It is normal to shed between 50 to 100 hairs per day. This is because of the hair’s growth cycle, which consists of 3 phases: anagen, catagen and telogen. The anagen phase is the growth phase of the hair in which the hair is actively growing. This phase usually lasts 2 to 7 years, and normally 85-90% of scalp hairs are in this phase at any given time. The catagen phase is known as the transition phase in which hair shaft production is completed. The telogen phase, otherwise known as the rest phase, is the last phase of the growth cycle. In this phase, a club hair is fully formed resulting in a hard, white and dry material at the root and the hair is eventually shed from the scalp.
Those with Androgenetic Alopecia, hair shedding is in excess of 100 hairs per day, as follicular miniaturisation causes the hair’s growth cycle to become progressively shorter. This results in significantly less hairs in the anagen phase at any given time, which is why hair shedding is more frequent in those with Androgenetic Alopecia.