14yo DD - hair going thin

[reinventionn]

DD1 (14) - As she hit puberty a couple of years ago I noticed her hair had got a tad thinner. In the last month or so I’ve noticed it more, like you can see more scalp when it parts.

I have thick hair, though have been grey since my 20s, DH has been balding since his 20s, though his hair was never thick, and MIL now has alopecia. So our hair genes are prob not the strongest.

DD1 hasn’t really noticed it, but after washing it today, DD2 has been teasing her saying her hair looks bald (nice one DD2). She’s otherwise generally healthy, pretty regular periods, does her sport several times a week, sleeps well etc. She very occasionally gets sores at the side of her mouth when run down or after a cold. They aren’t cold sores but doc had previously said could be lack of vit d but she was never tested.

I’m planning on taking her for a health check with the doc in the new year, though think I’ll have to email them in advance about her hair as don’t want to highlight it to DD so not sure how we navigate that without making her paranoid or too conscious of it.

Just wondering if anyone has experienced similar with their teen? I am hoping that it’s “just puberty” and it’ll thicken up or at least not get worse but I’m quite worried, specially because of MIL’s alopecia.

Have you had her iron levels checked - for anemia?
i would say it’s usual for a teen girl to have thinning hair.
I’d ask for all the usual vitamins to be checked. Maybe PCOS as well - that can cause hair loss.

Any chance she's pulling it out? DS went through a phase of bad anxiety when he was 12/13 which included twisting his hair and effectively ripping it out at the crown. We only realised when we spotted his bald patch. It continued for a few months until the anxiety resolved and the behaviour stopped, and it all grew back.

I had read that it’s normal for hair to get a bit thinner in puberty.

I guess the doc will suggest what tests to do… will look into iron and pcos symptoms… thanks

No she’s definitely not pulling it out, and it’s not patchy, just overall less heavier/thicker than it used to be.

Does sound like anaemia with the lip corner cracking too.

Underactive thyroid can also affect hair loss.

no help with the hair but there’s a sign up at our doctors office saying everyone should take at least the minimum concentration of vitamin d. I’d start on that

Ask for a blood test to rule out coeliac disease - this can cause malabsorption of nutrients, leading to low b12, vitamin d, iron etc....

Any tiredness/weight gain? I would want a thyroid test for sure.

I had this and was diagnosed with coeliac disease in my late 20s. I remember going with my mum to the GP arranged about 14 and the male GP was so dismissive because my hair still looked reasonably thick, but I knew it wasn’t like it used to be and he wouldn’t listen.

I’m a thinning hair sufferer but I’m blaming peri menopause -certainly hormonal changes can affect hair

as a starting point I’d be speaking to a friendly GP- ours would I think speak to me without the dd present if I could get a picture - and at the very least a set of blood tests to rule out vit/iron deficiencies and thyroid issues should be in order

I feel for your dd, it’s a very difficult thing to experience and probably especially so at her age

Ds had thinning hair. I think it was down to stress as it did stop thinning after his exams. I got him to take vitamin tablets too.

I had really thinning hair a couple of years ago, I was low in iron and b12 it's growing back now but took a while. I usually have very thick curly hair

Thank you all. I actually spoke to DD1 last night about it and she said she’d noticed it too, about a month ago. Bless her heart. So I feel relieved it’s a bit more out in the open.

We’ve discussed stopping using hair products, not that she used much - the occasional gel for a slick back bun maybe twice a month, and dry shampoo every couple of days.

We live abroad and we’ve struggled to get the right shampoo given the water here and had settled on an L’Oréal one for years after trying loads, but they’ve changed the formula recently and it’s making all our hair gross. So that’s not helping either.

I won’t start her on any supplements or vitamins until she’s seen the doctor as don’t want to inflate readings.

She’s not especially tired I don’t think. Loves a lie-in these days but so do her pals by all accounts…