The Majority of Hair I Lose in the Shower is From the Front and Top

Dr.Rassman, you have written that it is common to lose between 100-150 hairs per day. You have also stated that it is common to see a lot of these hairs when showering as you loosen dead hair follicles and hairs trapped with styling products. In a recent post (Oct.27th) an individual wrote in regarding his shed high shed count. You asked if he had noticed area specific shedding – ie. top of the head as opposed to the sides or back as this could be an indication of genetic balding. I wonder if you could elaborate on this for me.

I too have high shed counts and have for years now, I would say on average I lose between 60-80 hairs per shampoo session – over 100 if I go days without washing my hair. I also use a heavy, sticky texturing salon product and frequently wear a hat all day long if I haven’t kept up on the shower regimen. So whenever the alarm bells sound as I get the old hairy palms in the shower I chalk it up to those factors and try to accept my precious follicles washing down the drain. This is difficult because you’re never quite sure if this is “normal” or early signs of hair loss.

When you spoke of area specific loss this got me interested. I have noticed when shampooing that the vast majority of the hair that comes off on my hands originates from the front/top of my scalp. Assuming that shedding is within the normal range does this area specific loss still suggest pattern balding? Could there be other factors at play that would make hair loss appear greater in that area? Is it normal to shed more on top than the back/sides? Your insight on this issue would be greatly appreciated.

I concur, it can be difficult to determine whether you’re seeing just normal cycling or early signs of hair loss, but I really do not know the answer to your question. Your hair should shed evenly throughout your scalp, but it could be that you apply more of the sticky hair product to the top of your head for styling purposes and it traps the normal cycled hairs from falling. Couple that with not washing your hair for days,and you’ll notice the shed hairs will accumulate on your head. Then, of course, washing the hair will show the accumulation since the last wash. Wearing a hat will also increase the accumulation of shed hairs, which normally would blow away on their own.