How should I deal with this sudden baldness after giving birth?

This is the 3329th article of Da Yi Xiao Hu

After giving birth, many mothers will find that their hair is all over the pillow, on the floor, on the comb, in their hands, but not on their...head! In addition to the large amount of hair that falls off every day, the small amount that they scratch off, and the small amount that their baby pulls out..., they look at their receding hairline and the gradually emerging alopecia in the mirror, and become increasingly anxious. Why do you suddenly become "bald" after giving birth?

It turns out that we lose hair every day!

Under normal circumstances, each hair follicle of our scalp hair goes through three main phases independently, namely: growth phase, regression phase and resting phase. 90%-95% of hair follicles are in the growth phase and grow at a rate of 0.3mm per day for 2-6 years; the remaining 5%-10% are in the resting phase; only a small number of hair follicles are in the regression phase or transition phase, when the hair stops growing and will enter the resting phase after 3 weeks. When the hair follicle is in the resting phase, the hair stops growing, the hair root is superficial, and will face the crisis of shedding. The asynchronous cycle of the scalp hair follicles prevents our hair from shedding periodically. Therefore, in fact, our hair shedding is continuous. In the absence of disease, 50-150 hairs will fall off every day (terrifying if you think about it), but you just don't notice it.

Characteristics of postpartum hair loss:

Postpartum hair loss refers to a widespread hair loss that begins 2-3 months after delivery, and can be delayed to 7 months after delivery. It is an acute telogen effluvium. About 35%-45% of women will experience this type of hair loss. Generally, the more babies they have, the more severe the hair loss. Postpartum hair loss is temporary and will generally stop on its own about 6-9 months after delivery, and will not last more than 1 year at most. The chance of becoming bald is very, very small. The hair loss is characterized by the hair turning from black to yellow first, and then starting to fall off from one-third of the hair on the forehead, causing the hairline to move back, and then the hair on the temples and top of the head gradually falls off, making the hair become sparse and withered; some mothers also experience alopecia areata.

Causes of postpartum hair loss:

Hormonal influence

The level of hormones in our bodies directly affects the speed of hair replacement. When estrogen levels increase, the rate of hair loss slows down; when estrogen decreases, the rate of hair loss accelerates. During pregnancy, estrogen increases, the number of hair in the growth phase increases, the life of hair is extended, and the rate of hair loss slows down. This also explains why many mothers take good care of their hair during pregnancy and hardly lose their hair. After childbirth, estrogen drops rapidly to normal levels before pregnancy, and the hair that did not fall out during pregnancy begins to fall out. Growth cannot keep up with shedding, which leads to a "gap" and causes postpartum hair loss. However, after giving birth, estrogen immediately drops back to the level before pregnancy, and the hair that was originally in the growth phase enters the resting phase synchronously. In other words, the hair during pregnancy is a false prosperity, and it begins to collapse once childbirth begins.

Mental stress

From the pain of childbirth to the anxiety after childbirth and the difficulty of breastfeeding, the role change has doubled the mental pressure of new mothers. In addition, the emotions after childbirth are more sensitive, and they are prone to mental tension. In addition, the baby cries and leads to lack of sleep. These negative emotions and psychological burdens affect the growth and metabolism of hair and accelerate the rate of hair loss.

Unbalanced diet

During pregnancy, vomiting, anorexia and other symptoms may affect eating; some mothers pursue rapid recovery after childbirth and over-control their diet; plus, breastfeeding babies require a lot of nutritional supplements. If postpartum mothers are picky eaters, have poor digestion and absorption functions, they will lack protein, vitamins, inorganic salts and trace elements, which will also affect the normal growth and metabolism of hair and cause hair loss.

Unclean scalp

Although it is already 2021, there are still some new mothers who still abide by or are forced to abide by some "confinement bad habits", such as not washing their hair during the confinement period. Think about how sour your hair will smell if you don't wash it for a month. You should know that the hair follicles and sebaceous glands share an opening. When the sebaceous glands secrete excessively, they may accumulate and block the opening of the hair follicles, causing local inflammation. The scalp is in an inflammatory environment for a long time, which will affect the growth of hair. Therefore, you still need to pay attention to cleaning and wash your hair frequently after giving birth. Of course, you must pay attention to blow-drying in time to avoid cold.

In fact, most mothers’ postpartum hair loss is physiological hair loss. The amount of hair loss reaches a peak 3-4 months after delivery, and generally eases about half a year after delivery, and returns to normal levels about a year after delivery. Therefore, there is no need to worry too much, and you must stay in a good mood. If the hair loss continues for half a year to a year and has not eased, it is recommended to seek medical treatment in time.

Author: Shanghai First Maternity and Infant Health Care Hospital

Wu Shengnan Attending Physician