Jumpstart Your Fitness: Learn how to read your hair
The relationship we all have with our own hair is the ultimate in love/hate for most of us, and although you may be blaming those bad hair days on harsh winter weather, humidity, or styling products gone wrong, have you considered that it may be your health that's really the problem? You can't have healthy hair if you don't have a healthy body, so if you're dealing with hair that's dull, dry, frizzy, flaky, or falling out, it's worth a closer look to make sure it's not due to something bigger than just using the wrong shampoo. From genetics to your current nutritional state, learning to read your hair can tell you a lot about your overall health.Here are some common hair issues and what they could possibly mean:
Gallery: How to read your hair
Going gray
Going gray is a genetic issue, so you're pretty much stuck with whatever you get in that department. Some people start noticing stray grays as early as their 20s while other lucky ducks keep all their color until retirement.
Going white seemingly overnight
This is largely myth, as there's no physical way for the hair on your head to instantly turn from brown/black/red/blonde to white overnight. What can happen, however, is stress-induced hair loss that causes mostly the colored hair to fall out leaving a majority of the white or gray hairs behind (resulting in much whiter looking hair).
Shedding
The average head has over 100,000 hair follicles on it, all of which are in different growth stages, so it's really no big deal to find a good amount of shedded hair in your hairbrush or shower drain on a daily basis. There's no reason to worry unless you notice visible thinning or bald spots.
Thinning or Balding
Thinning and balding hair can have many causes so if you have concerns it's important to see your doctor. Some of the potential explanations are genetics (male pattern baldness affects about 1/3 of men), hairstyles that pull or stress the hair (too-tight ponytails), thyroid disorders, autoimmune disorders, and nutritional deficiencies (eating disorders, malnutrition, etc).
Dandruff
The most commonly misunderstood of all hair issues, flakes are most likely not caused by dryness. True dandruff is an inflammation of the scalp that results in redness and flaking, and the best fix is not moisturizer but medication. Find a good medicated shampoo or scalp treatment.
Dry, brittle, and breaking
The most likely cause of hair that looks dull and "fried" is that it actually is. Hair can easily be damaged by styling tools like hot irons, chemicals from perms and coloring procedures, or severe hairstyles (tight ponytails). It's also important to note your diet, though, as not enough protein will cause hair strands to be weak and not getting enough fatty acids will cause hair to lack resilience and shine.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
2-11-2008 @ 9:15PM
mavis said...
When I was 59, I was going under a great amount of stress. My beautician told me that I had a large white spot on top of my head. I hadn't noticed, I had other things on my mind. Later the white went away and my normal color came back. Now I'm 74 and still have a lot of my natural color. I'm white around the face, especially at the temple area, but the rest of the hair is still blond.
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2-18-2008 @ 1:18AM
nikkicookers said...
Wait, so you started getting grey hair and then it grew out? That's great.
nikki cook
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2-11-2008 @ 9:46PM
AKotynia said...
One thing I have noticed through the years is that a good daily multivitamin helps my hair to grow and stay healthy, as well as my eyelashes and nails.
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2-11-2008 @ 11:00PM
Lissa said...
I was having extreme hair loss & my dental hygienist recommended that I take BIOTIN one of the b vitamins. She informed me that Walmart is the only retailer that sell the biotin by itself.
I purchased the biotin:5000 micrograms, and started taking it once per day immediately. 3 months later I have stopped losing hair. I was able, finally to put a mild relaxer in my hair. My hair dresser cannot believe it is the same head of hair.
I am also taking Centrum Silver(I am 60)because it contains copper & zinc, which also prevent hair loss.
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2-11-2008 @ 11:32PM
jasmine said...
My hair thining was the indicator that I hypothyroidism. Once I began taking the medication, it began to slow up & eventually stop. My hairdresser didn't know how to treat hair damaged due to medical issues. If yours doesn't, find one that does.
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2-11-2008 @ 11:48PM
Barbara said...
Having Hair instantly turn white is definately NOT A MYTH. When I was 16 my Mother had a serious miscarriage that made her need to be shocked back to life three times. Each time the RN came out and told my Father that she had been pronounced dead and revived again. My Sister and I waited at home for the news. When my Father walked in the door we were SHOCKED! He had never had one gray hair and both his temples now had STONE WHITE HAIR. I thought I was seeing things, so I looked again and sure enough it was true. Weeks later when the roots grew out, it was his natural color again. But the hair that had turned white was definately there until it grew out.
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2-12-2008 @ 12:43AM
sondra said...
Last summer I spent one month in the hospital, two weeks of that time in ccu {critical care unit}. I was very close to dying. Somehow I made it back but not without some problems, such as walking, speech and thinking clearly. Oh yes and hair loss too. My hair is white and it got so thin that I could see my scalp. I didn't know why I was having handfulls when I washed it and brushfull when I brushed it. Stress and the trauma of being sick was the answer I got. How long will it last I asked and was told that as soon as my body repaired itself. From august to december then it started to grow back.
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2-12-2008 @ 2:12AM
tanya said...
I agree with Jasmine, biotin is fantastic. I buy 5000 mcg at drugstore.com. I lost a ton of hair after the birth of my twins and biotin taken daily helped big time.
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2-12-2008 @ 3:40AM
~chicken~ said...
Dandruff is not actually JUST inflammation -- it is caused by a fungus, Malassezia globosa, that every human being has naturally on his or her scalp. About half of all people will, at some point, develop dandruff because of it. Scientists have only recently completed the genome sequence of this fungus, which means they're closer to a "cure" or at least a much better treatment than what's currently available.
Here are a couple of articles with much much more on the subject:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article2814059.ece
http://www.prnewswire.com/mnr/spectrumscience/30363
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2-12-2008 @ 4:03AM
Diana said...
I went on a severe diet and lost over 60lbs. in 2 months. Boy, did my hair start falling out!! I am a vegetarian and my doctor said that I needed to eat 60 to 90gm of protein per day. It took quite an effort, not being a meat-eater but I did it and in about 3 to 6 months I was on my way back to my "crowning glory"!! Good Luck!!
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2-12-2008 @ 10:51PM
angel said...
I was losing my hair by the handful and I was recommended to see this trichologist in costa mesa and she really got all of my hair back after analyzing my hair under a microscope.To me it only made sense to see what the problem was,I feel that out of all the places that I went to this was much more accurate in treating my hair loss and solving the the problem no one else could.
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