Increased shedding
More hair coming out than you are used to. The most common reason people first look for help, and the symptom with the widest range of explanations.
01 What it is
Everyone sheds hair. Commonly quoted figures put it in the region of 50 to 100 hairs a day, but that number is far less useful than it sounds. It varies with hair length, density, washing frequency and how carefully you are looking.
What matters is change: more than usual, for you, sustained over weeks. And the most important question is whether shedding is accompanied by a loss of density, because heavy shedding with stable density behaves very differently from shedding with visible thinning.
02 Recognition
What people usually notice
- Noticeably more hair in the shower, on the pillow or in the brush.
- Hairs with a small pale bulb at the root, the sign of a shed rather than broken hair.
- Shedding that spikes on wash days, which is normal and usually just accumulation.
- Anxiety about washing or brushing, and washing less as a result.
- Counting. Almost everyone does it and almost nobody admits it.
03 Contributors
What may contribute
Grouped by how well supported each one is. That distinction matters more than the list itself.
Well established
- Telogen effluvium from illness, childbirth, surgery, weight loss or medication.
- Iron deficiency and thyroid dysfunction.
- Seasonal variation, which is real but modest.
- Normal accumulation between washes, mistaken for increased loss.
Commonly associated
- Sustained stress and sleep disruption.
- Under-eating or restrictive dieting.
- Recovery from viral illness.
- An underlying pattern hair loss made visible by an episode of shedding.
Debated or unsupported
- Blaming a new shampoo for shedding that began within days. The hair cycle does not work that quickly.
- Single-supplement fixes offered without any assessment.
04 Uncertainty
What we don’t know
- Where the boundary between normal and excessive lies for a given individual. There is no reliable objective threshold.
- Why some people with clear triggers shed heavily and others do not.
Worth doing first
When to bring a doctor in
- If shedding has continued for more than six months.
- For blood work: iron studies including ferritin, thyroid function and a full blood count.
- If there are other symptoms: fatigue, weight change, changes to periods.
- If you can see patches, or if the scalp is sore, scaly or inflamed.
- If it began after a new medication. Do not stop it; do ask about it.
If any of this applies, see a doctor first. It’s the quickest way to an answer. Bring what they tell you back to me and we’ll work out what it means for you.
05 Consultation
What a consultation can explore
- Whether this is shedding, breakage, or a change in density. They are frequently confused.
- A detailed reconstruction of the months before it began.
- Medications, supplements and start dates.
- Nutrition in practical detail.
- Existing blood results and what else is worth asking for.
- A way of tracking it that is objective, so you are not relying on how bad it looked this morning.
The first useful thing is almost always to establish what kind of hair loss this is. A great deal of wasted money follows from skipping that step.
What happens next
Book
Online, wherever you are. You’ll receive a questionnaire and a prep sheet, and I read both before we meet.
We look at it properly
History, assessment, findings, and time for the questions you came with.
You get it in writing
A summary you can act on, sit with, or hand to your doctor.
This page describes what people commonly experience. Reading it isn’t the same as having someone look at your situation properly, and it can’t tell you which of these you have. That’s what the consultation is for.
Sources and further reading
- DermNet Telogen effluvium
- DermNet Hair loss: an overview
- NHS Hair loss
- NHS Iron deficiency anaemia
Written by Brigita Deveikaite, certified trichologist (VTCT Skills (ITEC) Level 4 Certificate in Trichology for Hairdressers, Trichocare). Last reviewed . This page is educational and is not a diagnosis.