The average scalp contains about 100,000 strands of hair.

Hair loss is a natural process in everyone. On a daily basis, the average human being loses hair to the tune of 100 to 125 strands.

Hairs are lost everyday due to several factors. Hairs have an average lifespan of about 4-5 years, after which, they fall out. Also, the daily wear and tear that the hair experiences from various factors, such as brushing and blowdrying, can lead to hair loss.

However, if you appear to be losing more than 100 strands of hair every day, consider other causes of hair loss.

Heredity and age are major factors in hair loss. Other factors include hormones and the habit of pulling the hair out.

Any loss that is drastically more than this is a worrying phenomenon and could lead to premature baldness. There can be several factors causing hair loss. These could be dietary, environmental or even biological. Deficiencies of essential minerals like calcium and copper is known to result in hair loss.

After a few months, the resting hair falls and new hair begins to grow in its place. This growing phase lasts from 2 to 6 years wherein hair will gain approximately 1 centimeter a month and it is fairly normal to experience hair loss every day as part of this normal resting/growing cycle.

Some people experience excessive hair loss from a variety of causes, but there are natural remedies for hair loss available that can help prevent such a thing from happening.

Some of the herbal hair loss remedies include different techniques involving food, sunlight, etc which can be found easily and help fight male pattern baldness & thinning hair as well.

CAUSES OF HAIR LOSS

Hair loss is a worrying factor especially among men in their middle ages. This is a natural process and there is actually little you can do to stop or prevent hair loss. Various other factors can cause a sudden hair loss in men at a far earlier stage.

Environmental pollutants, extreme and harsh weather conditions and allergic reactions are a few among them. In yet other cases, anxiety and a highly stressful lifestyle too are common causes for hair loss among youth.

• Natural and unnatural grooming habits, for e.g. brushing or combing one’s hair too much
• Inadequate blood flowing to the scalp and deficiency of hormon
• Environmental factors such as the presence of pollutants in the air, harsh and extreme weather conditions or even over exposure to sunlight are definite causes of hair loss at an early age. Exposure to chlorinated water too takes its toll on the scalp and its ability to retain hair.
• In yet other cases, the cause could be a biological one such as an allergic reaction to a particular substance or the fallout of a prolonged illness like typhoid. Inadequate or inappropriate hair care and not maintaining hygiene of the scalp are other causes known to result in rapid hair loss.
• If your skin is naturally dry then you will be more prone to hair loss since your scalp too will lack in moisture and hence its ability to retain hair. A visit to a competent dermatologist will help you ascertain the exact cause of the excessive hair loss. Once you have received an accurate diagnosis, you can treat it appropriately and effectively.
• Of all the causes of hair loss, stress is the most easily minimized. Studies have shown that stress and hair loss are indeed correlated. Severe stress, both physically and emotionally, can lead to loss of hair. Stresses can be anything, such as employment problems, illnesses and pregnancy. Actually, approximately 45% of pregnant women have some hair loss due to stress.
• Shampoo if one is not using it correctly, for e.g. excessive use of it can strip hair of the nutrient it needs. Likewise, shampoo/conditioner combinations are also not a wise choice because when they are combined they lose their respective strengths and do not give the hair what they are supposed to.

HOW TO STOP HAIR LOSS

1) Use a good comb

Furthermore, avoid using a fine tooth combs on one’s hair. Generally these are used when the hair is wet, which is a time when hair is weakest and can be damaged much easier than if it were dry.

2) Massage Your Scalp

In fact, the most natural hair loss remedy simply involves getting enough blood flowing to the scalp. This can be done in a number of ways namely, massaging one’s scalp – a great way to relieve stress and deep breathing and lying with one’s feet propped up. A sturdy supply of blood to the scalp means natural and healthy hair and a decreasing chance of hair loss.

3) Have a Rich Diet in Vitamins and Iron

The next easiest way to stop hair loss naturally is to get the right vitamins that one need for one’s hair to grow. Many people do not realize that by changing their diet and certain vitamin and mineral intake can stop hair loss. Begin by altering diet to increase zinc intake as this is the mineral that is responsible for an oily scalp and helps grow strong hair follicles. Other vitamins and minerals that help are silica and heme iron as they can be absorbed very easily by our body.

