Does a bad hair day mean a bad day for you? Too fine, too frizzy, too dry? A woman’s hair has become symbolic – apart from self-esteem, it has to do with feminity and even identity. It is no wonder, the hair and beauty is now a multibillion industry, and a woman spends approximately $50,000 on her hair over the lifetime, on average.
But imagine this – women can lose their hair gradually. Known as female pattern hair loss, it usually begins around the 40s. For some, it can be even earlier. This progressive form of hair loss means that the hair loss is gradual, but continous. Without treatment, it can progress from just a widening parting to overall thinning. Unlike men, female pattern hair loss does not result in baldness. But hair thinning is part and parcel of it, some may notice hair receding at the temples. Without treatment, the hair thinning can become widespread.
HOW DOCTORS TREAT FEMALE PATTERN HAIR LOSS TODAY
More than one treatment is usually prescribed for the best results. Here are the most reliable ones.
1. Improve Blood Flow To The Scalp
Ever wondered why hair stylists and barbers encourage scalp massages? Studies have long suggested that our blood vessels are key to thicker hair growth, and increasing blood flow to the scalp helps starve off baldness. But there are also other (and more effective) ways of doing this.
MINOXIDIL. A medication that is applied to the dry scalp once or twice a day, your doctor might prescribe this FDA-approved medication to treat female pattern hair loss. Because hair grows slowly, you need to be patient and use it continuously for one year before results can be appreciated.
REVAGE 670 HAIR LASER. Not all lasers are made the same, and this hair laser is not like the lasers that doctors use for the skin. Completely painless, all this requires is 30 minutes of your time once or twice a week. And this is not just any laser therapy. An FDA-approved low-level laser therapy (LLLT), it is a true hair restoration treatment that uses rotational photo therapy to rejuvenate the scalp. Twice-weekly treatments are recommended for the first 6 weeks, and once-weekly for subsequent 12 weeks.
2. Hair Growth Stimulation Treatments
KERA-CLONE. For those who have tried the above and are still dissatisfied with the results, this is a new treatment that provides a suitable environment for “sleeping” hair follicles to grow. A special technique of using one’s own follicular units, it is likened to a mini hair transplant, except there is no actual transplantation, only small injections into the scalp. Results can usually be observed from 6 to 12 months.
3. Hair Transplants
If baldness is already present, the most practical solution would be the hair transplant. Hair transplantation surgery has evolved dramatically through the years, and now, Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) is one of the most popular techniques. This surgical technique removes individual follicles or hair from the donor site, and are then reimplanted into areas of baldness. Note that much of the success requires preservation of harvested follicles, so FUE hair transplantation requires the surgeon to be skilled and experienced.