More than 80 percent of men and nearly 50 percent of women experience excessive hair loss during their lifetime. For most of these people, the thinning of hair starts well before middle age.
Priority, therefore, lies in stopping hair fall, preventing hair loss, and promoting hair growth, preferably by natural means.
Losing up to 50 to 100 hairs every day is normal because new hair replaces the fallen hair. However, when the hair fall in men is excessive, you are heading for baldness. Excessive hair loss in women causes the hair to thin out, but rarely proceeds to baldness. However, thinning of hair in women adversely affects hairstyling and her appearance.
So, how do you stop hair from falling and thinning out? There are effective treatments with some medications used for men and some exclusive medications used for women. Hair loss correction with natural remedies also helps in a cohortative way.
Firstly, prevention lies in treating any conditions that could be causing your hair problems. Secondly, both men and women must adopt certain routine-correction solutions. These will prevent hair fall and baldness and can have hair grow back.
These simple and easy home remedies will stop your hair from falling out and help it to regrow. They are effective and time-proven and work for most individuals.
Tips to Prevent Hair Loss and Help Hair Grow Back
Initially, you may not notice that you are losing your hair. As the hair loss progresses, you start noticing your receding hairline and thinning hair.
You notice more hair on your pillow, more hair flowing down the drain after you have washed it, and more of it coming off your scalp on your comb. Start putting into practice these tips
Combing and brushing precautions
Combing and brushing hair is an everyday natural process and we take it for granted. But combing and brushing your hair the wrong way can lead to hair breakage and hair fall. It can also damage the texture and the health of your hair.
How should you comb and brush your hair?
- Remove any knots to detangle your hair gently with your fingers instead of combing the knots out.
- Use a wide-toothed comb to comb your hair. This will prevent the hair from being pulled at its roots, which can happen when you use a fine-toothed comb. And of course, comb gently so that the hair does not get strained at its roots.
- Never comb or brush wet hair. It can cause hair breakage and hair fall. The hair should be considerably dry before you comb it. The drying process should be natural. Read about it below.
- Use hair serum. After the hair has dried completely, you should apply hair serum to your scalp and hair. Hair serum is a hair care solution that prevents your hair from tangling and gives it a shine. It is silicon-based and contains amino acids and ceramides. Amino acids are organic compounds that combine to form protein and ceramides are a form of lipids found in the cell membrane. It offers protection against any damage to your hair from overexposure to the sun and also from hair styling products.
- Clean your comb or brush at regular periods and use them after they have dried completely.
- Finally, trim your hair regularly. Long hair tends to get caught and pulled when combing and brushing.
How to dry your hair? Drying precautions
- Dry your hair with your towel by gently rubbing an absorbent towel over your hair to absorb the moisture. Do not do it vigorously as it will lead to hair breakage and fall.
- Later, you should also allow your hair to air-dry for 10 to 15 minutes. As your hair dries. weak bonds are re-established and your hair gains in strength rapidly. You should, therefore, allow these bonds to re-establish before combing your hair.
- Never use a hairdryer. The hot air from a hairdryer destroys the protein (keratin) in the hair making them brittle and causing them to fall. If you have to use a dryer for an occasion, keep the heat low, keep moving the dryer, and do not concentrate it in one place.
- In addition, avoid styling, perming, straightening, hot-oil treatments, and hot ironing your hair.
Avoid shampoos and conditioners
Shampoos, conditioners, and such hair products contain chemicals, which cause damage to the hair follicle. These shampoos contain sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), which is a degreasing agent.
You normally shed about 100 hairs every day and the open hair follicles of these fallen hairs are exposed to SLS in the shampoo, which kills these open hair follicles and new hair does not grow back in them.
Try, therefore, to use herbal, organic, and all-natural shampoo instead. These shampoos do not contain such chemicals and will not damage your hair.
Avoid dying or coloring your hair
You should avoid dyeing your hair because of the adverse effects of the chemical content in dyes, which are ammonia and peroxide. If you have to dye your hair, keep a gap of 8 weeks between subsequent applications. Try and use an organic and herbal application.
