During pregnancy, especially in the last trimester, a woman's hair, as a rule, looks simply gorgeous. The same applies to the condition of nails and skin. This is the heyday of female beauty. But after the birth of a child, many young mothers with chagrin notice that the hair is no longer so thick and shiny, and the hair now and then remains on a comb or pillow. What to do if hair falls out after childbirth? Consider the causes of this process and ways to restore the state of hair.
Causes of Hair Loss
From fifty to one hundred hairs fall daily. This is a completely normal process, which is not considered a pathology. Due to some diseases or other changes in the body, with the background of taking medications, the prolapse process can become more active. This is exactly what happens after childbirth. This is also considered a normal process. After all, the body needs time to recover after the birth of the crumbs.
During gestation, the hormonal background is so favorable that hair loss even slows down. The consequence of this is an improvement in the state of hair. For some time after delivery, the hormonal balance remains relatively stable, but after 3 months the young mother begins to lose hair, which was at rest during pregnancy. In other words, the main reason for the loss is physiology. The hair just stayed in its place a little longer than it should.
This is if we talk about the physiological process. But there may be other causes of hair loss. For example, losing hair in large quantities is possible with diseases, the course of which is completely unrelated to pregnancy. This may be diabetes, thyroid disorders, some gynecological diseases. Also affected by poor nutrition, lack of vitamins, stress and regular physical overwork.
So, if after childbirth hair begins to fall out (what to do, we will consider for each factor separately), then the reasons for this process can be as follows:
- Physiological alopecia. Against the background of hormonal changes during pregnancy, the condition of the hair improves, its density increases, growth is activated. After birth, the crumbs hormones return to normal, and the hair gradually becomes the same as it was before pregnancy.
- Stress. The birth of a baby is a huge stress for the female body. Add to this night without sleep, time in the maternity ward, postpartum depression, overwork, many domestic problems and fatigue, physical stress. All this causes a strong loss.
- Hemoglobin reduction. During pregnancy or during childbirth (for example, with significant blood loss or complications), hemoglobin levels may decrease, and iron deficiency leads to hair loss. If the baby was born with jaundice, then, among other things, a woman should not take iron supplements for several months that could help.
- Vitamin deficiency. Vitamin deficiencies can occur when breastfeeding a child with diathesis. To prevent this unpleasant condition, women exclude products from their own diet that can cause an allergy in a child.
- Disorders of the hormonal background. Some gynecological diseases or endocrine disorders, as noted above, may well cause intense hair loss after childbirth.
- Androgenetic alopecia. In this case, the situation is due to heredity. Usually, such alopecia (baldness) develops in women closer to the period of menopause, but some changes in the body or disorders can provoke this process earlier.
- Anesthesia and cesarean section. Caesarean is a full-fledged operation, and any intervention negatively affects the state of the body as a whole. So, if after childbirth hair falls out in shreds, what should I do? This may be one of the consequences of the operation, you just need to give the body time to recover.
Seek help and start treatment without fail if active loss continues six months after birth. So, there is every reason to believe that the reason lies not only in physiology.
Physiological process
As mentioned above, loss can be due to hormonal changes and take place normally. How to recognize this? How to understand what to do? After birth, hair falls terribly, usually in the fourth month after the birth of the baby. This phenomenon is typical for 40-50% of women. This process is fully completed only after a year or a little less.
Such prolapse is a physiological process. In this case, you should not worry, and the use of any home masks and therapeutic wraps, salon procedures and vitamins, most likely, will not bring any visible effect. The young mother does not need to worry - pretty soon, new hairs will begin to appear on the growth line and on the parting.
Medical examination
Inspection after delivery is a mandatory event. But if after childbirth hair begins to fall out, what should I do? Consult with doctors as soon as possible. Firstly, you need to visit a gynecologist. It excludes the presence of diseases of its profile that can affect active prolapse, such as adrenal dysfunction or polycystic ovary. With this ailment, the following symptoms are observed:
- Menstrual irregularities. This may be the absence of critical days, delays, irregularities.
- Excess male sex hormones. This is what causes various cosmetic defects.
- Overweight. Half of the patients experience a sharp increase in weight by 10-15 kilograms, while remission is accompanied by weight loss.
- Pain in the ovary area. As a rule, a woman does not attach any importance to minor pains in the lower abdomen.
Secondly, you should visit an endocrinologist. This will help the young mother to make sure that her hormonal balance after childbirth has returned to normal. You need to pay attention to thyroid hormones. After all, it is precisely violations of such a plan that can be the cause of hair loss after childbirth. What to do and how to treat in this case, only the doctor will tell. In addition to this cosmetic symptom, a young mother may feel tiredness, weakness, tightness of the skin, mood swings, but not associate these phenomena with endocrine disorders.
Thirdly, a biochemical analysis must be done. In the blood, a shortage of important vitamins and minerals can be detected. After delivery, iron deficiency often occurs, so that the condition of the skin and hair suffers. Taking iron for prophylactic purposes does not make sense, since the right dosage should be determined by the doctor. You can not thoughtlessly follow advertising slogans that promise complete hair restoration in just a week of using some miraculous drug.
Vitamin deficiency
Deficiency of nutrients in a young mother can manifest itself not only in a lack of iron in the blood. Other vitamins and important trace elements may also be missed. This is especially likely, since a young mother who breastfeeds, usually excludes many foods from her diet, the menu becomes scarce and monotonous. However, it becomes impossible to take vitamin complexes.
