Does oily hair cause more fall?

The other day, I received an email asking, “I’ve noticed my hair is a lot oilier lately. Could that be why I’m losing more hair? Or is it possible that the hair loss has made my hair oilier?” I’ve noticed a correlation between my hair being oilier and losing more hair.” In reality, there are many reasons why this may be occurring. I will talk about them in the next article.

Oily hair, androgens and hair loss/shedding: The most obvious answer here is that oily hair is the result of excess sebum, DHT, or androgens. This could be the result of genetics finally rearing its ugly head. It could also be the result of a medical problem that causes excess androgen production. Examples of this are polycystic ovary syndrome, some endocrine disorders, or excess cortisol (in both men and women) or testosterone (in women). Many people with genetic shedding, hair loss, or thinning have androgen sensitivity. It is not necessarily that they produce more of these substances than normal. It is that they are too sensitive to them, so even a little can cause more losses or molting.

Sometimes drugs can cause androgenic responses. An example would be if you changed birth control pills and the new ones contain more progesterone (this can cause an androgenic effect in some). You can have the same reactions at certain times of the month (for women). As you get closer to your period, you sometimes have more breakouts or oil on your face and hair, since you have to deal with more progesterone.

Inflammation due to shedding and hair loss: Another is that your scalp (and therefore your hair) is reacting to inflammation which is likely the result of too many hairs entering the resting phase at the same time. This happens when you are shedding a lot (telogen effluvium). The scalp may become sore, red, pink, or angry looking. As a result, your body produces more oils and sebum in an attempt to soothe your scalp or counter inflammation. Of course this can sometimes make the problem worse if you are sensitive to these things as I have described.

Are your hair strands getting thinner?: Sometimes I have people tell me that their hair is becoming limp and oilier when what is really happening is that they have a bit of hair miniaturization (where their hair starts to grow thinner and finer, usually due to AGA) and these Finer, limp hair can’t handle the same amount of natural oils that were always there because the strands are smaller, thinner and in diameter and are becoming saturated and weighed down. In this case, I often tell people to use their conditioner before their shampoo, and to be careful using heavy products. You should also shampoo your hair regularly to prevent fine hair from becoming limp and sticking to your head and to keep your scalp healthy.

Do you avoid washing your hair for fear of losing more?: Speaking of washing regularly, I find that it is very common when you are experiencing hair loss or hair loss to think about washing your hair less frequently. It might seem logical that when you’re losing tons of hair every time you wash it, you think it might be a good idea to wash less. This can backfire because it can make a bad situation worse.

You want to keep your scalp clean and your hair follicles clear to encourage healthy, thick growth. The appearance of your hair depends on both how much it grows out and how much it grows back. You will damage your new growth if you do not keep your scalp as clean as it should be. And, the hairs that come out when you shampoo were going to come out soon enough anyway and there’s nothing you can do to prevent them from coming out once it’s in the resting phase. (It’s in the phase for a few weeks before it really comes off.) So while you may think you’re avoiding loss by skipping a shampoo or two, you could be doing more damage in the long run than you think.