When you are diagnosed with an autoimmune disease, it can feel like everything changes. Some – like Crohn’s disease – absolutely require that you change the way you eat. Other autoimmune issues (like Lupus) can make it feel as though just getting out of bed is an accomplishment. Still others, like alopecia areata and psoriasis, come with the complication of not only losing faith in our bodies but also coming to terms with a physical feature that we would rather not have.
If that autoimmune disease is one of the autoimmune alopecia or some types of psoriasis, the disease coming with hair loss is not a big surprise. But with some, hair loss is a side effect that doctors often forget to mention.
What Autoimmune Diseases Can Cause Hair Loss?
Because autoimmune conditions often involve the body attacking itself, many of them can have hair loss as a side effect – including things people sometimes don’t think of as an autoimmune disorder, like diabetes. However, the primary autoimmune diseases associated with hair loss are alopecia areata, psoriasis, lupus, Hashimoto’s and Crohn’s disease. Any disorder of the thyroid (such as Hashimoto’s and Graves’ diseases) has the potential to cause thinning or brittle hair.
As GoodRx points out, some of these diseases affect only the scalp while others may see hair loss as a symptom of a more systemic issue. Alopecia areata causes round bald patches to appear on the scalp and other body parts that have hair while alopecia totalis is a more rare and severe form of the same disease that causes loss of all hair. Alopecia universalis is for alopecia that affects hair all over the body.
Can You Test for Autoimmune Alopecia?
Many people who have been diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder will tell you that the worst part is not knowing what is wrong with you. When you have a bunch of seemingly unrelated symptoms that no one can figure out or, worse yet, when doctors imply that it is all in your head… being able to put a name to what is wrong with you is a big deal. When you are losing your hair, it can be the same way.
Many of us just want an explanation. If alopecia areata or alopecia totalis is the cause, the doctors here at Precision Hair Restoration can help you figure that out. The most common diagnostic tool to prove if your hair loss is related to an autoimmune scalp condition is just to look at the pattern of hair loss. If that is not enough, a simple biopsy can confirm the presence of immune cells around the hair follicle.
That is the good news. The bad news is there is less ability to tell you why you got it. As one dermatologist explained to Yale Medicine, “Alopecia areata affects men and women and all races similarly,” says Yale Medicine dermatologist Brett King, MD. “It typically develops in the first 4 decades of life, but it can also arise later in life.”
There may be genetic factors or environmental triggers, but doctors just are not sure yet.
Can you Stop Autoimmune Hair Loss?
Maybe.
Like many forms of hair loss, autoimmune hair loss is caused by an underlying trigger – in this case, the body’s autoimmune system attacking the body. So, the key to stopping autoimmune hair loss is to stop the body from attacking itself.
In some cases, that may mean taking an immunosuppressant to tell your body’s defense mechanisms to chill out. But that comes with its own issues. Suppressing the immune system may make you more susceptible to other illnesses. And the medications used to suppress the autoimmune system may be harmful to your hair follicles in their own right.
With Crohn’s Disease the hair loss is thought to be related to the poor nutrition that is a side effect of the disease. Often with Crohn’s Disease your body has a hard time absorbing the nutrients you need to be healthy. When you cannot get the vitamins, protein, and nutrients your body needs, your hair is not the body’s top priority.
The key then to stopping autoimmune hair loss is to suppress the autoimmune condition or at least treat the symptoms it creates. For thyroid disorders, it means a regiment of thyroid hormones to replace what the body does not produce.
But you can also treat the symptoms of disease, specifically hair loss. Your doctors here at Precision Hair Restoration will work with you to find the right combination of treatments to address your specific type of hair loss.
Your Hair Doesn’t Have to Be Another Casualty of Your Autoimmune Disease
Whether you know why you are losing your hair or you need us to help you figure it out, Precision Hair Restoration understands how your health impacts your hair. We can help you understand it too. To get started, contact us today.
