Hair Loss Causes

Hair Loss Connections With Disease

Alopecia areata is a common autoimmune disease that causes your immune system to attack hair follicles along with other healthy parts of your body. This disease can cause hair to suddenly fall out of your scalp. Individuals who have alopecia areata may notice various patches of baldness, usually along the scalp. Nonetheless, individuals can lose hair in any place on the body that supports hair growth.

Mental Health Concerns and Hair Loss

Stress can trigger some types of hair loss. Trichotillomania is a form of hair loss associated with high stress levels. This impulse-control disorder manifests itself through compulsive hair pulling, a behavior often resulting from stress, frustration, tension, loneliness, or even boredom. Teens and young adults may experience this type of hair loss, a condition causing bald patches along the scalp or patchy eyebrows, eyelashes, or body hair. 

Drug Treatments and Hair Loss

Certain types of drugs can contribute to hair loss. Drug-induced hair loss can correct itself once individuals stop taking the medication contributing to the hair loss. If you have drug-induced alopecia, your hair may thin in place of your scalp developing patchy hair loss. Chemotherapy can also be a factor in drug-induced hair loss. However, some medications may create hair loss at various stages of the growth cycle: 

• Anticonvulsants (epilepsy drugs).
• Antihypertensives (ACE inhibitors, beta-blockers, and diuretics).
• Antidepressants.
• Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).

Infections Contributing to Hair Loss

Ringworm, a fungal infection, impacts the skin. If a person develops ringworm on their scalp, it can result in a type of hair loss known as tinea capitis. This hair loss begins as a blister that increases in size, leaving behind temporary scaly spots or baldness. 

This fungus enters hair fibers and causes the hairs to become brittle and break easily. You can identify areas affected by ringworm due to their itchy, red inflammation. The scaly patches that develop from ringworm infections usually take the form of a red circle around the exterior, with your typical skin tone in the center. This pattern of inflammation results in the appearance of a ring on the skin, which contributes to the condition’s name.