Postpartum alopecia: is it transient or permanent? Everything you need to know

What is referred to as postpartum alopecia can prove to be a real problem for women who suffer from it.

Also known as postpartum alopecia, it takes the form of thinning or loss of hair in the phase that comes after childbirth.

Why does this happen? Answering this question is very important, especially in order to understand, at a later stage, what can be done to try to remedy it.

The reason for postpartum alopecia

The first thing that needs to be emphasized when you want to discuss this topic is that it is a problem that plagues most women about 2 months after giving birth.

Although you may think that all this is related to nutrition, this is not the case: in fact, the trigger for all this is the hormonal change that occurs after pregnancy. In addition, it should also be considered that the period in question is also a carrier of stress and pressure. Therefore, the whole thing can worsen the state of health of the hair. .

It should also be considered that in this particular period of a woman’s life there are also natural iron deficiencies. To understand what happens, therefore, to the hair in the postpartum, we must begin to indicate what are the various phases of the life cycle of the same.

Specifically, we must go to analyze what are the three phases of the life of the hair. These are anagen phase (growth, variable duration between 2 and 6 years); catagen phase (growth stopped, variable duration 2-3 weeks); telogen phase (fall phase, duration 3 months).

If you are in a normal condition, 90% of the hair is in the anagen phase while 10% is in the other two phases. What happens, however, in pregnancy? As is well known, in this phase there is an increase in the levels of both estrogen and various thyroid hormones: this lengthens the anagen phase. Therefore, in the pregnancy phase women notice hair that seems to be healthier than before.

Immediately after childbirth, however, hormone levels gradually normalize and this leads to an acceleration of the catagen phase and that of the telogen phase: here, then, that the hair begins to fall in mass after a long period of growth.

Of course, this is frightening, but the good news is that this is a transitional phase.

What to do about postpartum hair loss

Among the solutions indicated to solve the situation of the hair in the phase following childbirth, there is that of treating the hair with certain specific products. Of course, you should always be very careful if you are breastfeeding: it is preferable to talk to a doctor before taking any kind of medicine or product for topical use.

However, don’t worry: the situation should return to normal after a few periods, without leading to baldness. If this is not the case, it is always advisable to consult a doctor to understand the reason for this situation.