Affecting around 50% of women, hair loss is not talked about as often as it should be. Seeing anything from single strands to clumps left in your shower can be distressing and a knock to your confidence – neither of which we need!
But often, loss of hair is perfectly natural and healthy, so here are some answers to questions about hair loss and what amount of hair loss is normal.
Check out my video on hair loss below.
How much hair loss is normal?
Click here if you can’t see the video above.
How much hair is normal to lose?
It’s normal to loss between 80-100 hairs per day. In fact, for some people up to 150 strands come out every day, and this is still considered normal.
If you have long hair, remember that a 100 hairs will look like a lot more when they’re wound up and all curled together than if they were flat or straight.
And bear in mind that some detached hairs can get stuck in your style, so when it comes to washing your hair, there will be a lot more hair on the shower floor than you might expect.
If you have straight hair, you’ll lose hairs all day throughout the day. They’ll fall out quite easily too, and so you might not really notice hair loss when you’re washing your hair. For curly girls, because we have a lot of tangles in our hair the loose hairs detach but they can stay in the curl.
And so it’s only once we wash our hair that we notice what looks like a lot of hair loss. Plus if you’re only washing your hair every three or four days, you should expect to see 300-400 hairs coming out in the shower.
I won’t include a photo of how much hair I’ve lost to the shower but you can see it in the video.
When should you be worried about hair loss?
If you’ve noticed a significant increase in hair loss, this is when you should start to pay attention. However, there are lots of things that can cause hair loss and most of them are fixable, so you shouldn’t be too worried.
One of the biggest triggers is stress, so worrying about it is really frustrating because it compounds the problem.
Certain deficiencies like low iron can also cause hair loss and significant weight gain or weight loss can also affect your air growth.
I have a thyroid condition and anytime my thyroid is out of balance, I can definitely tell straight away because I notice it in my hair.
If you’re noticing a significant hair-loss difference, definitely go and see your doctor, and ask for some blood tests to see if you can pinpoint the issue.
Of course, there are conditions that can’t necessarily be treated or cured, like alopecia, which can cause significant hair loss. However, I’ve linked here to a video created by Sustainable Salons that really explains some of the hard-to-ask questions about alopecia and how we can all get involved to help.
If you’re noticing hair loss, the first thing to do is not panic and know that you’re not alone. More than half of women are affected by hair loss, so just start by monitoring the situation and if you see it getting worse, please see your doctor.
I hope this has helped either allay any fears or concerns you’ve been having about this issue or at least I’ve been about to point you in the right direction.
This is part of a series of Q&A stories I’ve published on hair and hair-related issues. You can check out my YouTube series and subscribe to my channel here or catch up with the other stories on the blog here.
And as always, if you have any questions about hair loss, please asked me in the comments.
Marika Dominski says
Since about 100 strands of hair fall out each day, how fast does hair grow back?
Pam says
Dr upped my blood pressure pills, beta blockers, now it seems I’m losing a bit more hair daily.
sondra bailey says
Thank you for this! I am terrified of going bald. I have straight hair and it is longish. I have been losing so much hair the last few years. I can certainly tell it on my head. I am post-menopause, so that makes it even worse. But what you said about how much loss in the shower is about what I lose. Thank you, again.
Hair Romance says
Thanks Sondra, and you’re definitely not alone xx