Medication is meant to overcome a wide range of health conditions, but it can sometimes produce adverse effects that are not anticipated. There are medicines that might cause hair growth problems, hair color or texture alterations, or even hair loss.
Drug-induced hair loss, like all forms of hair loss, can significantly impact one’s sense of self-worth. The results can be reversed in many cases by stopping the medications.
How Medications Alter the Scalp Hair Growth Cycle
Drugs disrupt the regular cycle of scalp hair growth and lead to hair loss of varying extents. The hair develops during the anagen phase, which can last anywhere from two to seven years. The hair is dormant for three months during the telogen period. Once the telogen phase ends, new hair grows in its place.
Types of Hair Loss
Based on their chemistry and effects on scalp health, there are two significant types of hair loss in females.
Telogen Effluvium
The most common side effect of hair loss medications can cause telogen effluvium. After taking medicine for 2 to 4 months, it is common to begin experiencing side effects. Hair follicles in this disorder enter their resting phase (telogen) too early, resulting in premature shedding. Patients with telogen effluvium typically lose 30-70% more hair per day than the average range of 100-150 strands.
Anagen Effluvium
If you’re experiencing hair loss when it’s in its active growth phase, you have anagen effluvium. The matrix cells that form new hairs cannot regularly divide due to this condition. In most cases, hair loss begins between a few days to a few weeks following the use of the drug.
Chemotherapy patients are more likely to experience this side effect, which can be severe enough to cause them to lose all of their hair, eyebrows, eyelashes, and other body hair. How much hair you lose from drug-induced hair loss depends on the type and amount of medication you’re taking and your tolerance to that medication.
Medications That Cause Hair Loss
As mentioned in the opening paragraph, medications are used to treat illnesses, but their chemical structure goes beyond that function, known as side effects. Hair loss is one of the significant side effects, and the following drugs can induce that. In case of severe loss, the last resort would be getting one of the best wigs for women out there.
Medications containing Vitamin A
Vitamin A and drugs derived from it can lead to hair loss if used in high dosages or in combination with other follicle-growth disturbing drugs.
Acne treatments
If you’re taking an acne medicine that contains vitamin A, such as Accutane or Retin-A, your hair may fall out. You may wish to go through other options with your dermatologist because of the potential for significant side effects.
Wide range of antibiotics
Antibiotics on prescription might temporarily thin hair. Vitamin B deficiency and hemoglobin depletion might affect hair growth while using antibiotics.
Anemia can cause hair loss if your hemoglobin levels are too low. Maintaining healthy hair requires adequate levels of vitamin B.
Medications to treat fungal infections
Some people’s hair loss has been connected to antifungal drugs prescribed for fungal infections. In the past, alopecia has been linked to the antifungal medicine, voriconazole.
Anticoagulants
Heparin and warfarin, two anticoagulants, are prescribed to some patients to thin their blood and reduce their risk of blood clots and other health problems (like those with heart conditions). Hair loss can begin as soon as three months after starting these drugs in some patients.
Blood pressure treatment
A number of beta blockers, including the following, can lead to hair loss:
- Methotrexate (Lopressor)
- Blocadren, the brand name for the generic version of the drug, contains the active ingredient timolol (Inderal and Inderal LA)
- Atenolol (Tenormin) and Nadolol (Corgard)
- Hair loss is another side effect of ACE inhibitors – Enalapril (Vasotec), Prinivil, Zestril and Captopril (Capoten) to name but a few
Weight loss drugs
Although phentermine is known to cause hair loss, the side effect is rarely mentioned. Due to a lack of nutrients or other health issues, dieters who lose their hair are more likely to suffer from hair loss. Even though some patients who take weight reduction medicines have noticed hair loss, the problem may be caused by hunger.
Chemotherapy
Anagen effluvium can be caused by chemotherapy medicines used to treat cancer and autoimmune disease. Eyelashes, brows, and body hair are all affected by this thinning.
These medications are intended to kill cancer cells that multiply rapidly in the body, but they also attack and kill other rapidly growing cells in the body, such as the roots of your hair. After the treatments are concluded, regrowth will take place.
Antidepressants and mood elevators
There is a risk of hair loss in persons taking antidepressants and mood stabilizers. There are a number of medications that might cause this, including:
- Paroxetine hydrochloride
- Sertraline
- Protriptyline (Vivactil)
- Amitriptyline (Elavil)
- Fluoxetine (Prozac)
What to Do for Acute Hair Loss
Women value their hair so much and go to extensive lengths to keep it healthy. Even at the cosmetic end, they want their hair to look just perfect. Medication is vital to treat issues, but often the side effect is the loss of those precious locks.
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