What Kind of Autoimmune Disorders Can Cause Hair Loss, Shedding, Or Thinning? I will Tell You
I sometimes get emails from folks who have had a positive ANA (antinuclear antibody test) from blood work or suspect that they’ve an autoimmune disorder which has contributed to changes in their hair including loss, shedding, thinning, and changes in color and texture. In the following article, I will go over some well know and not so well known autoimmune conditions that commonly contribute to hair changes or loss and tell you how they often affect the hair and scalp.
Alopecia Areata (AA): When most people think of autoimmune hair loss, AA is typically the first thing that comes to their mind. This condition is known as the reason that Princess Caroline of Monaco temporarily lost her hair. The condition most often presents itself in hair loss that’s defined by bald spots that are round and patchy. Generally, the hair around the patches is totally normal, but the round patchy areas are smooth and sometimes completely bald.
Make sure you read through the next few paragraphs with great care, the problem and the solutions have multiple differences. Another condition that goes hand in hand with AA is alopecia areata universalis. In this case, you’ll often have hair loss over the entire body including the whole head (often total baldness) as well as other areas like eye lashes, eyebrows, pubic hair, the beard area, the under arms, etc. Sometimes when this process is ongoing, you will see “exclamation point hairs.” These are hairs that are broken off and are tapered so that they’re much narrower the closer you get the scalp. They flare out on the broken ends.
There is a lot of controversy over what actually causes AA. Most agree that it’s autoimmune in nature, but some believe that it’s aggravated by stress, allergies, or viruses. Treatment is often oral steroids, corticosteroid injections, or experimental stimulation of the scalp with herbs like rosemary and lavender.
Lupus And Hair Loss: Probably the second most common autoimmune disorder known to cause hair issues is lupus or systemic lupus erythematosus. Often folks with this condition are affected with a malar rash that can affect the scalp, and cause scarring which can lead to temporary or permanent hair loss. You can see exclamation point hairs with lupus as well.
Thyroid Issues: Graves Disease And Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis: Many people who think of thyroid issues and hair loss are aware of hypothyroidism, but many aren’t aware of the autoimmune thyroid issues. The first of these is graves disease where you’ll generally see the hair become much more fine and you will see more pronounced loss. The texture just becomes a lot more limp and unable to hold a style. The stands can become lighter in color also. The opposite is true with Hashimoto’s. In this instance, the hair becomes very coarse and dry, but hair loss is accelerated none the less.
Less Well Known Autoimmune Disorders That May Affect The Hair: In truth, almost any disorder that has an autoimmune component can affect the hair or cause thinning, shedding, or loss. This includes things like rheumatoid arthritis, intestinal cystitis and fibromyalgia, (although not every one agrees that these 2 fall into this category), celiac disease, and guillain-barre syndrome, to name only a few.
Inflammation Lessening Drugs And Hair Loss: Many of the drugs that are given for these disorders are given to reduce the inflammatory process and this actually seems to fit quite nicely with hair loss treatment, as there is almost always an inflammation component to it. In addition, many of the steroids often used have the unfortunate side effect of more shedding or loss, so often the patient is left wondering if it is the disorder that’s affecting their hair or the medication that’s being used to treat it. It is often prudent to focus on a healthy diet and healthy, natural ways to support a healthy scalp and reduce inflammation while stimulating healthy regrowth.
How do I know all of this? Because I lived it. Automimmune disorders were just one of the many things I had to look at to determine the reason for my hair loss. It was a long, hard, frustrating journey which all but wrecked my self esteem but I finally found something that helped quite a bit. You can read my very personal story at http://stop-hair-loss-in-women.com/
14 Responses to “What Kind of Autoimmune Disorders Can Cause Hair Loss, Shedding, Or Thinning? I will Tell You”
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I think I'm experiencing non genetic hair loss? At first I thought it was Genetic, I asked my parents if any of my family went bald especially at my age, 20, they said no. The only relatives that went bald were my two uncles each from my mothers and fathers side. And they went bald at 40. Anyway, I thought only my fringe was thinning, but when I looked at old photos back when I was seventeen and 18, I realized I was thinning everywhere, my back hair, side hair and fringe. I don't see any bald spots. But my hair seems thinner. What could cause this? I do have social phobia, and I stress a lot in social situations. And I’ve depression. Also lately I've noticed that I've been addicted to masturbating. Could these possibly be the reasons?
