Menopausal and post menopausal hair loss

Menopause is an inevitable event in every woman’s life. It occurs at the age of 45-55 years. A woman is considered post menopausal when she has not menstruated for the past 6 months. Post menopausal period is an important time period where the body deprives of female sex hormones, which include estrogen and progesterone. As a result, all the functions carried out by these hormones are deranged. Finally it gives rise to a series of symptoms and sings, which are collectively known as postmenopausal symptoms.

These postmenopausal symptoms include, hot flushes, irritability, reduced sex drive, headacahe, night sweat, reduced sleep, urinary urgency and incontinence and dryness of the vagina. Even though hair loss is not taken as a cardinal feature of menopause, it is commonly seen among females who have reached their menopause.

Generally, females have more hair than males. That is because males lose their hair with time. The hair loss in males is mainly due to the action of male sex hormone, testosterone, on the hair follicles. People with a higher testosterone levels in their body tend to lose their hair fast. Similarly, females also have small amount of testosterone in their blood stream. But, in the premenopausal age the effects of testosterone is less due to the higher concentration of estrogen in their blood stream. Estrogen protects your hair from the action of testosterone. After menopause the estrogen levels drastically decline. The testosterone levels become higher when compared to the estrogen levels. So the protective effect of estrogen against hair loss is lost. Finally, hair loss occurs.

Hormone replacement therapy is the most effective method of treatment for postmenopausal symptoms including hair loss. As with any treatment method, hormone replacement therapy also has its side effects. Therefore, it is continued only for couple of years. It simply replaces the deprived hormones and brings the body’s homeostasis mechanisms to the previous state. It can relieve many postmenopausal symptoms including hair loss.

Apart from hormonal imbalances, other physical as well as psychological changes that occur during menopause can contribute to hair loss. For example, psychological stress is a well known cause for hair loss. Menopause is a stressful period for many women. It can be due to many reasons. This is the time period where women are found to have other diseases such as dyslipidema, diabetes, hypertension, etc. It is also the time period where they experience departure from their loved ones including their parents and children. These events can bring a significant level of stress.  Menstrual irregularities are also very common during perimenopausal period. As a result, you can lose a lot of iron from your body and become anemic. These nutritional deficiencies can also be a cause for hair loss in perimanopausal period.

While many people try to relate most of the symptoms that occur in menopausal period to the deprivation of estrogen, you should always consider other things that can give rise to hair loss. Failure to identify such etiological factors can waste a lot of time as well as money without getting any relief from the symptoms. Thyroid diseases are the commonest causes of hair loss. Both hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism can give rise to hair loss. Therefore, it is wiser to get a thyroid profile done before you go in to any other intervention.