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Unfortunately, birth control pills may cause hair thinning or hair loss for some women who are sensitive to hormones or who have family histories of hair loss related to hormones. Other types of birth control methods that release hormones into the body, such as patches, vaginal rings, injections, and implants, may have the same effect.
Why Would Birth Control Pills Cause Hair Loss?
Your hair grows in cycles. First, there is a stage where your hair grows, then a stage where it stops growing, and then a stage where it rests. During the resting stage, it is normal to lose about 25 to 100 hairs per day.
The hormones that are in birth control pills and other hormone-delivery birth control devices can affect the timing of this hair growth cycle. They can make the growth stage stop sooner, and the resting stage start earlier than it normally would. This will cause a larger number of hairs to be shed.
Birth control pills and devices vary in the types and amounts of hormones they contain. Pills and devices with the highest levels of androgen will have the greatest potential effect on the hair growth cycle.
When Does the Hair Fall Out?
Hormone-related hair loss may happen while you are taking the pill or using another hormone-based device, or it may happen after you stop taking or using the hormones.
What Should I Do About Birth Control?
Not every woman will experience hair loss from the hormones in birth control pills and devices. However, if you are concerned, especially if you have a family history of hair loss, you should talk to your doctor. Birth control pills and devices that have more estrogen than progestin are lower on the androgen index and therefore less likely to cause hair loss. In some cases, you might also want to consider a non-hormonal form of birth control.
The Hair Transplant Solution
Hair transplants are not just for men. If you are a woman who has lost hair due to birth control use or from any other cause, hair transplants can help. For more information, contact Metropolitan Vein and Aesthetic Center at 914-295-2202. We would be glad to talk to you in our Queens, Manhattan, or Yonkers clinics. Our professionals use the latest techniques and are dedicated to giving you the look that you want. Give us a call today!
