Medications That Cause Hair Loss

Medical hair loss can be a difficult condition to cope with. It occurs when an individual is taking a medication for another ailment, and the medicine causes hair to fall out. Therefore, the individual has to deal with two separate medical conditions: the one they are taking the medicine for and the hair loss. It can be overwhelming, to say the least.

Most medical hair loss occurs as a result of the medication limiting blood flow to the scalp. This causes the hair to simply fall off the scalp. Lack of blood flow means lack of healthy hair.

Here are a few common medications that can cause hair loss.

Chemo Medications and Hair Loss

Chemotherapy might be the leading medications causing hair loss. This grueling treatment is given to individuals who are fighting against cancer. Hair loss is a regrettable side effect of chemotherapy, but it's important to remember that it's helping in the fight against this serious disease.

Thankfully, hair growth typically resumes after chemotherapy is complete. Chemo hair loss is only a short term condition, and patients will have their old head of hair back in just a few months.

Birth Control Pills and Hair Loss

Some clinical studies have shown that birth control pills can lead to hair loss. Typically, about three or four months after beginning a birth control regimen, women begin to notice their hair is falling out. The reason for this occurrence is the estrogen in the pills causes the hair to reach its resting phase.

Fortunately, the link between birth control pills and hair loss is only temporary. Women taking the pills only suffer from hair loss for a very short period of time. After that, their normal hair growth resumes.

Vitamin A Hair Loss

Normally, vitamins are an essential ingredient in hair restoration. Most vitamins strengthen and revitalize our hair follicles. However, Vitamin A can actually be harmful to the health of our hair.

Too much Vitamin A can lead to hair loss. This is sometimes referred to as Vitamin A toxicity. Essentially, your body gets too much of the supplement, and the Vitamin A damages the hair. Vitamin A hair loss can be corrected. All you have to do is reduce your intake of the vitamin, and hair growth should resume.

Hair Loss from Blood Thinners

Blood thinners are commonly used in many types of surgical procedures. These anti-coagulant medications help save many lives. Unfortunately, they often have several side effects. One of these is medical hair loss.

Hair loss from blood thinners occurs because the scalp isn't receiving the blood flow it needs to remain healthy. As a result, the hair begins to fall out. It's similar to what patients taking chemotherapy go through. Of course, hair loss from blood thinners is only a temporary condition. It usually subsides when the patient stops taking the treatment.

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