Your hair is a fairly accurate measure of your health. Hair cells are some of the fastest growing areas in the body, and when the body is under pressure or in a crisis, hair cells can close in order to redirect energy elsewhere, to places where they are needed. Types of physical conditions that can cause hair loss include hormonal changes, undernutrition, a variety of medications, surgery, and many medical conditions, in particular, thyroid diseases.
Hair loss is actually fairly common. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, almost all adults in the United States experience half-thin hair before age 40. But thyroid patients in particular may experience earlier hair loss and faster than usual.
Usually, hair grows about half an inch a month for three years, and then goes to rest. One in ten hair in a period of rest at once, and after about three months a new hair pushing the old out. When more hair goes to the rest period, or speeds up the conversion process, the balance becomes disrupted, and hair loss occurs.
Hormonal induced hair loss occurs when the enzyme starts converting the testosterone to the scalp for its less useful version, dihydrotestosterone, or DHT. DHT then attacks the hair follicles, shrinks, until they completely disappear. Hair becomes thinner and more delicate, and can stop growing completely. This shift of testosterone to DHT appears to accelerate in some patients with hyperthyroidism or thyroid gland, and hair loss can be caused by thyroid patients, despite what is considered a thyroid therapy is sufficient.
Some people actually complain that rapid hair loss is worse than the symptoms of their thyroid problem – thin hair, large amounts of hair loss in the bathroom or sink, often accompanied by changes in hair texture, making it dry, rough, or easily tangled. Interestingly, some people have actually written to tell me that the thyroid problem they are doing is initially “diagnosed” by the hairdresser, who noticed the change in their hair!
While thyroid disease often causes general hair loss of hair on the head, the symptom of a unique and distinctive deficiency of the thyroid gland is hair loss on the outer edge of the eyebrows. The general loss of body hair from other areas of the head can also be seen in thyroid disease.
If you have a thyroid condition and are concerned about the amount of hair you are losing, here are some steps to be taken: Get an evaluation by a dermatologist Even if you are in the midst of dealing with a thyroid problem, it is still a good idea to see a doctor skin desies . A good dermatologist experienced in hair loss can do a complete workup in order to evaluate the various causes of hair loss and run tests that may know other subjective conditions besides the thyroid gland that may cause hair loss. For a hair loss specialist.
Make sure it is not a thyroid drug: If you are taking levothyroxine (ie, steroids, Levoxyl, Unithroid, Levothroid, Tirosint) as thyroid hormone replacement, hair loss is still, you may need to take action. Prolonged or excessive hair loss is a side effect of these medications for some people. Note: Many doctors do not know this, although it is one of the side effects stated in the patient’s snortoid literature, for example, so you should not be surprised if your doctor is not aware of it.