Dietary deficiencies too have been identified as significant causes. Supplementing your daily diet with essential nutrients will go a long way in stopping the hair loss and also further increasing hair growth. This is due to the fact that a deficiency of vitamin, especially the B vitamins and minerals like copper has been found to result in rapid hair loss.

Ideally, you should consult a medical practitioner since different body systems react differently, and a detailed examination will help the doctor to decide on an ideal diet for you that will help to promote hair growth.

Meanwhile, you should focus on the intake of a diet rich in silica, calcium, copper and vitamins. This means increased intake of foods such as green leafy vegetables, dried fruits, milk, beet and fresh fruit juices like cherry juice.

The intake of iron in a diet also helps promote and retain hair growth. Soy foods, raisins and dates are excellent sources of iron. Coconut is probably one of the best among all the dietary remedies. Inclusion of both raw coconut and coconut oil in your food has been found to be extremely effective in preventing hair loss. You should also increase your daily intake of foods like whole grains, brown rice, oats and vegetables like carrots, pumpkin and beans. Ginger, onion, nuts and seeds, black beans are all excellent in helping you retain hair.

4) Avoid Processed Food

Ensure that you stay off all aerated drinks. Foods rich in refined sugars are also a strict no-no. This means avoiding pastries, cakes and other confectionery, ice cream and the like.

Foods rich in saturated fats can also prove quite harmful. Red meat, dairy products like cheese should be taken in a limited quantity. Ensure that your diet is protein rich by including foods like soybean, dried apricots, lentil, yeast and wheat germ. Yogurt and buttermilk too are extremely helpful as dietary remedies for hair loss. Additionally, drink a lot of water to keep your scalp always hydrated

5) Use Natural Hair Oils

Hair loss is essentially due to the scalp’s inability to hold on to hair which in itself is due to lack of moisture.

Hence, the first step is to keep your scalp moisturized. Use natural oils for this purpose.

Warm coconut oil applied on to the scalp and hair roots at night and left on overnight is an excellent home remedy for hair loss. To better results, you could massage the scalp twice a week using coconut milk.

Another excellent home remedy is castor oil. Gently massage the scalp and hair roots with castor oil, wrap your hair in a newspaper and leave it on overnight. Rinse off with cool water in the morning. This treatment, when repeated regularly, proves extremely effective in preventing hair loss.

Geranium leaves too are an excellent cure. Blanch the leaves in boiling water, strain and cool the liquid. Use it then to rinse your hair. Repeat this treatment everyday and in a few weeks you will see substantial results.

Massaging the scalp with olive oil too is an effective age old remedy to control hair loss.

6) Say Goodbye to Stress

There are basically two types of hair loss associated with stress, namely telogen effluvium and alopecia areata. Telogen effluvium is more common. With this type of hair loss, the approximately 70% of the individual’s hair enters the telogen phase, also known as the resting phase, of the hair’s growth cycle. The hair stays stops growing and falls out after about 2-3 months. This delay in the hair loss occasionally makes it difficult to determine the exact cause of the hair loss.

The hair usually grows back anywhere from 6 months to 9 months after.Alopecia areata is the more severe type of hair loss that has been associated with stress. Although it has not been fully proven, a certain percentage of alopecia areata patients have been shown to be associated with some major life stress prior to the development of the condition. Hair from anywhere in the body, such as the scalp, typically falls out in patches.

Some patients spontaneously re-grow the hair that they lost; others, however, remain bald for life.If you suddenly notice that you have begun losing more hair than you normally do, or if you notice that your hair is thinning out abnormally, it is best to consult a dermatologist. The patient may have to undergo certain examinations, such as thyroid function tests, to rule out other diseases as cause of the hair loss.

Overall, too much stress is bad for you hair. Not only does it cause loss of hair, it can also make your hair dull and dry. This is especially true when stress has already affected the other areas of your life, such as eating and sleeping.

Aside from these, stress is also detrimental to the body.If the reason for the hair loss is truly stress, stress relief is the treatment. Patients should learn and utilize various stress reduction techniques. Deep breathing exercises are important for the patient to employ every time he or she experiences any form of stress. Other coping techniques include meditation, massage, and aromatherapy, among others.