Category Archives: Hair Loss in the News

It is very common to see men of all ages losing their hair and it has become an accepted part of society that in some stage in life, men are going to lose their hair. However, it is not common to see women who are suffering with hair loss. However, you might be surprised to hear that there are more women suffering with hair loss than you first thought.

More and more women are suffering with hair loss as a result of cancer treatment, conditions such as alopecia and telogen effluvium. In order to find out why they are losing their hair, women do tend to seek medical help in order to ensure that there isn’t anything more seriously wrong that could have resulted in their hair loss.

A woman that you might have seen recently in the press is Heather Fisher. Fisher, who plays on the England women’s rugby union team, has suffered from a severe form of alopecia for a number of years however she has continued to perform at her best for her country in defiance of her condition. Heather has been told that her condition relates to stress, however this has not affected her game and continue to go from strength to strength.

Dr Larry Shapiro, who has released a new book regarding hair loss, says that Tiger Woods’ wife, Elin Nordegren, is far from being the only one suffering hair loss as a result of stress. He says that hair loss has many causes and heightened stress is one of the most common.

The hair transplant surgeon said:

“Over the last few decades of observing and talking to thousands of patients, I became increasingly suspicious of certain supplements, lifestyle factors and hormones that contributed to their hair loss.”

Shapiro has carried out his own studies to try and identify some of the causes of hair loss. He believes that many supplements create hormonal imbalances that can lead to it happening. He has also looked at the impact of stress.

Talking of Nordegren, Shapiro says:

“Here you have a perfectly healthy, young woman who has been under a great deal of stress. Her body reacted by creating a hormonal imbalance that triggered insomnia, weight loss and hair loss. The good news is that anyone experiencing this type of hair loss can reverse their situation rather quickly if they provide the nutrients the body needs to stimulate the follicles to grow new hair and balance the body’s hormonal levels out.”

One of the most devastating side effects of chemotherapy for women is hair loss, as it can negatively impact self-esteem and confidence. Whilst the sufferer will be relieved to be free of cancer, the treatment can have more long-lasting effects.

Speaking to Wales Online this week was Cathy Fisher, a breast cancer survivor who lost all of her hair during chemotherapy treatment. She has explained her battle with hair loss – marking it as the worst part of her illness – and the effect it has had on her life.

Cathy, now 45, started to lose her hair during her third course of chemotherapy. She describes what happened:

“I woke up one morning feeling like death and I looked at the pillow and there was my hair. It was devastating.”

Cathy took the bold step of cutting all of her hair, but this upsetting experience made her feel even worse. She says that she no longer felt attractive in her partner’s eyes.

Describing how she felt when the hair started to grow back, Cathy says:

“I couldn’t wear a scarf over my head or a wig because it was too hot so I was walking around with this awful hair until it grew to a certain length and I became socially acceptable again.”

For women like Cathy who lost their hair during chemotherapy, there are now more advanced solutions available to help. You could try hair replacement treatment, or one of the increasingly realistic human hair wigs now being made.

Stress can cause all sorts of changes in the body, both mental and physical. The stress of a messy divorce –or other difficult emotional times such as a death in the family – can cause everything from weight loss and insomnia to hair loss.

This is what happened to former model Elin Nordegren, who this week officially finalised her divorced from famous golfing husband Tiger Woods. Speaking to People Magazine in her one and only interview, Nordegren spoke of the emotional turmoil caused by the revelations of Woods’ nineteen suspected affairs, and of the stresses of the divorce proceedings.

Speaking of her experiences, Nordegren said:

“It’s hard to think you have this life, and then all of a sudden — was it a lie? You’re struggling because it wasn’t real. But I survived. It was hard, but it didn’t kill me.”

In the days before the divorce was finalised, however, Nordegren says that her trademark long, blonde hair began to fall out due to the stress of it all. Not only was her marriage shattered, but her self-esteem and confidence in her appearance was under threat as well.

For women, the loss of hair can be a devastating experience. It undermines confidence, self-esteem and can interfere with the way you live your life. There are solutions available though – such as hair replacement treatment or human hair wigs – so that you don’t have to live under the shadow of hair loss.

Three million people in Britain are currently affected by alopecia but for some reason, the condition still has a stigma attached to it. This is especially the case for women and children, as hair loss is more commonly seen in men.

This is why the Bebold Support Group and Alopecia Awareness teamed up to open the UK’s first alopecia camp, which has now been heralded a success after its July 30th open day. Alopecia sufferers from all over the country were invited to visit the camp for a week and spend time with others who have the same condition.

The psychological effects of sudden hair loss can be devastating, which is why alopecia sufferers need the kind of support and understanding offered at the Scarborough camp.

Michelle Chapman, a childhood alopecia sufferer and member of Alopecia Awareness, has spoken of her own experiences and what the camp means to alopecia sufferers and their families. She said:

“If I’d had the chance to meet others living with hair loss, it would have made a huge positive difference to me and my family. Instead, I felt as if I was the only bald girl in the world.

“These children and adults will have the chance to spend time with people who truly understand and never feel as alone and embarrassed as I did.”

Gail Porter, the woman who is almost single-handedly responsible for raising public awareness of female hair loss has been honoured this week with an award for her charity work.

As most people know, Gail, a former TV presenter famed for her long, blonde locks, started losing her hair in 2005 when filming in the US. She was diagnosed with alopecia areata, which she believes was triggered by the stress of a divorce from then-husband Dan Hipgrave in late 2004.

Gail lost all of her hair, but refused to hide her condition with hats or wigs. She wanted to raise awareness of female hair loss and subsequently became an ambassador for the Little Princess Trust, a charity which supplies human hair wigs to children who have lost their hair after cancer treatment.

The former Live and Kicking presenter is also involved with numerous other charity projects such as breast cancer charity Pretty in Pink, the Royal National Institute for the Blind, Marie Curie Cancer Care and anti-poverty organisation Action Aid.

For all of her inspirational work and personal triumphs, Gail Porter has been nominated for the Entertainer of the Year award at the 2010 Bighearted Scotland Awards. The event will be held in September.