Hair Loss: Causes, Treatments, and Prevention

Losing hair at a young age can cause your self-esteem to take a hit, making you devastated and demoralised. Hair loss is a problem that affects both men and women. 

However, hair loss generally affects women more than men because society is more accepting of men with little or no hair. Hair loss is widely regarded as an aesthetic issue rather than a medical one. This means that seeking treatment is not necessary, but an optional one.

In the U.S. alone, men represent about 40 percent of the entire population of hair loss sufferers in the world. However, research is lagging behind for females because of the embarrassment, fear, and shame will keep them from sharing their symptoms.

We speak to Dr. Siew Tuck Wah, Medical Director of Radium Medical Aesthetics, as he shares with us the main causes of hair loss, treatments available and some simple ways we can prevent hair loss. 

Common causes of hair loss

Our hair is in a constant cycle of growth, rest, and renewal. The hairs on our head and shed at different rates, so that they don’t shed all at once. Hair loss occurs when the growth phase shortens, and the resting phase becomes longer. Eventually, the hairs that are growing become so fine and short that they are hardly visible to the naked eye.

MALE PATTERN BALDNESS Also known as androgenetic alopecia, hair is lost in a well-defined pattern that begins from the temples. Over time, the hairline recedes to form a “M” shape. In severe cases, hair will also thin at the crown, progressing to be partially or completely bald.

FEMALE PATTEN BALDNESS Fortunately, hair loss in women don't follow the same way as men do. Female pattern baldness is typically diffused all over the head. Androgenetic alopecia in women rarely lead to loss of hairline and complete baldness.

Other than male or female pattern baldness, telogen effluvium is another form of hair loss that commonly affects people due to external factors such as stress, child birth, malnutrition, or post-surgery. A sudden change in lifestyle can suddenly cause the hair to be pushed to the shedding phase. 

According to Dr. Siew, telogen effluvium affects more women than men because it is usually linked to pregnancy and child birth. Hair loss due to telogen effluvium is likely due to iron deficiency, hormonal changes and changes in medication – all of which likely affect more women than men.

Is there a cure for hair loss?

The short answer is ‘no’. Hair loss caused by hereditary factors and age is difficult to treat.

Depending on the cause of hair loss and how advanced the hair loss is, it is possible to stimulate partial regrowth, but it is challenging to achieve full regrowth.

There are many supplements and topical applications that promise to reduce hair fall and improve hair regrowth, there is no strong evidence that these treatments work.

There are, however, some medical treatments that can slow down or stimulate hair regrowth.

TOPICAL TREATMENT The most common topical treatment for stimulating hair regrowth is minoxidil. It has been prescribed by doctors since 19070s and it is now available without a prescription. Side effects include scalp dryness and itching.

LED RED LIGHT One of the reasons why hair fall is due to the lack of nutrients caused by the lack of blood circulation in the scalp. LED red light has been shown to encourage blood flow by penetrating LED light deep into the hair follicles. With more nutrients delivered to the scalp, it will produce thicker, stronger hair.

LASER TREATMENT Topical applications are not effective because of the skin barrier. Like how the skin keeps pollutants and other toxins out of your body, the skin acts as a barrier to keep the nutrients of the topical treatments too. LASEMD is a unique laser treatment for scalp that produces micro-channels in the scalp so that the hair regrowth products can penetrate better to exert maximal effect.

INJECTABLES For people who might have heard of Rejuran Healer before would know that it is known as a ‘miracle healer’ because of its capability in restoring balance to troubled skin and reverse signs of aging skin. PDRN, an active ingredient in Rejuran Healer, is an intense skin healing treatment that repairs and rejuvenates the skin from the inside. Doctors are using PDRN injection for scalp treatment as it strengthens the scalp and provide an ideal foundation for thicker, strong hair to grow. 

Radium Medical Aesthetics is an aesthetic clinic in Singapore that offers a wide range of customized hair loss treatment and scalp treatment to yield long-term hair growth and scalp repair benefits.