Is it reversible? While some forms of AFAB hair loss are temporary, female pattern baldness is permanent and irreversible without treatment. However, proper treatment can stop the hair loss and potentially help regrow some lost hair. You'll need to stay on this treatment long-term to prevent losing your hair again.
Sometimes simply addressing a medical condition prompting hair loss will be enough for the hair to regrow. In other instances, a woman might consider a medication like minoxidil (Rogaine), which helps with certain types of hair loss, or another treatment to replace or regrow lost hair.
It depends. “If a follicle has closed, disappeared, scarred, or not generated a new hair in years, then a new hair wouldn't be able to grow,” Fusco says. But if the follicle is still intact, yes, it is possible to regrow the hair—or to improve the health of the existing thinner hairs.
The answer is yes! Fortunately, unlike genetic hair loss, most hair loss caused by hormonal imbalances is reversible.
How is female hair loss treated? Minoxidil (Rogaine) 5% is the only topical medication approved by the FDA for female-pattern hair loss. The once daily use foam treatment regrows hair in 81% of the women who try it. Liquid options of 2% and 5% solutions are available over the counter.
There are a wide range of conditions that can bring on hair loss, with some of the most common being pregnancy, thyroid disorders, and anemia. Others include autoimmune diseases, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), and skin conditions such as psoriasis and seborrheic dermatitis, Rogers says.
Possible causes of hair loss include stress, poor diet, and underlying medical conditions. Everyone experiences hair shedding, and it happens to each of us every day. Most people lose 50 to 100 hairs per day as part of this natural cycle, more on days you wash your hair.
Minoxidil (Rogaine) is approved by the FDA for female pattern hair loss. It can slow or stop it in most women and may help hair grow back. But the benefits go away when you stop using it. Corticosteroids can help regrow hair for women with alopecia areata.
In both sexes, the specific hormone responsible for hair loss is the same: dihydrotestosterone (known as “DHT”), a hormone that your body produces as a byproduct of testosterone.
According to the American Society of Dermatology, after a hair cut in an average healthy person, it is usually a month to regrow your hair back by half an inch. If you are a female and lost inches of hair in a haircut, remember it takes almost a year to regrow about six inches of new hair.
Surgical treatment such as laser therapy or a hair transplant can help revive the hair follicles. Further, if the situation is not too worse, a hair specialist can also prescribe you supplements that will fulfil the nutritional requirements of your hair follicles.
One very good medication to reactivate dormant hair follicles is minoxidil. Applied regularly to the scalp, minoxidil can re-grow hair that has completely stopped growing. The only caveat is that once you start taking it, you'll have to keep taking it indefinitely.
In women, hereditary hair loss usually starts after the age of 40. Roughly 40% of women have detectable hair loss by the age of 50.
In most cases, hair loss actually can be prevented, but taking early action is important. “Baldness is preventable, but early intervention is key. If a person starts to notice thinning and shedding or hair loss of any kind, it is important to get on a regimen as soon as possible.
The most common cause of female hair loss is androgenetic alopecia, a genetic condition in which new hair shafts grow in progressively thinner. Women usually notice a wider part and gradual reduction in overall volume, often with a concentrated thinning at the crown.
Available Treatments Without a Prescription
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved minoxidil to treat hair loss. It is the only hair re-growth product approved for men and women. A dermatologist may combine minoxidil with another treatment.
Hair loss emerges as a permanent problem when the hair follicle is thinned, and this regrowth does not occur. Such disruption in the hair cycle results in the formation of bald patches or even may progress into loss of hair on the entire scalp.
When hair starts to regrow, it appears like fine “peach fuzz.” It is usually translucent and thinner than the rest of the hair on your scalp. If you recently underwent surgery or had a head injury and are worried about hair growth on the bald spot, the appearance of peach fuzz is a positive sign.
When your hair follicles are dead, they do not regrow hair. You can inspect your scalp and look for signs of hair growth. Even if you only see thin hair patches or fuzzy texture, your hair follicles are still alive and will continue to renew themselves.
Alopecia areata is an autoimmune condition, which means the body's immune system attacks healthy tissues, including the hair follicles. This causes hair to fall out and prevents new hair from growing. This condition can affect adults and children, and hair loss can begin suddenly and without warning.
When a hair follicle goes dormant, it cannot be restored. So any ads for hair “restoration” that you might see are actually ads for surgical transplantation of hair follicles—taking hair from one part of the scalp and moving it to another.
Electrolysis is the only permanent hair removal technique that has been authorized by the FDA. Electrolysis works by inserting a tiny metal probe into the hair follicle's base and activating a shortwave radio frequency to shock, burn, and kill the hair follicle, preventing regrowth.
Hair growth typically completes a cycle in 2 to 3 years. Each hair grows approximately 1 centimeter per month during this phase. About 90% of the hair on your scalp is growing at any one time. About 10% of the hair on your scalp, at any one time, is in a resting phase.