Worried about hairloss? You might not have to be.

[Fia]

Up to a 100 strands a day is considered quite normal to lose for anyone. But - the sheer volume of those strands will look quite different if your hair is shoulder length and if it's close to classic. The longer your hair becomes, the larger the clump of shed hairs will look. It will look as if you're suddenly shedding a lot more as you grow longer, which in most instances is not the case. So before thinking you're losing all of that precious hair you've been growing out, the most likely explanation is that it's just a case of the shed strands being longer and thus visually look like it's a lot more than before.

[Moonfall]

Thank you for mentioning this, I never really thought about it!

[SheWhoCariesSun]

Thank you for saving me from a future panic attack! :)

[Carolyn]

Yes. If you really want to check your shed count, take that wad of hair out of your brush and out of your shower drain and separate each hair and count them. i doubt it will be as many as you think. i do this periodically just for fun :gabigrin

[lapushka]

It was important to mention.

Also, shedding is *normal*. There is no such thing as "no shedding". We all shed, all the time, it's just part of growing hair.

[saddamna]

Thanks Fia.You opened my eys. I now belive that my shedding is not as bad as I thought

[Reyesuela]

If you're shedding 100 hairs a day CONTINUOUSLY, that is not normal. We don't lose hairs at a steady rate, though. We lose more in late summer/early fall than other seasons. Women often lose more hair during part of their cycles. So hair loss at equilibrium varies. It's normal to occasionally lose some larger quantities of hair.

Based on average Caucasian hair strand quantity and average terminal length for a Caucasian woman, you should be concerned if your average shed is over 47 strands a day. (For male Caucasians, more than 78, for sure.). If you've already lost a lot of your hair, much smaller average sheds can mean serious hair loss. I would be seriously concerned with a shed that lasts longer than 3 months. If you've been able to grow your hair to your knees or longer and you don't have faster than normal growth, then you would have even lower average shed.

Hairball size is a terrible metric. The longer your hair, the bigger the ball. If you used to have chin-length hair and you're now at waist, your hairballs will be 4-5 times the size with the same hairs lost!

[Reyesuela]

That is, a heavy shed, not a normal shed. I can't edit yet!

[lucid]

If you're suspecting excess shedding or hairloss, I recommend keeping your hair braided for 24-48 hours, and counting every hair that falls off when loosening the braid and when brushing. It gives an accurate way of keeping track of the shedding. When I did it I typically counted morning and evening, and braided it again immediately after counting.

[Reyesuela]

If you're suspecting excess shedding or hairloss, I recommend keeping your hair braided for 24-48 hours, and counting every hair that falls off when loosening the braid and when brushing. It gives an accurate way of keeping track of the shedding. When I did it I typically counted morning and evening, and braided it again immediately after counting.

It also helps if you plan ahead and have a baseline for 1-2 months.

Not that I did that. But it would have really helped. Then I wouldn't have been in denial-land for so long.