Covid Hair Loss: What You Need To Know
We’ve discussed some of the most common causes of hair loss in the past. In addition, some recovering Covid patients have reported issues with thinking or loss of hair as an unpleasant and unexpected side effect of the Covid infection. Although this side effect hasn’t been widely reported or discussed, some patients say they’ve lost at least a little hair, while others lost large chunks of their hair.
Studies show that as many as 67% of all patients experience hair loss after contracting Covid, with women being more frequently affected than men. Even celebrities like Khloe Kardashian have admitted to being affected by hair loss from Covid. In a recent Twitter chat, she spoke out, saying, “Life after #covid_19. No one tells you that hair loss is something that happens.”
Why Does Covid Cause Hair Loss?
Covid hair loss is linked with potentially critical illness, weight loss, and fever symptoms. It’s normal to lose as many as 100 hairs every day. However, that combo could trigger the onset of telogen effluvium (TE), which may cause 30% of your hair to fall out in patches or clumps for 6-9 months before it starts growing like usual again.
Here are a few possible reasons for telogen effluvium (TE).
Stress
A possible trigger could be stress. If you’ve ever been diagnosed with Covid, you know the amount of emotional and physical stress you face. Of course, you’re probably also dealing with the stress from quarantine, the pandemic conditions, and everything else that’s stressing you out these days. Those high-stress levels could cause your hair follicles to enter the resting phase, which could cause hair loss.
Of course, it might be even more stressful to see clumps of hair fall out, but you should work to minimize your stress levels as much as possible. If you keep stressing, it just makes your hair loss issues worse.
TE Mechanism
When your hair follicles enter the resting phase because of a stressful situation or illness like Covid, they stay that way for 2-3 months before falling out and leaving room for future potential growth. So while it’s a relief to know that hair loss is temporary, it’s still a great time to focus on how to support the health and growth of your hair with Luster Products that work for your natural hair.
