Puberty, menopause and pregnancy all cause hormonal shifts that can make your tresses go from straight to curly hair.
If you have straight hair, your hair may become slightly curlier as you age. This is because the shape of hair follicles changes over time.
Hair changing from straight to curly often indicates a hormonal shift within the body. Factors like menopause, pregnancy, puberty, and even taking birth control, can have a drastic, switching effect on your hair's texture. Hormonal changes alter how your genes are expressed, so changes here can make a big difference.
This is actually partially due to a change in thyroid hormone. Thyroid controls the shape of the hair follicle. The rounder the follicle the straighter the hair. Think of using a scissors to curl ribbon. Sometimes your hormones change to flatten out the follicles which lead to curly hair.
Scurvy is a nutritional disease caused by deficiency of vitamin C. Pinpoint bleeding around hair follicles, and "corkscrew hairs" as seen in this picture, can occur as a result of scurvy.
Curly hair - acral keratoderma - caries syndrome is caused by genetic mutations, also known as pathogenic variants. Genetic mutations can be hereditary, when parents pass them down to their children, or they may occur randomly when cells are dividing.
Another possible cause for curling of the hair is hypothyroidism. Hypothyroidism is a medical condition that can lead to dry, thinning and coarse hair due to a hormonal disbalance [11]. Hair follicles are direct targets of thyroid hormones.
Hair texture changes
Hormones can affect the shape of some hair follicles, changing them from circle-shaped follicles that produce straight hair to oval-shaped follicles that produce curly hair. The coarse, wiry feel is from lower sebum levels.
As we grow older, our hormones often fluctuate, and our hair type can as well. You might have spent the first 20 years of your life with thick, curly hair that is now growing in thin and straight, or vice versa.
Medical Conditions and Illness
Sudden hair changes in texture could signal a more serious condition. Anemia and insufficient vitamin D levels can bring on thinning hair. A thyroid disease can also result in a sudden change in the texture of your hair.
Hormones are the main culprit responsible for such drastic hair texture changes. During puberty, menopause and pregnancy, many people will find their will go from straight to curly or vice versa over a period of months.
Leg hair does not necessarily stop growing at a certain age for both men and women. While it is normal for hair on the legs to become thinner and potentially fall out as we age, it does not mean that growth completely ceases. It's important to note that there can be individual variations.
As you age, it is more important than ever to add moisturizing products to your hair care routine. Incorporate a hydrating shampoo and conditioner that is formulated for your changing hair, followed by a serum or oil created for extra moisture. With the right products, your hair will remain as soft and smooth as silk.
High blood levels of vitamin D linked to reduced estrogen – and potentially lower breast cancer risk | Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center.
Low estrogen skin tends to be thinner, showing more visible blemishes and wrinkles. Low estrogen skin also has lower collagen reserves. Collagen is the naturally occurring protein that keeps your skin looking smooth and full.
You can test your estrogen levels at home using at-home urine tests (to measure E3G) or blood tests. Learn more about your options and understand when you should consider testing your estrogen levels. You can test your estrogen levels at home using at-home urine tests (to measure E3G) or blood tests.
Check for thinning hair evenly across your scalp. Unlike pattern baldness, thyroid hair loss is diffuse rather than concentrated in specific areas. Examine hair strands for dull, dry, brittle texture with split ends. Note down episodes of extreme fatigue, muscle weakness, and unintended weight gain.
Where might a person itch with thyroid problems? Itching can occur anywhere on the body, but often occurs in crevices such as the armpits, elbows, and groin.
Citrus fruits, such as oranges, grapefruits, and lemons, may be beneficial in many ways, but they can sometimes interfere with thyroid medication. These fruits contain compounds that can interact with thyroid hormone replacement medications, potentially reducing their effectiveness.
When your body doesn't have enough vitamin d, your keratinocytes seem to struggle regulating your natural hair cycle, reducing hair growth and increasing hair shedding. With lower vitamin d levels, the anagen (growth) phase of your hair cycle seems to shorten and your telogen (resting) phase seems to lengthen.
Chest pain, fast heartbeat or shortness of breath. Headache, dizziness or lightheadedness.