She thought it would go away. A few months later, she found large amounts of hair in the shower drain, and noticed that the once tiny spot had grown and two others were forming. It is a fairly common condition affecting about one in 100 people. The scalp is the most commonly affected part of the body, but men's beards or any hair-bearing part of the body can also be affected. Alopecia areata likely is an autoimmune disease, where the body's defenses attack the body's cells.
Hair grows about six inches per year.
People with alopecia areata have foIlicles that become smaIler and slow down growth dramatically, producing abnormal hairs that break close to the surface of the scalp, she explains. During this time, no hair is visible. The less hair that's been lost, the more likely it will grow back. In more severe cases, hair sometimes doesn't grow back. According to the National Alopecia Areata Foundation , one of five persons with the disease has a family member that has had the same condition.