The Difference Between Hair Shedding, Breakage, and Loss
Normal Hair Shedding vs. Excessive Hair Shedding
Even when our systems are running perfectly, the average person sheds 50 to 100 hairs a day, according to the American Academy of Dermatology (ADA). Hair shedding that exceeds that average is called telogen effluvium, a condition that typically resolves itself naturally. “Excessive hair shedding comes from things like stress, postpartum, or losing over 20 pounds,” explains Faith Huffnagle, Director of Education at Prose and veteran hairstylist. “The causes of excessive hair shedding are temporary and you have to give yourself time and grace to let your hair shed and come back.” The ADA also lists surgical procedures, going off birth control, and recovering from an illness (even a high fever) as additional telogen effluvium causes. Usually excessive hair shedding happens two to three months after a stressful event or health trigger.
How long does it take to recover from excessive hair shedding? The ADA notes that most people see a return to normal fullness within six to nine months—providing the stressor or health trigger doesn’t persist, as long term stress and poor health can cause ongoing hair shedding. To strengthen your hair, Faith recommends hair care products with ingredients like maca root and biotin, which can both be found in Prose formulations.
The Difference Between Hair Shedding and Hair Loss
It is vitally important to know the difference between hair loss and shedding. The simplest way to explain this is that while hair shedding is a natural, cyclical part of life, hair loss is not. The latter only occurs when something is impeding the hair from growing in the first place.
There are a variety of reasons that this could happen which include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Issues with your immune system (i.e. overreactions)
- Genetic factors (i.e. family history of hair loss)
- Hairstyles that harshly yank or pull on your hair
It is important that you do not attempt to self-diagnose the difference between these two things. The reason for this is that hair loss could be a symptom of an underlying medical condition. If you are experiencing hair loss, please consult a dermatologist so that you can receive the proper assistance from a trained medical professional.
Signs You’re Experiencing Hair Loss
Unlike hair shedding, hair loss, or anagen effluvium, may not resolve itself naturally. These causes actually stop the hair from growing, resulting in balding or alopecia, and the hair can’t try to grow back until the cause stops. With hereditary hair loss, we can have an impact on how soon our genetic predisposition kicks in, as an unhealthy lifestyle can trigger hair loss sooner than it would naturally happen. A board-certified dermatologist can help identify hair loss and its causes, like damaged hair follicles, as well as provide treatment options.
How to identify hair breakage
It’s nice when things are simple to identify when it comes to hair care problems. Thankfully, when it comes to sorting out whether you’re dealing with hair shedding vs breakage, identifying hair breakage is oh-so-easy: “Take a look at a fallen strand of hair,” says Faith, “shedding will have a bulb on the end of the hair, whereas breakage will not.” That little bulb indicates that the hair came directly out of your scalp, a sure sign of shedding, versus a long piece of broken hair. You may see broken hair all over your sink or floor after brushing your hair. “Breakage happens from really tight elastic hair ties or rubber bands, frying your hair with heat, chemical exposure, and brushing too harshly or ripping through tangles,” she says.
How To Stop Excessive Hair Shedding
There are a number of things that a person can do to help stop excess hair shedding, including using the following strategies:
- Analyze your hair care routine
- Incorporate a scalp treatment into your hair care routine
- Manage your stress levels and be certain you have a healthy diet
- Exercise regularly
Putting Prose Shampoo And Conditioner To The Test
Did you know using Prose shampoo and conditioner reduces breakage up to 73%—that’s up to 1,500 broken fibers saved per month!*
Here are Faith’s top tips to avoid hair breakage
- Brush hair with a wide-tooth comb or boar bristle brush
- Detangle hair when it’s mildly damp
- Avoid too-tight hairstyles and abrasive hair ties
- Use temperature-controlled heat tools and don’t go over 360 degrees
- Avoid excessive bleaching, perms, relaxers, and chemical treatments
For products that will help damaged hair, try Prose by taking our custom consultation quiz.
*Instrumental test vs. Non conditioning shampoo
thanks for your advice. I worry about hair loss in that my dad was completely bald and drove js crazy maSSAGING his head ever night. did nothing. so I have been paranoid all my life. but I am doing ok… juststarted getting these very fine nails dropping on wy cheeks and ears daily and recently. dont want to panic. I would at my age, 78. look just fine with a short buzz cut. but it drives me nuts… all these fine little hAIRS drifting down. been on propcias for 40 years ….. aND I think it has helped. thanks for the information. I am sure lots of people are helped by your knowledge.