What to do if hair falls out after childbirth? If the matter is a deficiency of nutrients in the body, only normalization of the diet, saturation of the diet with foods high in vitamins and minerals will help to eliminate the problem. If hair falls out very much after childbirth, what else to do to improve the condition? If there is no way to change the diet, physiotherapy and home masks will help a little, which will accelerate blood circulation in the hair follicles.
Low hemoglobin
This is the most common problem of women who, during the delivery process, have encountered complications or suffered significant loss of blood. After childbirth hair falls out and much? What if, in addition to this symptom, a hemoglobin deficiency is also detected?
In this case, the doctor will prescribe iron preparations, but only after a full medical examination of the body condition. It is strictly forbidden for a nursing mother to take any vitamin complexes on her own. This can cause severe allergies and other health problems in a small child.
Stress Loss
What to do if hair falls out after childbirth? The first time after the birth of a baby, a young mother (like the whole family) experiences extreme stress. Childbirth is also a serious test for the female body. But this does not end there. Stress at this time is a common occurrence. Hair loss can be triggered by experiences, worries, overstrain.
Why does hair fall after childbirth and what to do? If everything is due to stress, then you can take any sedative drugs only after the approval of a specialist. It is important to try to protect yourself from stress, relax more often and not be shy to ask relatives for help.
Hair fall out in bunches after childbirth? What to do? If the reason is precisely in stress, you need to walk more often in the fresh air, unless, of course, the child’s health and weather allow it, go in for sports (yoga at home is also suitable), and spend a little more time on yourself. It is important for the spouse and relatives of the young mother to understand that she needs at least a few hours alone with herself to recover.
Androgenetic alopecia
Does hair fall out after childbirth? Treatment methods will be useless if the cause is androgenetic alopecia. This syndrome after childbirth usually assumes a simply catastrophic nature. Unpleasant manifestations of this condition can be avoided only by constant planned treatment, which, most likely, will continue throughout life. This condition can be compared with thyroid disease. If your own hormones are not enough, then you have to take them all your life.
How to treat hair loss after childbirth? Home masks, self-massage and even the help of a trichologist are unlikely to be effective if the patient has andrological alopecia. An inherited syndrome requires ongoing treatment if it first appears before the age of 40 years. Be sure to consult a doctor in this case.
Meso- and ozone therapy
If hair falls out after childbirth, what should I do? Vitamins, masks, activating growth, self-massage or salon procedures? There are several methods to rectify the situation. Meso- and ozone therapy are quite effective in this case, which should be carried out only by a qualified trichologist - a specialist who treats hair.
During ozone therapy, tissues are saturated with oxygen, metabolic processes are activated. This is an injection procedure. During its implementation, active oxygen delivers to the dermal zone. Mesotherapy is also called a procedure, the main active components of which are drugs of both synthetic and natural (which is preferable) origin.
The cost of mesotherapy is about 2500 rubles and higher per course, ozone therapy - from 850 rubles. A visible effect appears after the third procedure, and in total a course of 4-10 procedures is required. So, if hair falls out after childbirth, what should I do? Reviews indicate that the procedures have a positive effect. True, many women also note that immediately after the end of the course, the problem again made itself felt.
Answers Dr. Komarovsky
If hair falls out after childbirth, what should I do? Komarovsky is the author of health books, a pediatrician, and a TV presenter. He enjoys authority in wide circles. The doctor advises women who have experienced excessive hair loss after delivery, the following:
- Change the diet. A young mother needs to eat right, you need to add products with safe vitamins to the menu.
- Properly care for your hair. It is advisable to cut your hair short, as long hair is a strong load on weakened follicles. You also need to choose the right hair cosmetics and abandon styling products (at least temporarily).
- Consult a psychologist. Postpartum depression (and indeed depression) in itself can cause hair loss, especially against a background of hormonal changes.
- Spend more time with the baby. It is better not to consider hair loss after childbirth, but to devote yourself to the baby. In addition, communication with his baby will help normalize the emotional state of a young mother.
Komarovsky advises contacting a trichologist if hair continues to fall out 6-8 months after the appearance of a new family member.
Home Therapies
Home remedies for hair treatment can only be used as adjunctive therapy. The most effective in this case is tincture of hot pepper, as well as mustard, onion juice. These components warm the scalp, improve blood circulation, and stimulate hair growth. These substances, however, are quite difficult to use. Onion juice, for example, will cause an unpleasant odor to accompany you for a few more days. But it's still worth a try.
General recommendations
What to do if hair falls out? There are several general recommendations that will allow you to control this process. So, to restore hair and prevent further loss, you need:
- To comb only dry locks: immediately after a shower it is impossible to comb hair. Only slightly moist but not wet is acceptable.
- Temporarily discard curling irons and hair straighteners. This will damage your hair even more.
- Do not braid tight hair or a ponytail, it is better to give preference to free hairstyles. You can also cut your hair to make it easier.
- Carefully choose a shampoo and hair balm. Means must contain silicone, biotin, match the type of hair.
- Rinse hair with decoctions of herbs. Suitable chamomile, nettle, burdock, henna.
True, you can’t change the situation with home-based procedures and the right choice of cosmetics. Be sure to consult a specialist if hair falls out after delivery. In some cases, only a doctor can advise ways and give recommendations. With full compliance, they can bring the condition of the hair back to normal. This applies to situations where the loss is caused by diseases, disorders in the body or a lack of vitamins. In other cases, home masks or salon procedures can help to restore healthy hair.