Cosmetic plastic and hair transplant surgeon explains social media's role is causing hair loss among teens

A lion’s share of a teen’s waking hours is spent on social media, which in turn has adverse effects on physical health, including hair.

More and more teenagers are suffering from hair thinning, with hair fall becoming a serious concern even before they turn eighteen. While there are many factors, from hormonal changes to poor haircare and environmental stressors, one commonly overlooked contributor is social media stress. Whether it’s stressing over looking perfect like the influencers with perfect blowouts on their feeds or chasing the latest hair trends, teenagers are silently suffering from social media stress, and this, in turn, affects their hair health.

Dr Viral Desai, cosmetic plastic and hair transplant surgeon, and medical director at DHI India, shared with HT Lifestyle about social media's influence in teenagers' lives.

He said, “Social media has become an integral part of our lives. Teenagers spend hours in scrolling through feeds, which unknowingly results in comparison of our lives to others. This comparison and competition to keep up with all the trends lead to stress and anxiety, ultimately hair loss.”

He further described the many consequences stemming from high screen time. He listed out some general health demerits as well, which include poor eyesight, compromised skin barrier, anxiety from comparing themselves to others on the feed, and insomnia from delayed bedtime because of screen time addiction. Moreover, the unrealistic beauty standards on social media create psychological issues like stress and anxiety, which indirectly result in hair loss. There are certain hair conditions which respond more to stress, such as telogen effluvium and alopecia areata.

Dr Viral shared a guide, covering how social media affects hair health in detail, and what teenagers can do about it:

5 ways social media affects hair health

Social media is one of the major sources of stress among teenagers, which in turn affect hair health. (Shutterstock)

1. Weak hair follicles from lack of proper nutrition because of cutting out food groups after seeing on social media: Overconsumption of social media leads to unhealthy lifestyle and eating habits, which in turn will result in a lack of nutrition in the body. Lack of nutrition is one of the basic reasons for unavoidable hair loss.
2. Scalp issues: Stress and anxiety caused by social media can compromise the overall health of the scalp and result in hair loss at an early age.
3. Hair thinning or compromised texture: To keep up with the competition regarding beauty standards, teenagers start hair styling, colouring, etc,. on a regular basis which damages the texture, thickness, hair fall rate of their hair.
4. Hair loss: Telogen effluvium and alopecia areata are one of the most common conditions because of stress and anxiety.

How can teens prevent hair loss, which happens due to stress?

1. Limiting the use of social media is the most important step. Teens may decide and make an individual routine to set a limit its use.
2. Do not get influenced by the unrealistic beauty standards and work on their own lifestyle habits, including diet and sleep.
3. Regular exercising and doing outdoor activities can also help.

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.