Before considering any type of hair restoration solutions, it’s critical to find out what is causing your hair loss. Prescription medication is extremely prevalent in our society today, and most people aren’t aware that the medication they take may be responsible for their hair loss.
The good news is that once you’ve determined the cause of hair loss the condition can be reversed. The hair will most likely regrow once you’ve stopped taking the prescription medication. The health of your hair and scalp also are dependent on how healthy you are, so any modifications to drugs used to treat a health condition have to be worked out with a doctor or healthcare professional.
How Does Prescription Medication Cause Hair Loss?
Medications induce hair loss in numerous ways. Some drugs interrupt the hair’s normal growth cycle. Your hair has two levels of growth. The anagen phase, which lasts for three to four years, is when the hair strand is actively growing. Throughout the telogen phase, which lasts for about three months, the hair “rests” and there may be no growth. Then your hair falls out and a new hair strand grows in place of it.
The kind of hair loss referred to as telogen effluvium takes place when the drugs modify the growth cycle and the hair enters the telogen phase too early. This type of hair loss usually occurs several months after you’ve taken the medication. Other prescription medications induce another form of hair loss known as anagen effluvium. The drugs interfere with hair production throughout the growth phase, and hair loss is immediate. Anagen effluvium can also be responsible for the loss of body hair.
Hair loss and thinning hair aren’t the only side effects that prescription drugs can have on your hair. Some medication will change the texture and color of your hair.
Medications that are Known to Cause Hair Loss:
Acne medicine that contains vitamin A
Amphetamines
Antibiotics
Anticonvulsants and medicine that treats epilepsy
Antifungal drugs
Anti-inflammatories
Arthritis drugs
Antidepressants and different psychotropic medications
Drugs containing hormones like birth control
Blood pressure medications like BETA blockers, diuretics and ACE inhibitors
Blood thinners or anticoagulants
Chemotherapy
Cholesterol medications
Parkinson’s disease medication
Steroids (including anabolic steroids and prednisone)
Thyroid drugs
Weight loss pills
If you’re suffering from hair loss due to your medication, at Custom Hair Tampa Bay, we offer high-quality medical wigs and hair systems which can alleviate the added stress of patients worrying about their appearance due to hair loss. To schedule a free consultation at one of our locations click here.
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Sources:
http://www.hairsentinel.com/medications-that-cause-hair-loss.html