subject: Women Hair Loss Treatment [print this page] The most common form of baldness accounting nearly 95% of baldness cases in men is called androgenetic alopecia. It is genetically rooted in people predisposed to overproducing the male androgen hormone - hence, the name. More specifically, this male pattern baldness is caused by the overproduction of dihydrotestosterone or DHT, from the androgen testosterone. This same situation occurs in women. Hair loss treatment for female pattern baldness takes on a similar approach though surgical hair implants can be the better option for women.
While the male pattern of baldness is more concentrated at the crown, the female pattern baldness is generally more diffused with the frontal hairline remaining while that is among the first to go in men with receding hairline. Hair loss among women is usually more gradual, accelerating during pregnancy and menopause. The main culprit in hair loss in women revolves around hormonal changes triggered by episodic stress situations, medication and genetic predisposition.
Treating Hair Loss
Understanding the cause is the first step in any treatment. With female pattern baldness caused by genetic instructions, the cure promised by having identified the offending genes in the genetic mapping project just concluded is still far off from having commercial value.
Treatment is focused on mitigating the factors the contribute to it, such as blocking the 5-alpha-reductace that convert testosterone into DHT, giving more nutrients to the hair follicle with improved blood flow circulation and generally providing conditions that do not strain the hair roots and strands.
For other causes of hair loss, like medicating with drugs that upset hormonal balance that lead to more androgens in the body, the cure is simply reducing the dosage or shifting to other drugs that do the same thing. If these are prescribed drugs, you will need to consult with your doctor first before stopping or reducing the medication yourself.
Sudden stressful conditions like childbirth, pregnancy termination using abortive pills or accidental miscarriage are the other main causes of thinning hair in women. Hair loss treatment may not be necessary once the stressful conditions are gone. But because hair falls out up to 3-4 months after, expect to regain your full hair after about 6 months.
