Every month our beauty department in-box fills up with e-mail from readers struggling with some aspect of their appearance. But none of the mail is as emotionally charged as the letters from women dealing with hair loss—an issue that will affect up to 60 percent of us at some point. Yikes. The good news: “In almost all cases, you can get improvement, even if it’s just stopping further loss,” says trichologist (hair and scalp specialist) David Kingsley, PhD. “And about 80 percent of the time, regrowth is a possibility.”
When it’s temporary… If your thinning is triggered by a specific event—childbirth or a high fever or a period of intense stress—it will probably manifest as excessive (more than 100 hairs a day), and sudden, allover shedding. Once the trauma passes, your hair will grow back within a few months. And if a blood test traces your widening part to a thyroid imbalance, endocrine disorder (like polycystic ovarian syndrome), dietary deficiency, or a specific medication, your hair will most likely return to its former glory once the underlying issue is addressed.