All of a sudden it many of us are experiencing hair loss at an alarming rate – and it feels like whoever you speak to is also having the same issue. But why is it happening all of a sudden?
It can be worrying pulling out clumps from the shower drain or running your fingers through your hair and strands falling out. But when you think about hair loss you usually think about balding men and receding hairlines – not women.
There is a surge in women openly speaking about their hair thinning. Searches for hair growth supplements have seen a 100% search increase year on year according to Cosmetic Design Europe, while Superdrug has also launched the UK’s first high street hair health blood test to help find out what could be causing hair loss.
Hair loss can be down to a number of factors including hormones, stress and anxiety. We’ve all experienced burn out at some point, the cost of living crisis is making us all feel financially strained, and many of us are sleep deprived and over-stimulated so it’s no wonder our hair is feeling the brunt of it.
We may put the blame on ourselves, regretting colouring our hair in our teens or skipping the heat protector spray when styling, but experts say there may be a more deep rooted issue there.
Samantha Steward, a trichologist at Richard Ward told Stylist: “Chronic stress can disrupt the hair growth cycle by diverting essential nutrients away from the hair follicle, triggering a reactive type of hair shedding known as telogen effluvium,” which occurs when a number of hairs prematurely enter the shedding phase.
Stress also impacts sleep, poor diet and nutrition, as well as hormonal imbalances, which are all huge factors that can cause hair loss too – and these ongoing reasons add to the risk of hair loss, making us all trapped in a vicious cycle.
Rachel Valentine, a hairdresser who posts as @rachelvalentinehair on TikTok, has been sharing some helpful hair tips, sharing insight into tiny habits that may also be quietly contributing to hair loss.
Rachel highlights how small daily actions can have a big impact on hair health. These common habits may seem simple, but repeating them every day can lead to breakage, thinning, and sore hairlines. Firstly, she said a messy bun is “so damaging”. Rachel called out the tight, high messy bun many of us throw in “every single day.”
While she knows it’s “the quickest thing to do to get your hair out your face” she spelt out why it backfires: “Firstly it is super tight, so the tension is gonna be on these areas here… so if you get traction… this is a no go.”
She also says it damages the ends: “Especially if your hair is bleached… they’re all caught up… they’re all intertwined when you take it out… it’s probably gonna be super knotty.” And lots of people do it on wet hair “which is even worse,” because “our hair is so fragile when it’s wet… it’s gonna cause so much damage.”
Next she urged people to not tie their hair up when it’s wet. “When our hair is wet, it actually acts like an elastic band, so it stretches and returns… but sometimes… it breaks,” she explains.
Dry hair doesn’t stretch like that, so tying it up wet stacks the odds of snapping. She adds: “You’re more likely to get breakage tying your hair up wet because it’s more vulnerable… it’s gonna stretch and it sometimes will break.”
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Another habit that could be causing hair breakage is a shoulder bag or backpack. Rachel said: “A really common one that I say is so underestimated is wearing a backpack or shoulder bag on the same shoulder.
“If you’re noticing your hair is different lengths or one side is broken, that could be the reason why.” She added that “if your hair is particularly fragile or you sleep on the same side, I do sometimes see breakage from that as well,” which can leave hair looking “uneven in length.”Dr Ali, Hair expert at UK Hair Transplants has also compiled a list of some natural methods for your hair to repair tired and brittle hair. Firstly is a warm coconut oil pre-wash. Warm one or two teaspoons of oil between your palms and massage into scalp for three to five minutes and smooth a pea-sized amount through the ends.
Leave for up to an hour and then shampoo and condition normally. “Coconut oil’s fatty acids penetrate the hair shaft and reduce protein loss, helping mend rough, snapped cuticles from the inside out,” the expert said, and do it once or twice weekly. “Think of warm oiling as a nourishing primer — it plugs protein leaks and instantly makes hair feel stronger and silkier.”
Another at home mask you can make is an aloe, honey and yogurt mask. Simply combine two tablespoons of plain yogurt, one tablespoon of aloe gel and one teaspoon of honey and apply mid-lengths to ends (avoid roots if easily weighed down) and leave 15-20 mins.
Simply rinse and then condition hair lightly. “Gentle natural proteins (yogurt) reinforce weak spots; aloe soothes and hydrates; honey draws in moisture and together they re-bond and smooth damaged cuticles.” The expert recommends to do this once weekly and “this trio gives you protein and moisture in one -exactly what stressed hair needs to bounce back.”
