Like adults, children can experience hair loss due to skin conditions, diseases, or hereditary. Fortunately, a much smaller proportion of children have to struggle with hair loss than adults. Children who experience hair loss should be diagnosed by a pediatrician or dermatologist immediately. Hair loss in children is not normal; it is an unmistakable indication that something has gone awry.

Tinea capitis (ringworm) is the leading cause of children’s hair loss. This condition is caused by a fungus on the body’s skin that attacks the hair shaft and follicles. In children, tinea capitis mainly affects the scalp, eyebrows, and eyelashes. The hair loss is patchy, often with areas of noticeably shorter hair. The hair may break at the base of the shaft, leaving a series of dots that resemble razor stubble. The scalp may also have gray flakes.

Approximately one in 1,000 children has alopecia areata. Scientists believe that it is caused by an immune system malfunction. When children are affected, they have smooth bald patches of skin on their scalps. No broken hairs are left behind. The hair loss is rapid; it seems to appear overnight. Nearly 5% of children with alopecia areata will develop alopecia totalis, losing all of the hair on their scalp. A small number of children develop alopecia universalis, a total loss of body hair.

Some children suffer hair loss from hairstyles that pull the hair tightly, like braids and ponytails. Chemical hair treatments and burns that result in trauma to the hair shaft also cause hair loss in children. Friction from unconscious or intentional rubbing of the hair puts enough stress on the hair shaft to cause hair loss in children. Some children have a psychological disorder, trichotillomania that causes them to repeatedly pull and twist their hair. The constant trauma to the hair shaft causes severe breakage.

Telogen effluvium, disruption of the hair’s normal growth and resting cycle, occurs less frequently in children. The primary causes are an acute illness or severe injury, high fevers, and prolonged emotional stress. Vitamin A toxicity, surgery, and Accutane, an acne prescription have also been linked to children’s hair loss.