If you are trying to lose weight and making progress, that’s great news! However, you may have noticed the hairs on your head thinning. Hair loss is a complicated process that can be influenced by changes in your daily routine, including losing weight. For the body to lose weight, there needs to be a shortage of calories. The number of calories that are consumed each day can affect the amount of energy available for the body to replace hair. Consequently, many people who lose weight also experience some level of hair loss. The good news is: losing weight can be a healthy improvement to your life, and your hair is likely to grow back after several months.
Those who use diet and exercise to lose weight experience more energy, improved health, and renewed self-confidence. But it is a common misconception that weight loss directly prevents male pattern baldness. In fact, some research suggests that weight loss can also be accompanied by hair loss.
Weight loss in men can be the result of making healthy diet and lifestyle changes, but weight loss can also be caused by a stressful life event or a serious illness or injury. Weight loss can even be the result of something as basic as lack of sleep, or a side-effect of certain medications!
Hair Cycle
When our bodies go through significant changes, such as dramatic weight loss, it’s possible to trigger a condition known as telogen effluvium. Telogen effluvium can disrupt the body’s regular hair cycle, causing temporary balding across the scalp.
Hair loss from telogen effluvium can happen during the first three to six months after shedding the pounds through gastric bypass surgery or a rapid nonsurgical weight-loss method. Hair loss should cease once the body adjusts to the change. But in some cases, it could continue after that six-month time frame.
During the anagen phase, the hair on the scalp grows at a rate of ½-inch to 1-inch per month. This process lasts for 3 to 5 years before entering the catagen phase, a transitional stage that only lasts ten days. Afterward, the hair enters a third, and final phase, known as the telogen phase.
The telogen phase is a part of the cycle when hair growth stops, and the body promotes the hair’s release. After a resting period of approximately three months, the hair cycle will start again at the anagen phase. Each hair follicle goes through the hair cycle independently of one another, and each one can be at a different stage from the other follicles surrounding it. If they didn’t, hair loss would occur at the same time across the entire scalp, and you would be bald for three months at a time, every few years. Instead, the average person sheds 100 hairs each day as the cycle continues.
Whether the weight loss is from a surgical procedure or has nonsurgical causes, the accompanying hair loss is a serious concern for many on a weight loss journey, especially for those who may have already been experiencing male pattern baldness.
Hair loss can be experienced by men or women, and many individuals experiment with various treatments to combat this hair loss. Some of these solutions are effective. Unfortunately, most do not achieve long-term results without consistent treatments.
But there is an effective treatment to consider that is ideal for men facing a thinning head of hair from male pattern baldness or telogen effluvium. Scalp micropigmentation is a cosmetic process that can create the natural appearance of a fuller head of hair through injecting small amounts of pigment into the skin.
If you are noticing hair loss while simultaneously losing weight, don’t stress about it! However, if the hair loss becomes severe, Hairline Ink is dedicated to providing our clients with the most accurate information available so that you can make informed decisions about your options. The scalp micropigmentation experts at Hairline Ink are here to help you find a solution to your hair loss issues, whatever the factors behind your weight loss may be. Hair loss can cause problems for individuals, like low self-esteem. Here at Hairline Ink, we’re proud to restore confidence in our clients through an advanced technique known as Scalp Micropigmentation (SMP). Call or text us today at 833-HAIR-INK (833-424-7465) to schedule an appointment, learn about our pricing, or to get a free quote!