I received this product exactly 3 weeks ago today and I’ve been taking them with a 5,000mcg of Biotin. I have not received that much hair growth with them, i honestly believe the hair growth that I’ve is from the extra biotin im taking a day. Its grown 1inch in the 3 weeks which is pretty good! My nails and skin look great, but again i believe this is from the extra biotin that I’m taking. Overall, this is a good hair,skin,and nail vitamin but i truly believe from research and personal experience that you need too take more biotin,niacin,and horsetail to achieve greater results with hair growth. Hair skin, and nail vitamins usually dont have enough of the main vitamins that actually stimulate your hair growth.
Hi, First off, both social phobia and masturbation aren't hair loss causes so forget about them; while stress can cause temporary loss in extreme situations, it's hard to say if that's the case for you. Genetically, it's hard to predict loss because it can indeed start as early as seventeen or eightteen in some men or as late as their 40's & 50's. This may be the case for you, but without a proper exam and testing it's hard to be 100% sure.
I had an issue a couple of years ago with a birth control pill; needless to say it caused a lot of medical issues! One of which was hair loss. I went off that pill and my body was slowly getting back to normal, but my hair did not seem to be recovering. I do not have a lot of hair to begin with and it is fine, but viviscal helped the hair grow back AND my hair is much stronger. There is less in my brush too. My eyelashes and nails are also thicker! I love it and still use it.
Masturbation – NO. Stress, anxiety, depression, fatigue, crappy diet, lack of exercise – YES. Seek psychological counseling to learn how to deal with your issues.
2 Nutrients That You Must Have to Prevent Hair Loss | Hair. There are 2 nutrients that you have to make sure you have plenty of every day, if you want to minimize your hair loss. These nutrients are Vitamin A and
No. Social phobia doesn’t cause hair loss. Neither does depression neither does masturbation. Oestrogen imbalance can. Stress can. +
Weaves, braids may speed hair loss in black women – CNN.com. Weaves and braids may contribute to a type of permanent hair loss that appears to be common among black women, a new study has found.
Hair Loss problem please help? Hey iam seventeen i was on protein less diet means that i was taking less protein intake and i was dieting excessively after one month my hair started falling rapidly and started thinning, then i came to know its due to the protein less intake and malnutrition so i started eating very much now… Its like one month my hair falling is decreased but i want to ask that how much time will it take for regrowth of my hair that has been already fallen?
It appears to be working. I’ve been taking this product for less than a month and my hair has not only grown longer but thicker as well as heathier in overall apperance. I haven’t made any other changes to my daily routine: counclsion it actually does work.
Start eating a healthy diet right away! Have milk products, soyabean, meat, nuts, beans.. Your hair loss can last for 3-6 months. It’ll stop in a few months IF you eat healthy from NOW.
Bulimia and Hair loss? I used to be bulimic but I've stopped for a good two or three months now. I've been noticing that my hair has been thinning dramatically (I used to have nice thick hair). And I know this is from being bulimic. Is there a way to speed up hair regrowth (i.e. Are there any fruits I should be eating for this specific purpose, etc)? And how long will this hair loss stop and go back to normal? Answers are much appreciated!
This make my hair nice and soft. I have not used it long enough to see if it’ll thicken my hair – which is why I bought it. .
Is sudden weight gain and hair loss a thryoid problem? When I turned sixteen I was thinner than 80% of the guys my age and I had a full head of hair. By the time I was sixteen & six months I had a gut and my hairline had badly receded. Around this time I also stopped growing at 5'8''. Before, during, and after the weight gain I exercised regularly, ate healthy food, and didn’t take medication. 7 years later I'm 23, still have a gut, am almost bald, and I'm hairy on my body. I'm otherwise healthy and I live a healthy lifestyle. I'm strong and alert but I do get tired easily. I know that weight gain, stunted growth, hair loss, and fatigue are all signs of hypothyroidism in men, but of course they could also be caused by other things. Is the weight-gain just because I stopped growing? Or could the weight, stopped growth, hair loss, and fatigue be signs of thyroid problems? Obviously I won't get taller now, but if I’ve a thyroid problem then can it be treated with hormones? Is it too late for me?