Skin Conditions That Cause Hair Loss

 

It’s not always your hair that’s the problem. Sometimes, it’s actually your skin that is causing you to lose your hair! Hair loss caused by a skin condition is often reversible, so understanding what is causing your hair thinning is an important first step to treating it.

 

Seborrheic dermatitis (also known as seborrheic eczema) is an inflammatory skin condition, which results in white to yellowish scales that flake away. Typically, you’ll see these scales in oily skin areas, such as the scalp, eyebrows, creases of the nose, behind the ears and inside the outer ear.

 

If you’ve had a child with cradle cap, you’ve seen seborrheic dermatitis. However, adults can get it too.

 

Seborrheic dermatitis tends to run in families – just like cradle cap does. The condition can be worsened by such things as stress and fatigue. However, it can be reversed by proper cleaning and care for the scalp. A good cleansing routine, including items such as SureThik Shampoo and Serum to clean and nourish the scalp properly, will improve your scalp’s condition. While seborrheic dermatitis is not caused by poor hygiene, cleansing to keep follicles clear and healthy definitely helps. Daily shampooing may clear it up more quickly, by working to loosen the scales and wash them away.

 

Psoriasis is another skin condition that can cause hair loss. Psoriasis is an autoimmune condition where skin cells are building up quicker than they are being shed. As a result, it causes the creation of red or pink colored lesions on the surface of the skin.

 

The lesions cause not only hair loss, but also scarring and follicle damage. The good news is that your hair may come back if the condition is quickly and properly controlled. However, only an examination by a knowledgeable physician will confirm if the follicles are healthy enough for hair to regrow.

 

Scarring is a primary feature of scleroderma, another autoimmune disease, which is caused by a build up of collagen in the skin and other connective tissue. So much collagen can build up due to the scleroderma, that the skin actually feels hard!

 

Any kind of trauma to your skin – whether burns, infections or disease – can cause scars. Once scar tissue replaces normal tissue, hair cannot grow through it! This is called scar alopecia and it’s permanent. So, if you have been diagnosed with scleroderma (or any other serious skin disease or trauma) it’s important to have it treated early by a qualified professional. If you can avoid the scarring to your scalp, you can avoid the hair loss.

 

Once there is scarring, the only option to improve your hair loss will be hair restoration.  While hair transplant technology has come a long way since the dreaded “hair plugs”, the ideal situation is that you don’t lose your hair in the first place. So take the steps now to make sure the skin of your scalp is as healthy as it can be.

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