Alopecia: how to recognize the various types

There is not only one type of alopecia but there are several. To understand this, it is useful to start by explaining what alopecia is and how to recognize it.

When you have a thinning of hair in some areas we talk about alopecia. The hair loss is caused by several factors and it is these factors that lead to understand what kind of alopecia it is. As said, in fact, there is not only one type of alopecia, but several, all identifiable in a fairly precise way.

Let’s see, therefore, what they are and how to understand what type of alopecia affects one’s hair.

In this regard it is useful to remember that hair loss, to a certain extent, is normal and is part of the life cycle of the hair. Of course, beyond a certain limit and, above all, when real patches begin to appear, you have to worry, because you start talking about hair loss.

Going into the heart of the matter, it is useful to understand what are the types of alopecia and what are the causes connected to them.

Various types of alopecia and how to recognize them

When talking about alopecia you have to start by making a substantial difference. There are, in fact, two macrocategories: healing and non-healing alopecia.

What are the differences? These reside in the state of health of the hair follicles: in the first case, they are destroyed and you have a total and irreversible loss of hair, while in the second case this does not happen and it is a situation that, on the contrary, can be reversible with due care and attention.

Another very important aspect is, then, that of the evaluation of inheritance. We can speak, in fact, both of acquired alopecia and hereditaryalopecia. As you can easily understand, in the case of inheritance come into play the genes and the parental kit, while in case of acquired alopecia this does not affect.

In light of these premises, it is also useful to point out that about 50% of people with baldness problems suffer from androgenetic alopecia. This means that genetic propensity is the factor that probably causes baldness most of all. What happens? Dihydrotestosterone, which is an androgen hormone, goes to stress the follicles, causing hair loss. In this specific case, alopecia also occurs at a young age and the process of hair loss is much faster in men than in women.

Another type is alopecia areata. In this case, it is a pathology that causes rapid hair loss and hair loss in general. The patches are round and regular and does not occur uniformly throughout the head, but to areas as the name suggests.

We must, however, also talk about psychogenic alopecia. In this case it is the stress and worries that make the hair fall out. Attention, however: this is not a hereditary form, but you must still have a propensity for hair loss, which is accentuated by stress, just as mentioned. In this case, thinning hair can be reversible if you go to treat the root source of stress and worries.