Hair Loss After Pregnancy

Filed in archive Medical Issues , Post-Natal Issues on August 12, 2008

Photo courtesy of iStockphoto, Aldo Murillo

Many women revel in a full, gorgeous looking mane of hair during pregnancy, but sometime after birth are dismayed to experience a period of hair loss. If you notice unusually increased hair fall between the 3rd and 6th month after delivery, don't worry, this is but normal, and is due to hormonal changes. During pregnancy, the high levels of estrogen kept your hair from falling out, and now that your estrogen levels are getting back to normal, your hair goes back to its normal growth pattern, and those hair strands that were supposed to be off your head long ago now fall off all at once.

How long will it last? Will you get bald? Nah, although in my experience, my temples got a bit higher after I delivered my first child, it was more of a general thinning out rather than having patches of baldness. Hair does regrow almost at the same time, actually, resulting to what looks like baby hair on those areas (looked a bit strange, but at least they were growing back!).

To reduce pregnancy-related hair loss, make sure you eat a balanced diet and avoid hair treatments that may result to more damage or hair breakage. Stress can also result to hair loss, but with a newborn to take care of, dare I say "avoid stress, too"?