Water hardness or hard water is a type of water that has high levels of dissolved calcium and magnesium as well as other minerals. While hard water may be beneficial for drinking, supplying the body with the minerals it needs, it can take a toll on your hair. “Why does hard water cause hair loss?” The short answer is that yes, hard water can accelerate or exacerabte hair loss.
In the following article, we will help you understand how to know if you have hard water, how it can damage your hair, and how you can reverse hair loss from hard water.
How to Know if I Have Hard Water
Because hard water has high concentrations of minerals, such as calcium, these minerals will react with the soap to create a film of residue that you can feel on your skin or visibly see on glass items after washing them. This film happens when the soap reacts with the calcium creating what we usually call a soap scum.
Likewise, you will notice a milky white residue in your water accompanied by a salty or bitter taste or an unpleasant smell. Similarly, hard water can cause chalky white residue on faucets and showerheads.
The minerals in hard water typically come from water picking them up as they flow through soil and rock.
A more direct way to measure water hardness is through using water kits that have strips that you dip into the water and that change color based on the mineral content of the water. There are also electronic devices that automatically give you an exact reading.
You can use the following scale in parts per million:
- 0–60 ppm (0–3.5 gpg): Soft water
- 61–120 ppm (3.5–7 gpg): Moderately hard water
- 121–180 ppm (7–10.5 gpg): Hard water
- 181+ ppm (10.5+ gpg): Very hard water
How Does Hard Water Cause Hair Loss?
Hard water can cause hair loss through multiple indirect ways, one of which is mineral buildup on the hair and the scalp. The mineral deposits on the scalp can clog hair follicles, preventing them from properly and efficiently nourishing the hair. Likewise, hard water strips the natural oils that your scalp produces from your hair causing dryness and breakage.
Over repeated exposure, hard water can lead to conditions like dandruff and folliculitis by creating an imbalance in the natural oils in the scalp. Unhealthy scalp conditions can adversely impact hair loss, accelerating the process of hair shedding. Research shows that while hard water alone is unlikely to directly cause hair loss, it can worsen existing hair health issues.
How Do I Know If Hard Water Is Damaging My Hair?
If you feel like hard water might be damaging or accelerating damage on your hair, you should look out for the following symptoms first:
- Dullness and lack of shine in the hair. This happens when the minerals coat the hair shaft and prevent it from reflecting light.
- Itchy or flaky scalp. Mineral buildup on the scalp will irritate it, leading to itching, and as it flakes it creates a dandruff-like appearance.
How Much Hair Fall Is Normal?
The average rate of natural hair fall per day is 50 – 100 hair strands. This range is what we consider to be normal and is not a cause of concern. However, if you notice that your hair is shedding a lot more where it clogs your shower or you start to visibly see patches in your scalp; then it is worth investigating the cause of your hair loss.
If you suspect hard water is the cause of your hair loss, then it is worth it to investigate this. However, hard water alone is likely not the cause of excessive hair shedding.
You could be dealing with androgenic alopecia, for instance, which is a very common cause of hair loss among young men. This type of hair loss becomes especially progressive in the early 20s and gets worse with age. In the case of androgenic alopecia, you can try to stop the hair loss through minoxidil and finasteride. But these do not always work on men and generally show more success in women. Likewise, they can tamper with your hormones and hence induce several side effects.
The best and only permanent solution for pattern hair loss is hair transplantation. As the most successful hair loss treatment, hair transplantation in Turkey is also affordable and produces extremely natural looking results.
Will Hair Loss From Hard Water Grow Back?
Yes, hair can grow back after hard water damage. But you need to understand that hard water is not a direct cause of hair loss. Instead, it creates an environment that accelerates hair loss.
Let us say you have a condition like a pattern hair loss, traction alopecia, alopecia areata, nutritional deficiencies, or stress and lack of sleep; hard water will only speed up your hair loss.
This is because scalp health along with a balanced diet and healthy stress management all come together when deciding the fate of your hair. You need to take care of these three areas in your life for better growth.
So you need to address the underlying cause of your hair loss to successfully reverse hair loss. If you have no underlying cause of hair loss and all the damage is from repeated exposure to hard water, then you can expect your hair to grow back in 3 months after switching to soft water.
Reversing the additional damage of hard water on your hair will include lifestyle changes that will restore the natural oil balance in your scalp to moisturize the scalp and support follicle health.
Can Hard Water Hair Damage Be Fixed?
Yes, you can reverse the hair damage from hard water by implementing the following steps:
1- Install a water softener
You can turn hard water into soft water with a water softend. A water softener is basically a shower filter that significantly reduces or completely eliminates the calcium and magnesium minerals in the hard water. This will ensure that you do not expose your scalp to mineral buildup.
2- Clarifying Shampoo
Once you have dealt with the direct source of damage in your hard water and you have successfully softened it, it is time to unclog your pores and hair follicles to restore their normal functions.
You can achieve this through clarifying shampoos which are shampoos designed to clear the impurities from your scalp. Clarifying shampoos can be drying since they’re designed to remove any residue including natural oils on the scalp, it’s advisable to use them once or twice weekly for 2 – 3 weeks.
3- Moisturizing and Oiling Your Scalp
Once you have cleaned your scalp it is important to simultaneously moisturize it. Oiling with castor oil and vitamin E or with either olive oil or coconut oil can restore the natural oil balance in your scalp.
These oils do not only promote scalp hair but protect damage on the hair and help prevent further damage.
The Take Away
While hard water creates the conditions that promote hair loss, it can’t be the primary cause. Hair loss happens due to a combination of hereditary factors, negligence, lack of care, nutritional deficiencies, and stress.
To tackle hair loss, you need to check the root cause of the problem, it could be hormonal fluctuations in women, pattern hair loss, or an autoimmune disorder. Once you tackle the source of hair loss, you can promote hair growth by keeping your hair moisturized, protecting your hair, and supporting its growth by consuming a nutritious diet.
