you suddenly have facial hair growth
• If you are a woman and have menstrual irregularities
  You should definitely see a doctor.

When you consider that 2/3 of all men over the age of 35 suffer from some form of alopecia and that 40% of all hair loss patients are women, it seems quite natural that the sectors founded on hair loss are progressing with an increasing volume. If you are uncomfortable with this situation, you can benefit from medically proven treatments that benefit hair loss. But as I always say, don’t stop relying on junk products that are a marketing product that won’t really benefit you, and getting a doctor’s advice is very important.