Many things can cause hair loss—but most of us can blame one main factor. Or really, two.
Mom and Dad. The most common cause of hair loss has long been the same: genetics. But most of the doctors I spoke with agreed that both men and women are noticing signs of thinning earlier and earlier. They attribute this shift to factors like stress, diet, and excessive use of hair dyes and chemical processing. “There are more environmental factors playing a role now. We consume all these artificial foods, and they affect our bodies in meaningful ways, whether it’s increased aging or hair loss or the quality of the hairs themselves,” says Dhaval Bhanusali, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in New York City who specializes in hair loss.
