Hair loss is a common problem among adults, male and female. It is not normally a problem that teens have to worry about. There are, however, some actions and conditions that can cause teens to begin losing their hair prematurely. Here, we will take a look at some of the causes of premature (teen) hair loss.

Possibly the most common cause of hair loss among teens is a poor diet. Deficiencies in certain vitamins and minerals can result in the hair follicles not receiving the nutrition they need in order to promote healthy hair growth. Teens who suffer from eating disorders, usually girls, are especially prone to this type of hair loss. The physical stress of the disorder combined with the emotional stress that leads to it or results from it can result in an acceleration of the problem.

Teens are very conscious of their appearance as they begin to feel attraction toward the opposite sex and want to be noticed by members of the opposite sex. Often, teens will use chemicals to change the color of their hair or to give it more curl than it naturally has. These chemical treatments have the potential to damage the hair and make it fall out. In addition, some hair styles put excessive stress on the hair roots and cause them to turn loose from the scalp. Corn rows, tight braids, ponytails pulled too tightly, and other hair styles can produce this type of stress and result in hair loss.

Genetics can also play a role in premature hair loss. Male pattern baldness among teens is rare, but not nonexistent. There are some young men, and young women too, with a genetic propensity for losing their hair at an early age. Such cases can also lead to excess stress which can complicate the problem and accelerate the hair loss.

One of the more common causes of teen hair loss is the chemical changes the body is going through at the time. Adolescence is a difficult time in a person’s life. Hormones are in a state of constant flux that can become over balanced at times and lead to temporary hair loss. This condition is normally temporary and rights itself within a few months.

Just as with adults, teens can lose their hair as a result of disease. Juvenile diabetes is one of the more common ailments that is rising in occurrences and often results in hair loss. Other diseases include hypothyroidism and fungal infections of the scalp. Treating the disease usually corrects the hair loss as well.

Some medications can cause premature hair loss as well. Chemotherapy used to treat cancer is probably the best known of medications that causes hair loss in almost all persons receiving it. Others include oral contraceptives taken by females.

One cause of premature hair loss that is probably more common among teens than among adults is trichotillomania. This is actually a behavior disorder rather than a disease or other type problem. The teen tends to pull or twist the hair during periods of stress or intense concentration that loosens the hair and causes it to fall out. In most cases, the teen does not even realize he/she is doing this unless it is pointed out to him/her.

Hair loss is much more of a problem for adults than it is for teens. Unfortunately, most of the same things that cause hair loss in adults can turn up in teens from time to time. While these occurrences are far more rare, they are also far more devastating to teens because this is a time of their lives when they have enough other stresses without having to worry about losing their hair as well.