Hair Loss

On this page

Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Treatments and Therapies

Learn More

• Living With
• Related Issues
• Specifics
• Genetics

See, Play and Learn

• Images

Research

• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Find an Expert

For You

• Children
• Teenagers
• Women
• Patient Handouts

Summary

You lose up to 100 hairs from your scalp every day. That's normal, and in most people, those hairs grow back. But many men -- and some women -- lose hair as they grow older. You can also lose your hair if you have certain diseases, such as thyroid problems, diabetes, or lupus. If you take certain medicines or have chemotherapy for cancer, you may also lose your hair. Other causes are stress, a low protein diet, a family history, or poor nutrition.

Treatment for hair loss depends on the cause. In some cases, treating the underlying cause will correct the problem. Other treatments include medicines and hair restoration.

Start Here

• Hair Loss (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• Hair Loss (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
• What Causes Hair Loss? (American Academy of Dermatology)

Treatments and Therapies

• Hair Transplants (American Society for Dermatologic Surgery)
• Lavender (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health)
• Treatment for Hair Loss (American Academy of Dermatology)

Living With

• Experiencing Hair Loss? Your Hair Care Matters (American Academy of Dermatology)
• Living with Alopecia Areata (National Alopecia Areata Foundation)
• Missing Strands? Dealing with Hair Loss (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish

Related Issues

• Chemotherapy and Hair Loss: What to Expect during Treatment (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
• Do You Have Hair Loss or Hair Shedding? (American Academy of Dermatology)
• Hair Loss (Alopecia) and Cancer Treatment (National Cancer Institute) Also in Spanish
• Stress and Hair Loss: Are They Related? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

Specifics

• Telogen Effluvium Hair Loss (American Osteopathic College of Dermatology)
• What Is Alopecia Areata? (National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases) Also in Spanish

Genetics

• Alopecia areata: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)
• Androgenetic alopecia: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)

Images

• Alopecia Areata (VisualDX)
• Female Pattern Alopecia (VisualDX)
• Male Pattern Alopecia (VisualDX)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Alopecia (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Hypotrichosis (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Update of recent findings in genetic hair disorders.
• Article: A dominant-negative SOX18 mutant disrupts multiple regulatory layers essential to transcription...
• Article: Isolated autosomal recessive woolly hair/hypotrichosis: genetics, pathogenesis and therapies.
• Hair Loss -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• American Academy of Dermatology
• National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Also in Spanish

Children

• Hair Loss (Alopecia) (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Teenagers

• Trichotillomania (Nemours Foundation)

Women

• Female Pattern Hair Loss (American Osteopathic College of Dermatology)
• Thinning Hair and Hair Loss: Could It Be Female Pattern Hair Loss? (American Academy of Dermatology)

Patient Handouts

• Alopecia areata (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Coping with cancer -- hair loss (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Female pattern baldness (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Hair loss (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Hair transplant (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Male pattern baldness (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Trichotillomania (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish