Shedding 101 | What’s Normal, Causes, How to Reduce Shedding

This post is sponsored by Curlsmith. All opinions are my own. Affiliate links are included.

Medical Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional. The information shared is for educational purposes and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice. Consult with your health care provider.

As someone with curly, wavy, or textured hair, I’m sure you have experienced a lot of shedding and hair fall at some point. How can you tell what is normal shedding? Why does naturally curly hair seem to shed more? In this post, we will discuss all the common causes of shedding and ways to reduce shedding.

I’ve also been testing the Curlsmith Hair Growth Starter Kit, so I’m sharing my initial thoughts and results. After the full 3 months, I will do an updated video and post sharing my final results.

Shedding vs. Hair Loss vs. Breakage

Shedding
Shedding is natural hair fall. The average person loses anywhere from 50-150 hairs per day. It’s common to shed more in the summer months compared to winter.

Why does curly hair seem to shed more? It may seem that curly hair sheds more, but the texture of curls naturally traps hairs that fall throughout the day. The hairs then accumulate within the hair and when you go to brush or wash your hair, you’ll see it all at once. We also tend or wash and brush our hair less than someone with straight hair, so the loose hairs accumulate. If you were to lose 100 hairs a day, and wash your hair every 5 days, that could be 500 hairs you’re seeing at once.

The 3 Phases Hair Growth Stage

1. Anagen Phase: The active growth phase where a new hair comes out and pushes the old hair out. Hair grows for 2-6 years. Some people have a shorter active phase and struggle to grow hair past a certain length.
2. Catagen Phase: The transitional stage. About 3% of our hair is in this stage at any time. Lasts 2-3 weeks. Growth stops and the hair attaches to the root.
3. Telogen Phase: The resting phase. About 6-8% of our hair is in this phase. Lasts for about 100 days for hair on the scalp. Telogen effluvium is a condition when more hairs than normal enter the shedding (telogen) phase of the hair growth lifecycle at the same time.

Hair Loss
Hair loss is when the hair sheds naturally but fails to grow back, resulting in bald spots or reducing hairline.

Breakage
Breakage is when hair snaps at the shaft, which can make the hair appear shorter and take longer to grow. There are many causes of breakage that I list in detail here.

How can you tell if your shedding is not normal?

• Sudden increase in hair shedding
• Clumps falling out
• Hairs coming out excessively when refreshing every day
• Excessive shedding when running hands through
• Bald spots, receding hairline, widening of part
• Loss of density or a smaller ponytail

Common Causes of Excessive Shedding

There are endless causes of excessive shedding, but some of the most common are listed below. Most of the causes of abnormal shedding are due to internal conditions. Abornal shedding is usually temporary and will eventually stop. Hair can take a long time to grow back.

• Family history
• Age
• Poor nutrition
• Quick weight loss or major diet changes
• Stress or trauma
• Hormonal changes
• Pregnancy
• Medical conditions: anemia, thyroid disorders
• Medications
• Illness, some notice excessive shedding 2-3 months after illness
• Surgery

How to Reduce Shedding

• Reduce stress
• Eat a balanced diet: proteins, healthy fats, and plenty of fruits and veggies
• Take supplements
• Stimulate blood flow to the scalp with scalp massages
• Careful with washing and styling upside down – this always causes more shedding for me when I wash upside down
• Clarify regularly to keep the and keep the scalp free of build-up and balanced. I recommend the Curlsmith Detox Kit (get FREE scalp massager worth $15 the Detox Kit). Review and tutorial here.
• Focus on length retention by preventing breakage
• Laser therapy

I’ve been testing the Curlsmith Hair Growth Starter Kit, which contains the Ultimate Lengths 30 Day Therapy Supplements, Scalp Stimulating Booster, and Full Lengths Density Elixir. They’re designed to be used together for the best results at promoting hair growth.

The Ultimate Lengths 30-Day Therapy supplements help nourish thinning hair and promote existing hair growth from within. They contain Keratin, Collagen, Biotin, OptiMSM, and other natural actives. OpiMSM is which is methylsulfonylmethane (MSM), an organic sulfur-containing nutrient. These combined ingredients help nourish your hair during the Anagen phase of the hair growth cycle. Read more on Curlsmith.com.

Curlsmith’s Scalp Stimulating Booster is a leave-in treatment applied to the scalp every morning to stimulate hair follicles. It contains stimulating actives such Baicapil™ and Anagain™ that help create the perfect environment for hair follicles. When rubbing in the Booster, it has a bit of a foaming feeling which makes it great for refreshing the scalp. Read more on Curlsmith.com.

The Full Lengths Density Elixir is a nightly serum that contains natural calming ingredients and 5 clinically-proven actives (Redensyl™, Capixyl™, Procapil™, Baicapil™, Anagain™) that help create the perfect environment for hair follicles. It’s a water-y formula that is easy to distribute and absorbs quickly. It doesn’t leave a greasy feeling on the scalp or weigh down my hair. Read more on Curlsmith.com.

My Experience with Shedding

The past few months I’ve noticed significantly more shedding than normal. I was sick about 3 months ago so it could be from that. I haven’t noticed any major bald spots or hairline receding, but I did take before and after photos to see if the Curlsmith products make a difference in my density.

At the time I filmed the video and took my after photos, it had only been about 20 days so I don’t feel like I have any major improvements. There could be a difference in parting in back crown area photos above. However in the photo of my hairline, it does seem a little less transparent. I haven’t noticed a major difference in the amount of shedding yet, maybe just a little bit less. It’s hard to track but I’m going to continue taking photos for 90 days.

One major difference I’ve noticed from the Curlsmith Ultimate Lengths 30-Day Therapy supplements is my nails have grown so fast. My cuticles are also growing in much quicker which is something I’ve never noticed with supplements before. My eyelashes seems thicker as well. I wish I had taken before/after photos of those but I didn’t expect the supplements to also help with them.

I’m going to continue using the urlsmith Hair Growth Starter Kit for 3 months and do an updated video.

Also, the starter kit lasted about a month with using it daily, so if you wanted to use it for 3-months you would need to purchase 3 kits.

Products Mentioned:

• Curlsmith Hair Growth Starter Kit
  • Curlsmith Ultimate Lengths 30 Day Therapy Supplements
  • Curlsmith Scalp Stimulating Booster
  • Curlsmith Full Lengths Density Elixir
• Curlsmith Detox Kit, get FREE scalp massager worth $15 the Detox Kit
  • Curlsmith Super Slip Pre-Biotic Primer
  • Curlsmith Wash & Scrub Detox Pro-Biotic Shampoo
  • Curlsmith Post-Biotic Calming Conditioner