Get proper sleep
Proper sleep is important to stop hair fall because it is during sleep that the repair of cells and formation of new cells take place. Proper sleep of about 7 to 9 hours is necessary, as it will help in the regeneration of new hair to replace the fallen hair.
Eat a well-balanced and nutritious diet
Stick to a diet containing especially those nutrients that are required for stopping hair fall and promoting hair growth. Nutritional deficiency is a major cause of hair fall.
These include proteins (hair is made of proteins), iron, certain minerals, fatty acids, and more. Eat your vegetables and fruits, eggs and poultry, milk and yogurt, grains, nuts, and fish.
Many studies also promote the Mediterranean diet for hair health. It is rich in raw vegetables, fresh herbs, and isoflavone-rich soy. All these exhibit anti-inflammatory properties that promote hair growth in androgenetic alopecia.
Alcohol and hair loss
Avoid drinking alcohol because alcohol increases the estrogen levels in the blood, which increases hair loss. Alcohol also decreases the zinc levels in the body, which are so necessary for hair growth.
Smoking
Smoking causes hair loss due to two reasons:
- It increases the carbon monoxide levels and decreases the oxygen levels in the blood. As a result, less oxygen reaches the hair root causing it to weaken.
- Smoking also causes atherosclerosis, which results in clogging of the arteries leading to less blood supply to the hair root.
Certain medications
Certain medications do cause hair loss and you can stop this loss from these medications by simply consulting your physician and explaining your problem. He will definitely have an alternative drug.
Drugs used in the treatment of the following conditions can cause significant loss of hair.
- Acne
- Arthritis
- Birth control
- Cardiac problems
- Chemotherapy
- Radiation for cancer
- Depression
- Gout
- Hypertension
- Anticoagulants
Chronic and prolonged illness
Prolonged illnesses cause depletion of nutrients from the body resulting in severe hair loss. Some of the diseases and conditions include:
- Thyroid dysfunction
- Uncontrolled diabetes
- Lupus
- Polycystic ovarian syndrome (in women)
- Ringworm infection of the scalp (in children)
Do not ignore such illnesses and take prompt treatment. You can reverse this hair loss if you take timely and complete treatment.
Tightly tied hairstyles and treatments
Hairstyles like ponytails, braids, or buns on a regular basis cause traction alopecia where hair fall occurs due to traction on the hair roots. Avoid such hairstyles.
Coconut oil scalp massage
Oils such as coconut, olive, canola, jojoba, sesame, and almond can be used to gently massage your scalp with your fingers. You could slightly warm these oils. Warming the oil will facilitate it seeping readily to the hair roots and stimulating more blood flow to the roots of the hair.
- Coconut oil has the additional benefit of its moisture-retaining properties.
- Almond oil is rich in vitamin E.
- Olive oil has antibacterial and anti-fungal properties, which help in preventing infections of the scalp.
You can wash off the oil after an hour or leave it overnight. Do not go out with oiled hair as oil tends to attract dirt and dust sticking to your hair.
Wash your hair
Wash your hair at least thrice a week with lukewarm water, if possible. Massage the scalp gently with your fingers. This will stimulate the hair root and bring more blood supply to them, preventing hair loss and promoting new hair growth. Avoid rubbing vigorously.
Use an herbal shampoo only once or twice a week. This will help to unclog the hair follicles. Do not use soap on your hair.
Other precautions
If you swim, always wear a swimming cap because the chlorine in the water can cause hair breakage. If you venture out into the sun, wear a hat or use an umbrella to prevent the heat from the sun from damaging your hair.
Exercise
Last but not the least; exercise is truly a wonder drug. It is not only curative therapy in many health conditions but also works as a preventive measure to combat many diseases.
Go for aerobic exercises such as jogging, swimming, cycling, and walking.
Aerobic exercises help to boost blood circulation throughout the body including in the small capillaries. Your hair follicles receive an abundant amount of blood ensuring good nutrition for the hair. This greatly helps to promote hair growth and prevent hair loss.