Women's hair and hormones

Testosterone and hair loss in women

Women make testosterone too, in the ovaries and the adrenal glands, and a level outside the usual range can be linked to changes in hair, skin and the menstrual cycle. Specialists add it when hair loss comes with signs of androgen excess, such as acne, extra facial or body hair or irregular cycles.

SHBG and hair loss

SHBG carries testosterone through your body, and the testosterone attached to it cannot be used. That is why specialists read it together with total testosterone: the total alone does not show how much of it your body can actually use.

DHEA-S and hair loss

DHEA-S is a second source of androgens, made by the adrenal glands. Read next to testosterone, it helps tell whether extra androgens come mainly from the adrenals or from the ovaries.

Prolactin and hair loss

Prolactin can change with your cycle and after a baby. A high level can affect your periods and slow down the hormones that control ovulation, which is why it is on the list when hair loss comes with irregular cycles.

Estradiol and hair loss

Estradiol, the main form of oestrogen, plays a part in your menstrual cycle and your skin, and both low and high levels can matter. It is on the list because hair thinning and hormone change often share the same months, after a baby or in the years around menopause.

LH, FSH and hair loss

LH and FSH are the signals from your brain that run the ovaries. Read together, they help show whether a hormone change starts in those signals or in the ovaries themselves, which matters when hair loss comes with cycles that have changed.

Iron, thyroid, vitamins and hair loss

Low iron stores are one of the most common links to diffuse hair loss, above all in women who menstruate, and ferritin can be low even when the cell count is normal. Both an underactive and an overactive thyroid are associated with diffuse hair loss. Vitamin D and zinc tend to sit lower in people losing hair, and B12 is a common addition on specialist lists, especially with a restricted or mostly plant-based diet. High-sensitivity CRP helps read your ferritin, because inflammation can push it up even when iron is low.

It does not include DHT or progesterone, and it does not diagnose any condition. If your only symptom is more hair in the drain and your cycles are regular, our hair loss test is the shorter version.

Which hormones are tested for hair loss in women?

Specialists look at testosterone with SHBG, DHEA-S, estradiol, prolactin, LH and FSH when hair thinning comes with irregular cycles or signs of androgen excess. All of them are in this test, together with the thyroid and nutrient markers.

When does a hair loss and hormones test make sense?

It fits women whose hair is thinning alongside irregular or absent periods, acne, extra facial or body hair, the first year after a baby, or the years around menopause. It also fits anyone who has done our hair loss test and now wants the hormone side read in the same context.

Is this the same as the Female hormone test?

No. The Female hormone test is built around cycle and fertility questions and includes progesterone and androstenedione. This test is built around hair and adds iron, vitamin D, B12, zinc, the cell count and inflammation.

Can I do this test after having a baby?

Yes. Hair loss in the months after a birth is common, and this test reads both the nutrient and the hormone side of it.

Should I stop my supplements before the test?

Check the preparation shown with your order. If a supplement is not mentioned there, ask the laboratory when you arrive.

Where can I get a hair loss and hormones test?

You buy the test online and go to a partner laboratory in Barcelona, Valencia, Madrid or Málaga. In Barcelona and Madrid you go during collection hours. In Valencia and Málaga you go with an appointment. Get this test with Diagnostic Station.

The results of this test are for guidance only and are not a diagnosis. Talk them through with your doctor.