Hair and Puberty: Hair Treatment for Adolescents

Contents
Why Does Hair Change?
Greasy Hair
Dandruff
Hair Loss During Adolescence
Our Treatment Tips

Why Does Hair Change?

Hair changes at puberty because its development starts to depend on male sex hormones (androgens) and female hormones (oestrogen and progesterone). The hormones become suddenly abundant, which explains the change.

Distribution. Girls mainly secrete oestrogen and progesterone, but they also produce androgen hormones, although 20 times less than boys do. In contrast, boys mainly secrete androgens, but simultaneously produce female hormones, equivalently 20 times less than girls do.

Despite the fact that girls produce so few of them, androgens are the cause for both genders’ hair disorders. The advantage girls have is that the female hormones act against androgens and continuously counterbalance their damaging effect. That explains why hair disorder in women is often milder and easier to manage than in men.

Greasy Hair

Hair becomes greasier because of a whole chain of hormonal reactions: the new influx of androgens makes sebaceous glands significantly larger, which increases their production of sebum. The sebum then overruns the scalp and the hair.

Sebaceous glands are the small glands located right under the skin and attached to each hair follicle (i.e., the sac from which the hair grows). At adolescence, they become entirely controlled by androgens.

Their secretion, a greasy substance called sebum, is meant to run on the skin to lubricate and protect the epidermis and the hair system. But at adolescence, its overproduction leads to an excess of grease, which starts aggregating in toxins in the hair follicle, therefore potentially asphyxiating the hair roots. Then, it empties itself on the surface, which creates excess grease in the hair and often causes an unpleasant smell.

The smell is due to the sebum’s greases, and caused by their oxidation when in contact with the air. To get rid of it, don’t be fooled by the scents, even natural ones, advertised by shampoo brands. They will only have a passing and superficial effect. You need to act more in depth, under the skin, with a sufficiently penetrating cleansing lotion (such as Lait Clauderer #1). That will enable you to properly clean the greasy toxins stagnating inside the hair follicle before the sebum oxidizes in the open air.

For your information, it is also worth noting that sebaceous glands are what cause acne in adolescents: because the sebum is in excess, its exit canal towards the skin is blocked. That creates bacteria, which invade the grease and lead to the inflammations that bring pimples and blacks spots on the face, as well as seborrheic dermatitis on the scalp.

Dandruff

Dandruff is caused by a fungus, the pityriasis, which can develop on the scalp at puberty. The fungus, for which adolescent hair provides an ideal breeding ground, feeds itself on the fatty acids it finds in the sebum.

That is why dandruff and the itching that often comes with it are characteristic of puberty.

Hair Loss at Adolescence

FOR GIRLS

If you lose more hair than normal, you should first determine the characteristics of your hair loss. How intense is it? Does it spread on the whole of the head or is it localised to specific zones of the scalp such as the central parting, the frontal zone or the sides? Does you hair have a tendency to thin out? Has it changed texture? The answers to those questions, along with many other factors (such as the regularity and intensity of your period, your family history, whether or not you take contraceptives and if so their composition…), are essential in order to determine your type of adolescent hair loss, and therefore be able to treat it adequately.

FOR BOYS

If your hair starts to lighten or thin out, even slightly, you can almost be sure that it is the beginning of androgenetic alopecia. You should not let it develop because it will not stop on its own. In other words, if you do not start immediately treating your hair regularly, you have good chances of ending up balding as an adult. The precociousness of your symptoms is a sure sign of how serious the hair loss is, but it is not the only one: others come into play, such as environmental factors, your family history, how healthy your lifestyle is, and whether or not you make the wise choice of following a treatment.

Roaccutane
Both girls and boys should be wary of isotretinoin (retinoid) based anti-acne treatment.  Sold under the name Roaccutane® (or Accutane®), the treatment acts, among other things, by reducing the sebaceous glands’ action. It therefore makes the hair less greasy, but it can also make it too dry and cause irritations of the scalp. Its prolonged use can even have an incidence on the hair’s normal renewal and lead to diffuse hair loss: local treatments are then needed throughout the treatment to prevent drying, irritation and itching of the scalp as well as enable your hair to recreate an environment that will favour its development.

Our Treatment Tips

FOR GREASY HAIR AND DANDRUFF
Here are some mostly simple common sense tips for better everyday hygiene that will enable you to efficiently control, and even eradicate, the hair problems linked to adolescence. We strongly recommend that you follow them, as they will help you significantly improve you physical appearance. To feel good about your hair is an easy target to reach, and is a great boost to self-confidence.

FOR HAIR LOSS
Whether you are a boy or a girl, we recommend an an In-Depth Clauderer diagnosis of your hair in order to gain a clear overview of the situation. The examination consists of a complete checkup of your capillary condition, as well as of the roots and keratin in your hair, and will help you select the anti-loss treatment you need.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION FOR GIRLS
Greasy Hair and Sebum
Dandruff and Itchiness
How to Identify Your Type of Hair Loss?
Thinner and Fewer Regrowing Hair (with sketches). What To Do
Hair Treatments FAQ
DAILY Hair Loss: What Is the Norm?
Your Diet and Hair Loss

FOR TREATMENT
Anti-Hair Loss Treatments in France
Clauderer Anti-Hair Loss Treatments 
3 Massages to Stimulate Regrowing Hair
Clauderer In-Depth Diagnosis

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION FOR BOYS
Greasy Hair and Sebum
Dandruff and Itchiness
Impact of Androgen Hormones on Hair Loss
Thinner and Fewer Regrowing Hair (with sketches). What To Do
Hair Treatments FAQ
Daily Hair Loss: What Is the Norm?
Your Diet and Hair Loss

FOR TREATMENT
Anti-Hair Loss Treatments in France
Clauderer Anti-Hair Loss Treatments
3 Massages to Stimulate Regrowing Hair
Clauderer In-Depth Diagnosis

Diagnosis In-depth Clauderer Diagnosis: Have a complete hair checkup