Women's hair loss & thinning

Typical causes

• Female-pattern loss — a spread-out thinning, clearest along the part.
• Telogen effluvium — short-term shedding after stress, illness, childbirth, or crash dieting.
• Thyroid trouble, low iron, or hormone shifts — all worth screening for.

What's safe and works

Minoxidil (2% or 5%) is the well-evidenced first move for women. Red light therapy, microneedling, PRP, and supplements such as Nutrafol can supplement it. Finasteride and dutasteride are generally off the table for women who could become pregnant because of birth-defect risk — a doctor may suggest hormonal routes like spironolactone.

When to see someone

Abrupt, patchy, or rapid shedding — or thinning with other symptoms — deserves a medical work-up to rule out treatable causes. A Fresno clinic or dermatologist can identify the pattern and set a plan, and suitable female candidates can also consider a transplant.