That mentioned, any styling ritual that consists of intense warmth and harsh chemical compounds in your scalp and hair—utilizing curling and flat irons, getting frequent perms, chemical straightening procedures, or stress-free therapies—can harm the follicle and, worst-case state of affairs, trigger everlasting hair loss.
What you’ll most likely discover
Trichorrhexis nodosa often entails a mix of hair loss and adjustments in texture: Your hair may look frayed, with small bead-like nodes alongside the strands, and really feel brittle to the contact.10 “You may additionally discover elevated breakage and shorter, uneven strands,” Dr. Mitchell says. “In additional extreme circumstances, there is likely to be patches of thinning or an total discount in hair density.”
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5. Extreme dandruff
There’s dandruff after which there’s its extra extreme cousin, seborrheic dermatitis: A pesky pores and skin situation characterised by a rash (that will look darker, lighter, or redder than the encircling pores and skin), in addition to itchy and flaky patches that arrange store in spots with a variety of oil glands, together with your scalp. “It’s pushed by an inflammatory response towards organisms that dwell on our scalp—particularly Malassezia yeast colonies,” Dr. Lo Sicco says.11
These flaky patches, mixed with the oil that’s produced by the scalp, can clog your follicles, in the end impairing the hair’s nutrient provide and weakening its construction (to not point out the next harm—and shedding—that may occur once you continuously scratch your head).12 In the meantime, the inflammatory response disrupts the conventional hair progress cycle and may set off telogen effluvium, Dr. Mitchell explains, the place, once more, your hair follicles go on strike for an prolonged interval, solely to later shed in bulk.
What you’ll most likely discover
Except for the entire infected scalp factor, such a hair loss isn’t often related to dramatic balding, however with a gradual discount in hair density—notably within the type of elevated shedding wherever the seborrheic dermatitis is supplying you with essentially the most hassle. “The hair itself may additionally grow to be finer and extra fragile as a result of inflammatory processes disrupting the expansion cycle,” Dr. Mitchell says.
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6. Infected hair follicles
Folliculitis is a pores and skin situation that strikes when hair follicles grow to be infected—say, from bodily irritation (shaving, traction, wigs) or an an infection (bacterial, fungal)—which compromises the integrity of the follicles.13
There are two most important forms of folliculitis: superficial and deep. The previous entails solely a part of the hair follicle and can possible heal inside a couple of days, whereas the latter consumes your entire follicle and tends to be extra extreme and long-lasting.
“Because the follicle turns into infected, harm can occur to the encircling tissues that disrupt the conventional hair progress cycle,” Dr. Mitchell says. “In extreme circumstances, the an infection might result in scarring, inflicting everlasting hair loss.”
What you’ll most likely discover
The actual sort of folliculitis you expertise will depend upon the underlying trigger (friction or an infection), however “it sometimes presents as small acne-like bumps or pustules surrounding the affected hair follicles,” Dr. Mitchell says. “These could also be itchy, tender, or painful, and in some circumstances type clusters that resemble a rash.” Because the situation progresses, you may begin noticing the encircling pores and skin changing into irritated and darker, lighter, or redder too.